Nextdoor was created to bring neighbours together — this is important in good times and essential in times of need. That’s why we’re launching two new features to help you lend a hand now, when it matters most. The Help Map is now live and is an interactive map of your neighbourhood where you can mark yourself as someone who can help neighbours in need, but it also gives those in need an easy way to reach out to a neighbour privately and ask for help. Nextdoor Groups has also launched globally to aid the continued organisation of local help groups. We’ve already seen Neighbourhood Help Groups and Groups to support local businesses start in many Australian neighbourhoods.
For me, it was the email announcing that school would be closed that encouraged me to start a local Group. Unsure of what to do, but knowing I wasn’t alone, I invited the other parents in my classroom into a Group on Nextdoor. Instantly, we were a group of mums together, navigating to create a new normal for our kids.
As coronavirus went from an outbreak to a global pandemic, I saw my story mirrored across the country, replicated around the world. We were still only beta testing Groups in neighbourhoods, but there was a sudden flood of them forming organically; the number of groups created on Nextdoor in response to Covid-19 has doubled each day over the past week. Every day when I look at my own Nextdoor app, I see more groups forming in my neighbourhood: Parent Groups, Book Club Groups, Faith Groups. It gives me hope that even in this time when we are physically apart, we can still connect with our neighbours.
With neighbours around the world raising their hands to offer similar support, the Help Map creates a screenshot of your neighbourhood and its resources. Members can add themselves to the map detailing the errands or support they can help elderly and at risk neighbours with. Those who need help can visit the map to see who in their immediate and nearby neighbourhoods is offering help and send a private message.
It feels important to underline that the new features we’re launching today are inspired by the outpouring of kindness we’ve seen on the platform, across the world, in the light of a global pandemic. As we isolate ourselves at home to protect our health and our neighbours, we still need each other. Nextdoor will be here to help you stay connected to your neighbours, to help, to support, and to make positive change.
