About Civic OS
Civic OS is a low/no-code software platform which allows government agencies and non-profit organizations to build and tailor their own information systems and logic without writing code.
Civic OS is a Low-profit LLC which allows us to stay focused on our mission of empowering municipalities and mission-driven non-profits to serve their communities effectively.
Goals
Raise the level of abstraction
We believe that most information systems or processes can be abstracted in a way that a non-technical person can describe it if provided with the right tools. Similarly, the system for storing this information should allow that same non-technical person to understand and (most critically) contribute to the system’s creation.
Civic OS provides the platform for automatically translating concepts and ideas into a concrete structure that handles the most common tasks of information management: Definition, Input, and Display.
Tools, not Products
Just as no single community is identical to another, no agency’s needs are 100% identical. Whether you’re a municipality managing permits or a non-profit coordinating programs, Civic OS adapts to your unique mission.
Where similarities exist, templates may be shared within a community of users to ease the burden of creating systems from nothing.
Runs anywhere
This software allows government agencies and non-profits to set up and administer their own instance. You own the data and the software.
Who We Serve
Civic OS serves two primary sectors united by a common commitment to community benefit:
Government Agencies
From small townships to metro areas, we help municipalities improve transparency, streamline operations, and engage citizens through open-by-default information systems.
Non-Profit Organizations
Mission-driven organizations need tools that align with their values. We serve non-profits working in:
- Community development and advocacy
- Social services and humanitarian aid
- Environmental and civic engagement
- Faith-based community outreach
- Educational and youth programs
- Charitable foundations and grant-making
Our open-source approach ensures that technology investments serve the public good rather than enriching private corporations—whether you’re accountable to citizens or donors.
Values
Open Government
Transparency and accountability are foundational to successful democratic governance. In order for citizens to be informed, they must have ready access to information to make good decisions about who to support and how to vote in elections and on referenda.
Access to information is necessary to allow citizens to collaborate in government. Civic OS furthers this goal by adopting an open-by-default stance to most information. Unless there is a good reason (for example, Personally Identifiable Information), data is accessible, browsable, and aggregatable.
These principles of transparency and accountability apply equally to non-profit organizations. Donors, volunteers, and beneficiaries deserve clear visibility into how resources are used and decisions are made. Whether serving citizens or community members, Civic OS maintains the same commitment to openness.
Open Government is a very broad topic. The OECD has written extensively on this topic.
Open Data
All data is not created equal. In order to make data open and usable the Open Data Charter has published 6 key principles:
- Open By Default
- Timely and Comprehensive
- Accessible and Usable
- Comparable and Interoperable
- For Improved Governance & Citizen Engagement
- For Inclusive Development and Innovation
Civic OS supports these principles by enforcing structured data and automatically creating Application Program Interfaces (APIs) to provide appropriate access to the stored data.
Open Source
The term “open source” can have a number of meanings but Civic OS uses the definition consistent with “free software” according to the Free Software Foundation.
The two primary outcomes of this philosophy are democratic development and lower cost of entry. Democratic development allows entities to contribute to development (in code, financial, and administrative contributions) to influence the system’s evolution. This results in a system that is useful for a broad range of diverse organizations. Lower cost of entry is realized by the $0 licensing fees inherent in Free/Open Source software. When development is performed in the open, the cost is shared by an entire community.
Software employed by governments and non-profits best serves the public interest when development is shared with the community (as in AGPL) rather than allowing value to be captured by private corporations. This approach aligns with the stewardship responsibilities both sectors share.
Serving the Public Good
Our three core values—Open Government, Open Data, and Open Source—unite our work across both government and non-profit sectors.
Open Government principles of transparency and accountability apply just as powerfully to non-profits. Whether you’re accountable to citizens or donors, Civic OS is designed for openness.
Open Data empowers both municipalities and charitable organizations to share information effectively. Structured, accessible data serves the public interest regardless of sector.
Open Source development ensures that neither governments nor non-profits see their technology investments captured by private corporations. When code is shared freely, the entire community benefits.
These values reflect our conviction that technology serving communities—whether through public services or charitable mission—should itself be built on principles of openness and shared benefit.