About & FAQ

What Is CivicEcho?

CivicEcho is the simplest way to make your voice heard by the people who represent you. One idea. One click. One paste. Done.

Why We Built It
  • People should have a voice. Democracy isn’t just for lawyers.
  • Change shouldn’t require a JD. You don’t need a fancy degree to speak up.
  • Lethargy is a virtue. Life’s busy. Most people never email Congress, so we fixed that.
  • The pipes must stay open. Someone else would build this eventually; we wanted it in the public’s hands.
  • Democracy chokes on inertia. When voices unite, they move mountains. We give you the tools, you do the work.
How It Works
  1. You enter a few simple details: name, address, and what you care about.
  2. Our AI drafts a concise, persuasive message.
  3. You copy it (or, soon, hit “Fill Contact Form”) and send.
  4. Your rep’s inbox gets your thoughts, straight from you.
Who's Behind This

I’m Abdullah Khurram, a student at Virginia Tech. I built CivicEcho on a beat-up ThinkPad while watching the news get weirder by the day.

Here are a few fun facts about me:

Get Involved

FAQ

How do I find my representative?

Enter your street, city, state, and ZIP. We use official Census data to pinpoint your U.S. House district and deliver the correct contact form or email address.

Can I edit the AI-generated draft?

Absolutely. Think of it as a launchpad—tweak tone, add personal anecdotes, or rearrange paragraphs so it sounds like you.

Why do you need my address?

To map you to your exact House district. Without it, we’d be guessing—and you’d risk emailing the wrong office.

Is CivicEcho really free?

Yep. No paywalls, no hidden fees, no tracking. It’s under AGPL: free to use, free to remix, free to host.

How do you protect my privacy?

We don’t track you, sell your data, or store your info longer than it takes to generate your draft. Once you leave, your details vanish.

I’m outside the U.S.—can I use CivicEcho?

Not yet. Right now we only support U.S. House representatives. Feel free to fork the code and build for your country!

How accurate is the district lookup?

We rely on Census TIGER shapefiles and a solid geocoder. It’s accurate to your street.

Can I self-host my own copy?

You bet. Clone the GitHub repo, follow the README, and deploy anywhere. Remember: AGPL means any public instance stays open.

How do I report abuse or spam?

Email **abuse@civicecho.org** with screenshots or details. We’ll investigate, ban repeat offenders, and keep the platform clean.

Is there a public API?

Not yet, but it’s on the roadmap. Let us know which endpoints you need, and we’ll prioritize.

How can I contribute or file bugs?

Head over to our GitHub issues page or shoot us an email. We read everything and appreciate every PR.