Emerald Web

• Kings County Emerald Web
• Emerald Web Profile: Le Caveau
• Green Economy Web Resources

In the middle of an economic crisis, we have been given the opportunity to shift the focus of the Nova Scotian economy. At this crossroads, it is important to continue nurturing the growing environmental awareness amongst consumers, meanwhile working towards economic development. There is a need to focus on maintaining jobs, creating new employment opportunities while centering on sustainable, environmentally conscious solutions.

The mission of the Emerald Web Project is to demonstrate and enable the new approach to economic prosperity by showcasing existing green initiatives, and how they create jobs as well as support local communities. The project will identify and map environmental initiatives occurring within and contributing to the Nova Scotian economy. This tool will help influence consumers to make local, environmental choices, while keeping money circulating within the province and showcasing successful local businesses with an environmental consciousness. The project will also help make the case for supporting and expanding businesses and projects with environmental principles by showing and quantifying the extent to which this industry is important for the provincial economy.

We have been actively working to move the Emerald Web project forward since the summer of 2008. We were lucky to have five Masters students helping us from September '08 to February '09 to complete background research, examining and evaluating tools that can be used to portray the information. Their final report Nova Scotia's Emerald Web: A Framework for Implementation (February, 2009) details recommendations for proceeding with the web portion of the project, including experiences by other organizations that have set up similar web-based tools.

As well, as a pilot, we decided to create a snapshot focusing on Kings County. The pilot maps ecologically focused initiatives throughout the county. The resulting brochure can be accessed online or in print format. For more information on our pilot, click here

We are currently working towards securing funding to advance the Emerald Web beyond the pilot stage. Please check back here for the latest updates and the status of the project.