Docs > Getting Started
A one-way ramp from zero to running. Use this section when you want to understand the repo, start the local stack, and make a small change without needing private project context.
If you're joining the project for the first time, follow this order:
- Prerequisites — Install Python, Node, pnpm, Git, and Make.
- Quick Start — Clone the repo and start Atlas locally.
- Project Structure — Tour the app, API, docs, Scout, and shared libraries.
- Then read Experience First and Architecture before changing product behavior.
- Prerequisites — Set up a new machine or troubleshoot install issues.
- Project Structure — Reference for where code lives.
- Quick Start — Run the local stack.
- See Development for day-to-day development
Atlas is open-source civic discovery infrastructure for finding the people, organizations, initiatives, campaigns, and events working on public problems across America. The public project lives at atlas.rebuildingus.org.
The product has four durable pieces:
- Public Directory — Search, browse, maps, profiles, places, and issue pages that help people find civic actors and inspect sources.
- Trust Layer — Source links, excerpts, confidence, freshness, corrections, and public/private boundaries that make records usable without asking readers to trust a black box.
- Discovery Pipeline — Shared extraction, deduplication, scoring, review, and sync logic used by the API worker and Scout.
- Developer And Workspace Tools — API, MCP, Scout, lists, briefs, watches, exports, and self-hosting paths that let people build on Atlas without losing provenance.
Atlas is usable as a public product and active development repo. Some code is public and self-hostable; some hosted, workspace, and operator surfaces need clear public/private boundaries. Treat that boundary as part of the work: changes should make the repo easier to run, audit, trust, or responsibly self-host.
- Experience First — The principle that governs every technical decision.
- Architecture — Understand how the system is built.
- Development — Learn how to build features.
- Standards — Engineering standards for the project.
- Open source — Public project model and self-hosting posture.
Last updated: July 6, 2026