About Us
We are civic-minded residents committed to working with the City of Charlotte, Mecklenburg County, Community Organizations and more to improve accessibility and services in Charlotte. We advocate for open government, open source and open data. We use technology as a tool to provide accessible services and address community needs.
Our Vision & Mission
We believe government can work for the people, by the people, in the digital age. We’re a volunteer-driven organization that utilizes the tools and practices of the digital age to solve problems through advocacy, education, and projects.
We build solutions to real problems
Our volunteer army, Open Charlotte Brigade, creates solutions that address challenges relevant to our communities. We build real solutions by collaborating with the people they're for, ensuring that we're not designing the wrong systems or complicating things further. We also recognize that many problems can be resolved without code and we provide the space and connections for people of all skill sets and backgrounds to get involved.
Learn about our projectsWe advocate for open data
We believe public resources including data should be open, accessible, and friendly to all residents. That means not only should residents have access to public records, but those records should be available in a way that’s easy to request, receive, read, and utilize.
Learn more about open dataWe educate our community
Civic Engagement begins with education. Through our events we introduce residents to resources within our city from open data to ways they can communicate and engage with government.
Learn about our eventsLet's show what's possible
We meet frequently in-person to help teams collaborate, discuss our goals, and welcome new volunteers. Together we can show what's possible by building solutions that inspire change and make positive impacts on our city!
We expect all event attendees to adhere to Open Charlotte's Code of Conduct and Anti-Harassment Policy.
Our Leadership Team & Structure
Open Charlotte Brigade is a volunteer-driven organization and we invite anyone to help us grow the civic tech movement or help steer our efforts in doing so. Our core leadership team is made up of volunteers who are the most familiar and engaged in driving individual areas of our brigade.
Jill Bjers
Director / Brigade Captain
Andrew Natoli
Projects Lead
Kazi Smith
Marketing Lead
Jim Van Fleet
Senior Advisor
Ryan Edge
Technology Lead
Dawn Peterson
Communications Lead
The best way to get involved in brigade leadership is by attending one of our leadership meetings which are generally held during the second half of our community nights. You can view the notes from past leadership meetings for 2019 here.