www.nesta.org.uk/press-release/e-bike-hire-volunteer-drivers-for-the-elderly-and-community-energy-among-sharing-economy-schemes-backed-by-nesta-and-scottish-government/
ShareLab Scotland, a collaboration between the Scottish Government, and Nesta, the innovation foundation, is funding five projects from around Scotland that will use collaborative digital platforms to create positive social impact.
The five projects announced today (Thursday) will receive grants of between £26,500 and £33,000 to grow projects that benefit Scottish communities.
Utilising web-based digital matching or exchange services the projects will help individuals and communities unlock idle or underused resources - marrying up ‘haves’ with ‘wants’ in ways that contribute to Scotland’s vision of a fairer, more socially responsible economy. They include Edinburgh Tool Library which will create a new online platform for lending tools, particularly in less affluent communities; Community Transport Glasgow who will create a digital booking platform to make greater use of unallocated community transport for vulnerable people in Glasgow; a partnership between Community Energy Scotland, South Seeds, and Carbon Co-op, who will build a prototype platform to demonstrate how people can group together to manage and save their energy usage; Helping Go who will link vulnerable passengers with volunteer drivers; and Inverclyde Community Development Trust who are developing an e-bike share platform to enable the community to use e-bikes in their local area.
ShareLab Scotland was announced by First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, at Nesta’s FutureFest event in London in July 2018, during a speech about Scottish innovation and how governments can shape positive social change through emerging technologies. ShareLab Scotland is the latest in a series of projects across the UK developed by ShareLab, a learning and funding initiative from Nesta, which supports technology platforms that create social impact in areas as diverse as housing, health and homelessness. Its grantees include HomePointr, a social enterprise which aims to improve access to suitable housing options by connecting referral agencies with housing providers via an online platform.
Business Minister Jamie Hepburn said:
“The response we had to the ShareLab Scotland fund has been very encouraging and I am pleased that the Scottish Government have been able to provide additional funding to expand the number of projects.
“The Scottish Government is taking steps to ensure Scotland’s fulfils its full potential as a world-leading innovative nation. To achieve this ambition, we have adopted innovation in our economic and social policies.
“Through Share Lab Scotland, we are funding projects that use technology to deliver energy savings and sustainable transport, and support vulnerable consumers and disadvantaged communities.”
Geoff Mulgan, Chief Executive of Nesta, said:
“The sharing economy has revolutionised the way we access everyday services from taxis to hotels to DIY. It has created incredibly successful businesses and benefited many of us, but it has also left people behind. With the right encouragement similar technologies can be used to deal with many of our social challenges too. These five ShareLab Scotland projects are great examples of harnessing technology to meet local needs.”
Notes
For more information, pictures and to speak to grantees please contact Will Hoyles, Nesta Media Manager on [email protected] or 07812 362714.
What inspired the ShareLab Scotland Fund?
The Scottish Expert Advisory Panel on the Collaborative Economy was set up in April 2017 to provide advice, expertise and to make recommendations to Scottish Ministers on how Scotland can position itself to take advantage of the opportunities of the collaborative economy. In its response to the Panel’s report the Scottish Government welcomed the focus that the Panel put on the role that the collaborative economy can play in supporting a more inclusive and socially responsible economy. ShareLab Scotland provides the opportunity to start to build the pool of collaborative platforms that meet currently unmet needs within Scotland, with the aim of delivering more than just economic value but actively shaping the collaborative economy in new sectors and industries to the benefit of the people of Scotland.
About Nesta
Nesta is a global innovation foundation. We back new ideas to tackle the big challenges of our time, making use of our knowledge, networks, funding and skills. We work in partnership with others, including governments, businesses and charities. We are a UK charity that works all over the world, supported by a financial endowment. Find out more about Nesta. Nesta is a registered charity in England and Wales 1144091 and Scotland SC042833.
About the projects
Edinburgh Tool Library will develop Easy Sharing, a pilot service in North and West Edinburgh’s deprived areas which will deliver tools and equipment to new library borrowers in their own neighbourhood. The focus will be on building the Tool Library’s offer to less affluent communities with an interesting concept to replicate retail experiences and ability of sharing to build social capital in communities.
Community Transport Glasgow is a not-for-profit transport organisation established in 2005, providing affordable, reliable, accessible transport to vulnerable communities in Glasgow, East Dunbartonshire and Lanarkshire. They work with people who are in need due to age, mobility, mental and physical disability, illness and poverty. The Transport Hub that is being supported by ShareLab Scotland will create an integrated single booking system to improve the co-ordination and efficiency for passengers, be demand responsive and help to meet an anticipated increase in demand. They will also work with local authorities, community transport operators and the NHS, to make better use of their transport fleets downtime.
Community Energy Scotland has been working with local community groups across Scotland over the last 10 years, supporting them to set up community owned renewable energy generation assets. They have already facilitated over 500 community projects and helped communities set up 37 megawatts of community-owned generation assets. They’re working with South Seeds a south central Glasgow community organisation looking at collaborative approaches for affordable heating, and Carbon Coop from Manchester who use bulk buying of resources to reduce costs for communities.
Helping Go aims to enhance the provision and management of Volunteer car journeys using digital technology to link car schemes, drivers, passengers and businesses. It grew out of the experiences of volunteer car driver and seeing the challenges that volunteer car schemes face such as a lack of volunteers and often being a service by the elderly for the elderly with an untapped pool of willing volunteer drivers. Their ShareLab grant will be used to build a collaborative digital hub that will bring together volunteers, coordinators and passengers. The digital platform they will develop will demonstrate how communities could share flexible electricity loads through ‘smart’ energy grids and get better deals from energy suppliers in the future.
Inverclyde Community Development Trust will establish an Ebike hire scheme by developing an online system of GPS tracking, registration, booking and collaboration with users on how to best expand the network. The Trust has 30 years of experience providing a range of services and support to the people of Inverclyde and have an existing bike repair project with ten ebikes. Their belief is that ebikes help people get out of unhealthy and environmentally damaging cars and taxis but they are very expensive to buy and difficult to try out to see if they suit the user. A hire scheme helps to remove these barriers.
