Prontopia - Local Help When and Where You Need It

Prontopia is a community of people helping people. We provide friendly, in-person help for both travelers and residents in city centers in Italy, Spain and the U.S.

• How we help residents: you don't need to be superwoman (or man) when you have super friends like us. We help you or your loved ones with everyday errands such as carrying and opening packages, pharmacy pick-ups, accompanying you to doctor visits and helping with simple needs at home. 
• How we help travelers: spend less time googling and more time oogling! We help you with navigating a new city on foot, carrying your luggage, translating requests in the local language and knowing where to go- and where not to.

Our trusted community of pre-vetted local assistants are currently available in Venice, Florence, Rome, Naples, Barcelona and Santa Barbara, California- and we want to come to New York!

Your crowdfunding support will help us launch in New York City, where we have received requests for resident services like grocery shopping, pharmacy visits and helping with simple home needs, especially among senior residents affected by the city limitations of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Help us help New Yorkers by purchasing one of our exclusive crowdfunding offers for specially priced help from Prontopia. You can get your own services to offload your busy schedule or surprise someone special in your life with the gift of friendly help when needed! Or pay it forward and buy a gift for someone in need in the city who struggles to have essential needs met.

Prontopia not only provides help to those that need it most, but we also provide jobs to many people who have recently lost theirs in the crisis. It’s a virtuous cycle, and by joining our community we can all get to a better place, together.

TRUSTED AFFORDABLE HELP AT YOUR FINGERTIPS

Booking with Prontopia is as easy as 1-2-3. 

OUR MISSION

Prontopia is a public benefit corporation focused on fostering human connection and empathy around the globe to drive Sustainable Development Goals of providing decent work and economic growth, creating sustainable cities and communities, and encouraging responsible consumption and production.

Since we launched in Venice, Italy, we have leveraged the power of the people across our platform to join together in service activities to improve city life and the environment. Prontopia teams cleaned plastic from the Venice canals, the Arno River in Florence, the Tiber River in Rome, and the Santa Barbara Channel for World Oceans Day. We helped travelers and city residents stay safe and recover from the damage of the Venice floods. With the outbreak of COVID-19, we provided needed income to our local assistants and free help to seniors urgently in need during the global shelter-in-place orders. When we discovered food scarcity in the neighborhood, we connected with city agencies to provide further help exactly when and where needed. Read about our work in Italy as featured in the New York Times!

IMPROVING LIFE IN THE CITY

We founded Prontopia on a community model because we believe that together, we are better. Prontopia improves life in the city by:

• promoting the revitalization of Main Street through our partnerships with locally owned shops and businesses
• providing flexible work that supports our local assistants’ access to vocational pathways in tourism or other city services
• creating efficient and convenient ways for travelers and city residents to access trusted local help, especially populations underserved by technology, like the elderly or those who have accessibility needs
• supporting the city by raising awareness of local and global social needs, and impacting measurable sustainability solutions through collaborative action.

IT’S TIME FOR HUMAN SOLUTIONS

Help getting around the city

Did you know that according to McKinsey, as the world’s city centers progressively limit car traffic, “micromobility” services that help people in walkable city centers will be a $300 billion market between Europe and the USA by 2030. Today’s solutions: scooters and bike sharing, will only serve 8% of the market because they do not serve the needs of elderly, families, accessibility needs, and others for a helping hand. When a car can’t get you easily from a to b, Prontopia is there for you and your loved ones!

A better life for our elders

Have you heard about the 2030 problem? “The ‘2030 problem’ involves the challenge of assuring that sufficient resources and an effective service system are available in thirty years, when the elderly population is twice what it is today” (National Institute of Health). Prontopia helps make life in the city stress free for our elders by supporting safe independent living at home. When the caregiver leaves and 5 minutes later your dad is frustrated because he can’t use the remote control, or forgot to pick up the pharmacy items needed no later than today, not to worry, Prontopia is there for you and your loved ones to save the day with trusted in-person help on demand.

Sustainable Tourism

Only grassroots solutions will solve the problem of overtourism in precious cities like Venice, Florence and Rome. In an article for Forbes, travel expert Johnny Jet lists the top five effects of overtourism as:

• Alienated local residents
• Degraded tourist experiences
• Overloaded infrastructure
• Damage to nature
• Threats to culture and heritage

Prontopia connects travelers with trusted in-person help in a community model, where the voices that are less heard matter, and the money spent stays local. Whether you are traveling near or far, Prontopia is here for you and your loved ones!

MEET OUR FOUNDER

Founder Shannon Kenny launched Prontopia in April of 2018. Shannon had divided her time between Santa Barbara, California, and Italy throughout her career as a social entrepreneur since 1997 as founder of the Italy family travel website Italiakids.com, the Arte al Sole Italy educational travel programs, and Elaia Travel, a boutique trip planning concierge. Shannon frequently had the need for a service like Prontopia as a mom traveling alone with 2 young children, and also saw the need among her friends, her aging parents, and clients in city centers around the world. She felt that connecting people in the city for just a little bit of help on demand would make life easier for us all, and help build community in the city in meaningful ways.

GRAZIE, GRACIAS, THANK YOU!

In Naples, Italy, there is an ancient tradition known as caffè sospeso - regulars at the coffee bar will buy their own daily coffee, and “pay it forward” by buying a coffee for the next patron who might need it, as a gesture of community and generosity. Your support today helps Prontopia to continue to provide the free help we offer to elderly and the sick whose well-being suffers because they are not easily able to get the help they need. We thank you for your support. Your contribution will have a meaningful impact on expanding the virtuous cycle we experience among the Prontopia community every day to the benefit of many.