In "Age of Context", Robert Scoble and Shel Israel discuss how emerging technologies will give devices context and better assist their human masters. In our homes, bodies, cars, and businesses, devices will use sensors and location-based technology to track activity and present relevant information. These devices will be mobile, social, and store large amounts of data in the cloud which they will share with other devices. Their book is a vision of the future; mostly prediction, a little inspiration; so I don't fault them for avoiding technologies that have no foreseeable commercial success. I'd like to present a complimentary futuristic contextual technology that is 100% inspiration. In other words, I implore readers to think about how they can bring the ideas I'm about to share to life.
One area of our lives we currently have little to no data on is how we personally impact our environment. We collectively pump almost 100 million tons of CO2 into the atmosphere daily, but how much does each individual create? When you plant a garden, what are you doing to your city's air? How are you helping the planet when you eat a vegetarian meal or ride your bike? The fact that answers to these questions are not readily available leaves us disconnected from the world around us (and arguably, unprepared to tackle the largest problem humans face).
One school of thought says we can create a sustainable planet if we "Offset" the CO2 we produce. In other words, donate to projects that reduce CO2 or plant trees that consume CO2. Carbonfund.org offers validated projects that offset the carbon you produce when you drive 1 mile for as little as 1 penny.
After some research, I found 4 mobile apps that calculate how much carbon you produce. These apps were simple and informative but offered no high value contextual insight. Tomorrow, 9/17/2014, I will pitch a contextual mobile app to a group called "Code4Sac". The app tracks an individual's CO2 emissions and incentives them to offset it. Code4Sac is a local CfA (Code for America) brigade established "To deploy, maintain, and sustain civic technology and open data infrastructure for the Sacramento region". Below is my pitch. If you would like to help, please contact me via the form on the right. Cross your fingers :)
I’m a recently married 27 year old UC Davis economics graduate. I live near Stockton and Broadway with my wife, dog, cat, and guinea pig. For the last 5 years, I’ve been implementing Salesforce.com software at increasingly large and complex organizations. I also manage small sales and marketing process improvement and automation projects. I’m not a developer but I understand core computer science concepts and hold 2 Salesforce administration and development certifications.
What am I pitching?
I’m pitching a mobile application that tracks users’ transportation carbon footprint. The user then has the ability to donate to a Sacramento project that will offset their carbon footprint. Several carbon footprint calculation apps already exists, however, this app will have higher user loyalty and exponentially more users for several reasons:
So how do the donations work?
We need to convert potential projects into CO2 offset. Large projects offer the best prices for carbon offsetting (price per KG of CO2) but these projects do not directly impact Sacramento (such as Carbonfund.org). If we held onto the money for an extended period of time, we could raise enough to build an electric truck stop. These cost $25-50K+ and prevent truckers from idling their engines while they sleep. The most expensive CO2 offset programs are local and simple; they usually involve planting trees (for example sactree.com). We could offer our users options or only offer the Sacramento tree-planting option. We could possibly offer 1 goal at a time and show overall progress towards goal.
What do I offer the project?
I can facilitate decision-making and release management using my basic project management skills. I would also like to play a part in the UI design, but I am not an expert. Lastly, I can market the app using my diverse social network.
One area of our lives we currently have little to no data on is how we personally impact our environment. We collectively pump almost 100 million tons of CO2 into the atmosphere daily, but how much does each individual create? When you plant a garden, what are you doing to your city's air? How are you helping the planet when you eat a vegetarian meal or ride your bike? The fact that answers to these questions are not readily available leaves us disconnected from the world around us (and arguably, unprepared to tackle the largest problem humans face).
One school of thought says we can create a sustainable planet if we "Offset" the CO2 we produce. In other words, donate to projects that reduce CO2 or plant trees that consume CO2. Carbonfund.org offers validated projects that offset the carbon you produce when you drive 1 mile for as little as 1 penny.
After some research, I found 4 mobile apps that calculate how much carbon you produce. These apps were simple and informative but offered no high value contextual insight. Tomorrow, 9/17/2014, I will pitch a contextual mobile app to a group called "Code4Sac". The app tracks an individual's CO2 emissions and incentives them to offset it. Code4Sac is a local CfA (Code for America) brigade established "To deploy, maintain, and sustain civic technology and open data infrastructure for the Sacramento region". Below is my pitch. If you would like to help, please contact me via the form on the right. Cross your fingers :)
A Greener Sacramento
Who am I?I’m a recently married 27 year old UC Davis economics graduate. I live near Stockton and Broadway with my wife, dog, cat, and guinea pig. For the last 5 years, I’ve been implementing Salesforce.com software at increasingly large and complex organizations. I also manage small sales and marketing process improvement and automation projects. I’m not a developer but I understand core computer science concepts and hold 2 Salesforce administration and development certifications.
What am I pitching?
I’m pitching a mobile application that tracks users’ transportation carbon footprint. The user then has the ability to donate to a Sacramento project that will offset their carbon footprint. Several carbon footprint calculation apps already exists, however, this app will have higher user loyalty and exponentially more users for several reasons:
- Contextual: App will automatically tell if you are in a car, bus, train, or plan
- Automated: App will calculate the distance you traveled and how much CO2 you release
- Social: App will connect with you social networks
- Gamified: Users will visually see their pile of carbon grow and shrink
So how do the donations work?
We need to convert potential projects into CO2 offset. Large projects offer the best prices for carbon offsetting (price per KG of CO2) but these projects do not directly impact Sacramento (such as Carbonfund.org). If we held onto the money for an extended period of time, we could raise enough to build an electric truck stop. These cost $25-50K+ and prevent truckers from idling their engines while they sleep. The most expensive CO2 offset programs are local and simple; they usually involve planting trees (for example sactree.com). We could offer our users options or only offer the Sacramento tree-planting option. We could possibly offer 1 goal at a time and show overall progress towards goal.
What do I offer the project?
I can facilitate decision-making and release management using my basic project management skills. I would also like to play a part in the UI design, but I am not an expert. Lastly, I can market the app using my diverse social network.
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