Meet our little team
Both data nerds and lovers of all-things maps, Olivia & Charles came to North Arrow through distinct paths, and have surrounded themselves with awesome people in the 4 corners of the globe!
Sales, Strategy & Maps
Olivia Ildefonso, Ph.D
(+1) 516-361-9164
📍New York / Barcelona
Olivia is a critical geographer and activist who has spent 15+ years using data, maps, and storytelling to advance social impact. She co-founded North Arrow in 2023 to make geospatial intelligence accessible to nonprofits and foundations driving community change. She began her career at ERASE Racism, leading Inclusive Housing and Education Equity initiatives, authoring key research reports, and conducting demographic research supporting successful housing discrimination settlements. As a professor, she has taught GIS across CUNY and designed GIS-based curricula in the Digital Humanities. Olivia is Chair of the Board of S.T.R.O.N.G. Youth. She holds a B.A. from Brown University and a Ph.D. from the CUNY Graduate Center, with an Advanced GIS Certificate from Hunter College.
Tech, Operations & also Maps
Charles Grosperrin
+34.6.17.39.33.80
📍New York / Barcelona
Charles stems from the heart of the French capital which he left at an early age to be raised around the globe, with maps quickly becoming bedside material for the young traveler. After studies of economics and philosophy, he specialised in data analytics & visualizations working both for consultancies and tech startups. After nearly a decade of using his data expertise to help corporate clients grow their organizations, Charles decided it was time to be of service to those who strive to make the world a better place. He’s also a passionate climate change advocate, and hopes North Arrow can also take part in addressing the biggest challenge of our days.
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GIS (Geospatial Information Systems)
Will Field
📍Glasgow, Scotland
Will Field is a full-stack software developer specializing in geospatial solutions. He collaborates with diverse teams across academic, civic, and non-profit domains, applying his creative approach to make engaging interactive web applications and data visualizations. Will worked at the Center for Urban Research at the City University of New York building civic focused web maps to help policy makers and voting rights advocates before moving to Scotland.
Marketing
Ana Rankovic
📍Novi Sad, Serbia
Ana is a marketing strategist who specializes in helping startups and early-stage companies find their voice and build momentum. Early in her career, she chose to work with teams making a positive impact, which is why she joined North Arrow, helping meaningful stories travel further and drive change.
MSSP, Policy & Story
Chanyu Cao
📍Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Chanyu Cao is a master’s student in Social Policy at the University of Pennsylvania with an undergraduate background in economics. Her academic work combines policy analysis, quantitative research, and program evaluation. She is particularly interested in how public policies shape economic opportunity and access to social support. At North Arrow, Chanyu contributes to policy research, data analysis, and public-facing writing. She brings together policy context and data to explain complex social issues and their implications for communities. She is interested in turning research findings into clear, accessible articles that help organizations and communities understand policy changes and respond to them.
MSSP, Data Analytics,
Data & Tools
Zhiyuan Wu
📍Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Zhiyuan (ZY) is a master's student in Social Policy and Data Analytics at the University of Pennsylvania, with a bachelor's degree in Sociology from Fudan University. His background combines quantitative research, data analysis, AI product management, and entrepreneurship. He has experience designing and developing AI-powered products, building data-driven tools, and translating complex problems into practical, user-centered solutions. At North Arrow, Zhiyuan focuses on making complex policy data more accessible through interactive data visualizations and digital tools. He is particularly interested in exploring how AI, data analytics, and thoughtful product design can work together to address real-world challenges. His work reflects a broader passion for bridging technology and social policy, making information more transparent, understandable, and actionable for organizations and communities.
Meet Our Partners
Learn more about organisations that collaborate with us and support our work.
Finding Common Purpose is a non-partisan funder collaborative advancing a new approach to placed-based initiatives. We are investing in the idea that when these initiatives use community dashboards, they are better able to improve lives and reduce disparities.
We are partnering with FCP to build a new model for community dashboards that can be scaled throughout the country.
Aropa Consulting provides strategic guidance, operational support, nonprofit fractional leadership services, fundraising consulting, and technology coaching.
We partner with Aropa on complex systems implementation with nonprofit partners who need to overhaul their technology stacks.
The Public Good Consulting provides custom research that unlocks valuable internal and public data, location intelligence and community insights that respond to funders’ goals and stakeholders’ needs to make the right decisions that are mission-aligned and fiscally sound.
We partner with PGC on projects that require the collection of granular community-driven insights, and amplified community voices.
Esri is the global market leader in geographic information system (GIS) software, location intelligence, and mapping.
The global leader in GIS and digital mapping is the engine behind the tools we use every day to support nonprofits, community groups, and equity-focused initiatives.