Community Driven Technology Solutions
Technology barriers hinder financial independence and quality of life for low-income individuals, people of color, adults with disabilities, and other frontline communities. suma’s community-driven tech solution removes these barriers, making essential goods and services more affordable.
Our Story
“Suma” means “sum, total, addition, or combination” in Spanish. The suma app aggregates opportunities for frontline communities to access discounts and subsidies, making the whole greater than the sum of its parts.
We envision an inclusive technology landscape for frontline communities that are often exploited or overlooked by the tech sector.
What We Do
Digital Organizing
We develop and share tailored curricula to build digital capacity with frontline communities.
Digital Justice
Collaborating with partners and governments, we advocate for digital policies that involve community members and bridge the digital divide.
Digital Enterprise
We launched the suma platform, a community-built payment app that helps low-income households save money on essential expenses like food, transportation, and utilities.
suma for Community Members, Partners, and Funders
For Community Members
Experience the power of the suma app in stretching your budget and saving you money on essential expenses such as food, transportation, and utilities.
We built the app for people like you – the ones hustling to make ends meet, looking for discounts and savings on the things you buy the most.
for suma and start saving!
For Partners
As a vendor, affordable housing provider, or frontline partner, the suma platform enables you to strengthen community connections, reach new customers, and meet vital community needs.
Sign up for updates within the suma community or contact us to discover how suma can help you amplify your reach and impact.
For Funders
Your support for the suma platform helps frontline communities confidently engage the world of technology and work together to address community priorities like poverty, climate change, and racial injustice.
Download our one-pager for more information. Interested in supporting our mission? Sign up for a call to learn more.
Current App Offerings
2023 Summer Special
We are helping communities connect with the St. Johns Farmers Market and the King Farmers Market. First-time buyers load $5 into their suma wallet and receive $24 in market vouchers, plus free transportation to and from the market.
Download the King Market Flyer
Download the St. Johns Flyer
Crafting the suma Privacy Policy: Our Approach
suma’s outreach team worked with community members, partners, and legal counsel to create a community-based privacy policy for the suma app.
Community members shared privacy concerns, reviewed best practices, and provided detailed policy recommendations in small group discussions facilitated by the suma team.
We then used the community’s recommendations to guide the suma app’s inaugural privacy policy.
Explore past suma events
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Pioneering A Transformative Mobility Journey
In 2021, we partnered with Hacienda CDC and Verde to work on improving access to affordable and private transportation. Together, we tested a transportation platform prototype (suma 1.0) in Hacienda CDC’s resident community.
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Affordable Clean Energy for All
Still in 2021, we collaborated with Proud Ground to further our work of helping people save on utility bills and connect to clean energy. Through this partnership, we tested a solar energy platform prototype (prototype 1.1) with Proud Ground’s homeowners.
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Your Voice, Our Policy
In 2022, we engaged with community members and our partners, drawing on their feedback, concerns, and recommendations to create the suma app’s inaugural privacy policy.
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Launching the App with Holiday Savings
At the end of 2022, we launched the app and brought savings to the always-expensive holiday season. Using vendor discounts and third-party subsidies, we helped suma members get $180 worth of holiday meals for just $10.
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