In less than 100 words, what is your idea?:
Community groups are enabling people to share resources, cars, gardens. But most are doing their own thing, often concentrating on different facets of social inclusion. I want to design a framework that groups may adopt to help them address the whole gamut of basic needs: food security, safety, housing, health care, transport, friendship, fun … and then explore best practice for each. Each group would have the same centrally-moderated website/framework to work with, populating it with local info, sharing ideas through a consistent template. The structure itself would serve to inform policy and decision making.
What is the social need or challenge your idea could address?:
People need to be able to find help when they need it, and also to contribute to their community when they want to. If a local community is able to provide timely info and help through its members’ efforts, it will become stronger and more resilient.
What’s really new about your idea?:
Absolutely nothing – McDonald’s has already done it. When you go somewhere new, you immediately recognise the brand, know what’s on the menu, and can rely on what you get. The owners can easily open a new outlet as soon as there is a need for it, and when something better comes along for the menu it’s easy to roll it out to every restaurant.
