April 2013

The Sharing Project is a new research initiative that aims to investigate cooperative models for economy by exploring potential for transitioning into a more collaborative, sharing-based economic system, i.e., a sharing economy. Based in Vancouver, BC, this research will explore,

• local attitudes (including reservations) toward engaging in a sharing economy,
• highlight the demands for the types of goods and services people would like to see including in a sharing system,
• and create recommendations to the City of Vancouver on how to expand the local sharing economy.

Click here to learn more on The Sharing Project, and click here to connect with the project on Facebook.

Last week, Natural Resources Wales became operational bringing together the previous work of the Countryside Council for Wales, the Environment Agency Wales and the Forestry Commission Wales. Sponsored by the Welsh Government, Natural Resources Wales will be one of the first public bodies in the world that will manage natural resources in a manner that considers benefits under the three sustainability imperatives: social, economic and environmental.

In the first year of its operation, they aim to,

• protect people and their homes as far as possible from environmental incidents like flooding and pollution
• maintain and improve the quality of the environment, including the promotion of nature conservation, access and recreation
• provide opportunities for people to learn, use and benefit from Wales’ natural resources
• support Wales’ economy by using natural resources to support jobs & enterprise
• help businesses understand and work with environmental, social and economic impacts when they bring forward proposals
• help make the environment and natural resources more resilient to climate change and other pressures.

We have just added Food Secure Canada's press release page to the Food Security resources section of the Solutions Agenda project. Food Secure Canada is a non-profit organization that contains members across the country, committed to the food security movement in Canada. The most recent press release created by Food Secure Canada discusses the chapter they prepared for the 2013 Alternative Federal Budget, a report published by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. The chapter details the current challenges Canadians face in terms of food security and discusses how not having a national food policy can be inefficient and costly. The chapter also provides recommendations on how to craft the policy, including elements such as,

• a national student nutrition program,
• the adoption of local sustainable procurement policy for all federal institutions,
• the creation of financial and educational incentive programs for family farms,
• and, increasing the budget for Nutrition North Canada and an independent review of the program.