What We Do

Fractor Corporation is a nonprofit media company dedicated to encouraging civic participation through open source online and mobile technologies.  Our initial development is a simple, groundbreaking web application that matches news stories with opportunities for service.

Fractor: Act on Facts

Often the influx of daily news can be overwhelming. Disasters, violence, poverty, crime and war are the regular tally. Readers comment on the world being out of control or at least out of their control. They often ask, “What can I do?” Fractor offers a direct answer to this question.

Fractor is a groundbreaking web application and issue-based social network. Connecting news with relevant actions you can take to make the world a better place, Fractor dynamically links daily stories to the specific needs of non-profit organizations, whether they are requests for financial donations, volunteer opportunities, in-kind donations or online actions. By bringing a new level of interaction to news readership and activism, Fractor bridges the divide between inspiration and action, strengthens physical and virtual communities and adds new layers of engagement and interactivity within news and nonprofit communities.

In the Fractor interface, “Facts” and “acts” are organized on a single, intuitive page where every news story is linked to real-world actions that users can take.

Fractor gives news readers the tools to “act on facts.” For example, searching for news on an earthquake in Central America might bring up “acts” requesting humanitarian relief such as sending blankets, canned food and medical volunteers to the disaster zone. Similarly, stories about the crisis in Darfur might be paired with “acts” highlighting political action, educational opportunities and fundraising needs.

Once Fractor users have found “acts” that interest them, they complete these tasks in the real world. Networking and collaboration on the local level are encouraged through the site’s social hub. Fractor users can share their favorite actions and articles and collaborate to form action groups and find best practices.

Fractor’s goal is to provide the link between nonprofit problem solvers and the daily cycle of news and information. We allow individuals to become vested in the news they read and they see how they can immediately affect change.

At its essence, Fractor will encourage the spirit of civic activism and volunteerism that necessarily has its roots in a ‘think globally, act locally’ approach.

For a good overview article on Fractor, check out Aggregating, Recommending and Making a Difference: Fractor–Act on Facts

The Fractor prototype was made possible by a MacArthur Foundation Knowledge Networking Award