About

A tool that delivers both intervention and care.

With the goal of improving community health, safety, and wellbeing, since January 2022, Sponge has been on a mission to uncover better ways to address the interconnected individual, environmental, and societal factors that influence issues such as homelessness, mental health, and substance use. After conducting a year-long extensive research, the opportunity we have uncovered lies in the rising sense of unsafety among the wider public due to conflicts with at-risk individuals, such as encampments, loitering, unsafe needle disposals, etc.

To address this opportunity, we created Hummingbird, a mobile application that allows people to request prompt intervention support from local community-based services during stressful situations involving at-risk individuals. By intervening in such situations, outreach workers not only resolve the conflict at hand, but also mitigate potential conflicts in the future by connecting at-risk individuals with services that support their needs.

How does it work?

Easy access to in-person support.

Envisioned impact

Facilitating a cycle of power.

Designed to mobilise resources and support within the community for the community, Hummingbird’s impact extends beyond the at-risk individuals to encompass everyone involved.

Collaborators

Our supportive community champions.

Hummingbird is created with the support and collaboration of local, regional, and national champions

who are deeply committed to the health and safety of our communities.

DIY Community Health is a non-profit based in Timmins, Ontario. It provides equitable health and social services to marginalized groups that face barriers to accessing traditional support streams, aiming to strengthen the local health and social support system.

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The Mushkegowuk Fire Keeper Patrol is a highly skilled team dedicated to connecting individuals with housing and well-being supports. Their outreach is culturally appropriate, incorporating an Indigenous perspective, along with traditional values and teachings.

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Radical Gardens is a local Ontario taste of place featuring different farmers’ and local producers’ ingredients. The restaurant’s commitment to sustainability, culinary excellence, and ever-evolving exploration of flavours make it a destination worth experiencing.

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FAQ

Helpful guides to get you started.

How to use our app and services safely?

Be discreet

Use the app when you’re at a safe distance or the person in crisis is distracted. Doing so in front of the person may lead to escalation.

Allow push notifications

Get notified on the status of your request to help minimize the time you spend on your phone during an active situation.

Avoid confrontation

Avoid confronting persons in crisis. Instead, keep a safe distance or create a barrier using objects like tables or chairs.

What services do we not offer?

Repair property damage

While we’ll certainly help de-escalate the emotions and behaviors of a person in crisis, we cannot repair damages resulted from their actions.

Enforce trespassing laws

When responding to requests that involve someone on your property, we’ll try to redirect the person to community resources but we cannot enforce any trespassing laws and force them to leave.

Remove active encampments

When responding to requests about encampments, we’ll clean up empty encampments or attempt to redirect the residents to community resources but we cannot remove an active encampment.

When to call emergency instead?