Neighbours
They bring the logs, and every shared need they find starts a Quest.
Why Beaverlodge
It started with a question.
“What would a solution to climate change look like if it were driven by introverts?”
Most climate action asks you to march, shout or feel guilty. We wanted something you could do from your own front door, with the people next door, and actually enjoy.
The why
Help neighbours coordinate, starting with what moms need.
The way we do it has changed many times, but the reason hasn't. We pay special attention to the moms in a neighbourhood and ask what they need, because the needs they carry are usually the needs the whole block shares.
FUN, NOT GUILT
If it feels like a lecture, nobody plays twice.
AUDITABLE
Every saving can be counted and checked.
DESIGNED WITH CARE
Built for quiet people, busy parents and everyone in between.
The story so far
A river that keeps finding its course
- The newsletter
An article that changed the question
Researching a neighbourhood newsletter piece on cutting household emissions showed that the changes that matter most need people acting together.
- Nov 2019
A home energy audit app
The app offered a step-by-step road map to cut a home's emissions in half, along with bulk discounts on upgrades. It was a Judge's Choice winner at What's Next YYC, with about 200 early users and more than 15 volunteers.
- 2020
COVID, and a turn toward neighbours
When home visits stopped, we built prototypes for COVID response and for helping neighbours buy groceries together.
- Now
Beaverlodge Game
Today neighbours find shared needs, throw parties with a purpose and let Hosts build the dams. It may change shape again, but the why won't.
Read the 2020 Trico Foundation story on the early app.
A note from the poet
I was working as an auditor at PwC and writing for my neighbourhood newsletter when I researched how people can cut their emissions. The answer kept pointing the same way: the biggest changes only happen when neighbours act together.
I knew that couldn't run on guilt. It had to be fun, and it had to be auditable. So I settled on a game: something people want to play, built with careful design, where every move can be counted.
Beaverlodge has been an app, a COVID project and a grocery club, and it will probably change again. What hasn't changed is the job: help neighbours coordinate, and start by asking what the moms on the block need.
Tim Lipp · the Game's poet
Who makes it possible
No one builds a river alone
Hosts
They build the dams, turning shared needs into parties and group buys.
Local suppliers
Farmers, cleaners, growers and trades raise the water by giving the block one price.
Community partners
Associations, halls and nonprofits hold the banks by giving the Game a place to happen.
Beaverlodge
From Calgary, Beaverlodge pays the Dividend and provides the tools, training, design and accounting.
What does your block need?
Start with one need, and we'll help you find who shares it.