An App that helps women take one small step when everything feels like too much—by turning lives experiences into simple, doable actions.

Built at YouCode Hackathon 2026 by Amy Shen & Loriane Untz

Why SideBySide? There are moments where you know exactly what might help but you can’t bring yourself to do it. Not because you don’t know, but because everything feels like too much. For women in shelters, this isn’t occasional—it’s constant. Between emotional stress, shared spaces, and unpredictable routines, even simple actions can feel overwhelming.

Most tools try to help by giving more advice, more resources, more steps. But in moments of overwhelm: Attention is fragmented Energy is limited Even small decisions feel heavy.

We built SideBySide because we believe that in those moments, you don’t need more information—you need help starting.

SideBySide is an anonymous, community-powered platform where users can share what they’re going through and receive real, actionable steps from others who have been in similar situations.

Instead of long advice or overwhelming threads, every response is structure to start with: One simple step you can take right now.

The app lets you: Post anonymously about what’s going on Tag your situation (childcare, mental health, finances, etc.) View responses from others in similar contexts Get immediate, actionable first steps Filter posts by tags and relevance Explore structure responses designed to be quick and usable

SideBySide isn’t just another forum or advice platform. It is specifically designed for low-capacity moments, personalised for each community. We don’t assume users have the energy to read, compare and decide. Every response is structured to reduce effort and support action.

Action over information Instead of abstract advice, we surface real steps that have worked for others

Cognitive offloading Users don’t need to figure out what applies to them, the system brings forward something they can try immediately

Community, not anonymity alone Support comes from people in similar environments and situations, not random strangers on the internet.

Java (frontend implementation) Swing (UI) Early ideation and layout planning done through sketching (Procreate)

Building for real-world constraints meant constantly balancing: simplicity vs usefulness accessibility vs feature complexity emotional sensitivity vs open community input We also had to design without relying on: personal devices uninterrupted time or high digital literacy

We designed SideBySide with expansion in mind: Translation support for multilingual accessibility Audio playback for users with low literacy or limited focus Content moderation systems to ensure safety and prevent harmful advice Staff integration tools to support monitoring and engagement

SideBySide isn’t just for users, it’s designed to work within shelter ecosystems.

Staff can: Monitor and support discussions Help surface unanswered questions Bridge the gap for residents who can’t constantly access the platform

Built with ♡ by Loriane & Amy