*featured article on Design Ethos
What if we could empower communities worldwide to form networks supporting the core beliefs of Sustainability? What if we could unite local businesses, leaders, artists, teachers, suppliers and every day civilians? What if there was a website that compiled data about all the sustainable businesses in your area? Guess what…it exists! Look no further than The Green Map! The Green Map is a tool developed by Thomas Turnbull, Lela Prasa, Wendy E. Brawer, Marissa Feinberg and many other contributors of The Green Map Organization. The mission of the Green Map is to “engage communities worldwide in mapping green living, nature and cultural resources”.
As further explained on the Green Map Organization website:
“Green Map System supports inclusive participation in sustainable community development worldwide, using mapmaking as its medium. Building leadership, networks and skills, Green Map teams have extended their impacts with sustainability initiatives that address directly challenges to community well-being”.
In simple terms, Green Map will make it easier for businesses to make sustainable choices by connecting with others. For example, supermarkets can source sustainable vegetables from local farmers, cleaning services can find a local supplier of green cleaning supplies, and restaurants can connect with composting services to properly handle waste output.
If we take a closer look at the Green Map interface, we notice a few interesting components…
http://www.opengreenmap.org/greenmap
Each sustainable location is marked with an icon using the address and GPS coordinates. When the icon is clicked, a window pops up to reveal detailed information about the entry. Each entry is open source and customizable with photos, and links.
http://www.opengreenmap.org/greenmap
Another convenient feature of the Green Map is that it is fully accessible on all of your favorite devices including mobile and iPad!
Looking at Savannah’s local community, there are prosperous sustainable businesses in diverse industries. However, Savannah, Georgia has yet to be added to the Green Map! Taking advantage of this opportunity is the current mission of SCAD professor, Scott Boylston, and his graduate Sustainable Practices in Design class. Comprised of nine students from various countries around the world, this diverse team is eager to learn about sustainability in Savannah and conduct extensive research over the course of the next six weeks.
The class has already compiled and reached out to numerous sustainable partners in Savannah including:
Savannah Bee Company
Solar Smith
Perc Coffee
Green Truck
Nourish
Salacia Salts
Starlandia Supply
Southern Pine Company
…and more!
Check back for updates on this project and learn more about Green Map here!