Whitepaper

Sustainable living has the potential to yield tremendous benefits to individual households and the broader society. The issue my project addresses is a lack of awareness and accessibility to practical information on the topic of sustainability and self-sufficiency. Many individuals do not have access to the proper informative resources needed to be sustainable in their everyday lives. The cost of living in Nova Scotia is rising for many, if not all, in our community¹. Sustainable and self-sufficient practices aid in lowering overall living expenses^2,3, and improve the broader environment in the process. Becoming more self-sufficient will lessen the effect of supply chain disruptions and associated price spikes for the average person.

Existing solutions to address this issue are fragmented and disorganized. Verified information and clear instructions are lacking, leading to confusion among individuals seeking guidance. Various YouTube videos offer different methods without providing a definitive “best” approach. Many websites have a profit incentive to promote their own or sponsored products, which may not live up to their claims. A comprehensive, cohesive, and integrated set of practical information is something yet to be seen.

My solution embraces an open-source model, unlike existing approaches. It establishes a central online hub that compiles information from diverse sources. This resource can be contributed to by community members and verified by those with expertise in engineering, farming, nutrition, and more. By involving local community members in the development process, the information provided will be tailored and relevant to Nova Scotia’s needs. This collaborative and inclusive approach ensures a comprehensive and reliable resource, empowering individuals to effectively adopt self-sufficiency practices.

The ecoScotia projects seeks to develop manuals on sustainable living that will benefit the community. These topics include small-scale construction, gardening, food production and preservation, energy generation and storage, water filtration systems, and more. The project aims to make our community a more sustainable and self-sufficient place. One goal is to create a trusted source of information for community support organizations, for example, the Public Library. The data will help lower the cost of living for many in the community.

The intended outcome of this project is to create an open-source, community-based, extensible online resource that provides trustworthy information to those in the community looking to be more sustainable and self-sufficient. Additionally, it will have a positive impact on the local community by lowering the cost of living for those who utilize the service. This will also have a positive effect on the broader society and the environment as it will create greater awareness about sustainable practices. The project intends to create informative resources that are easy for individuals and their families to access and implement.

The focus will be on utilizing existing platforms to foster collaboration and the exchange of ideas. Each component will be modular, ensuring that all sections are standalone and fully functional. My proposed structure is an open-source website that compiles verified information from communities on associated platforms. The project’s open-source nature ensures the information provided is not swayed to favor any particular product. It only focuses on the best, most cost-effective way to accomplish specific tasks.

Sources:

1. Hampshire, G. (2022, March 8). More Nova Scotians turn to food banks as cost of living continues to rise. CBC News. Retrieved June 15, 2023, from CBC

2. Knerl, L. (2022, July 13). The cost effectiveness of growing a garden. Investopedia

3. Hoppman, J., Volland, J., Schmidt, T., & Hoffmann, V. (2014, August 9). The economic viability of battery storage for residential solar photovoltaic systems – a review and a simulation model. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. ScienceDirect