A group of students from Recode Pro wants to apply their programming knowledge for the benefit of society.

Imagine a collaborative app, where users themselves create a network to inform about safe and friendly bars and commercial establishments for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer groups? Using technology for good was the challenge accepted by a group of young people who are part of the first Recode Pro class in Rio de Janeiro, a Recode employability program that aims to train young people in situations of social vulnerability as full-stack programmers in 4 months.

It is the first time the group ventures into the real development of an app. Larissa Monteiro, Gabriela Marciano, Junior Santana, Márcio Vinicius Barbosa, Anderson Barra, and Nathalia Rodrigues are between 19 and 26 years old and have big dreams: they want to use all the knowledge acquired in the programming course to expand the app’s functionalities and make a commercially viable tool available to the world.

The app, named Geni, already has the user interface practically ready. The second stage will be the programming of the internal codes, the so-called “back end”. Half of the group works on this development, and the other half is responsible for marketing and social media outreach. “We believe in our product and have high expectations because we know it is cool and will help many people. We have already received a lot of feedback and positive responses from LGBT people, so we decided to promote it to have a good audience when it’s ready,” celebrates Gabriela Marciano.

The app is expected to be available for download in March 2020, and the group will look for creative ways to compensate the developers. “We will seek funding through paid advertising and future partnerships, such as gamification and discounts at better-rated establishments,” explains Gabriela, revealing the new technology talents’ maturity and good business vision for social impact.

Learn more and follow the Geni app on social media: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

*Special thanks to Centro Universitário Celso Lisboa, which kindly provides the necessary infrastructure for Recode Pro’s class of 50 young people in Rio de Janeiro every day.

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