Juno Maps, a leading geospatial technology company, has been named a winner of the RISE Riverine Community Resilience Challenge II, an international competition focused on addressing growing flood risks in inland communities across western Virginia. The award recognizes Smart Site Plan, Juno Maps' cloud-based flagship platform designed to help local governments prepare for, respond to, and recover from flood events. This recognition comes at a critical time when communities face increasing threats from freshwater flooding and need accessible tools to enhance their resilience planning efforts.
The platform allows municipal teams, regardless of technical background, to visualize flood risk, assess vulnerable infrastructure, and collaborate in real-time across departments. Dustin Rauch, President & CEO of Juno Maps, expressed enthusiasm about the partnership opportunity, stating the solution has potential to save lives and protect infrastructure while putting powerful data in the hands of those who need it most. This approach represents a significant advancement in making complex geospatial data accessible to non-technical users who are responsible for critical community safety decisions.
As a Challenge winner, Juno Maps will pilot Smart Site Plan in multiple western Virginia municipalities to demonstrate how intuitive geospatial tools can support data-driven resilience planning in high-risk areas. Paul Robinson, Executive Director of RISE, emphasized the urgency of the solution, noting that it gives communities tools to see and understand flood risk before disaster strikes. The competition, funded by the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, supports scalable solutions that strengthen long-term recovery, improve local decision-making, and build resilience to freshwater flooding.
RISE Resilience Innovations, the nonprofit organization behind the challenge, has awarded more than $8 million through its Innovation Challenge model to pilot cutting-edge technologies in real-world conditions. Additional information about the organization is available at https://www.riseresilience.org. Juno Maps was selected for its potential to deliver measurable, real-world impact in high-risk communities. The company builds intuitive, data-rich geospatial platforms that help cities, utilities, and organizations tackle challenges ranging from infrastructure planning to environmental risk. More details about the company's technology can be found at https://junomaps.com.
