Hampton Roads Community Lab

Upward mobility and resiliency for disconnected coastal communities

The Hampton Roads Community Lab seeks to provide a space for participation development and access to science and technology to communities that are economically and socially marginalized due to race, place, and poverty. 

The lab will have three main roles in the community; the first is to provide lab space and equipment to its members to run their own research and also give them an opportunity to participate in community projects that are open, free and led by field experts. 

Secondly, the lab will offer safety and equipment training, and short courses in biotechnology and green infrastructure that can allow low-income residents to pursue better employment opportunities in other communities and the growing industry of green energy. 

Thirdly, the lab will serve as a space for information and civic engagement in environmental health & justice, and policy development for coastal communities. Public engagement in coastal environmental science will help bridge the gaps between policy and implementation.

This solution is innovative because the most vulnerable communities will access science and technology to challenge the status quo of relying on bureaucracies to address environmental challenges. For example, it can be replicated in other areas such as Kisumu, Kenya where residents are facing socio-economic challenges due to water hyacinth on Lake Victoria. The lab would be a good idea to get locals trained in Biotechnology that use the plant as a raw material. This cultivates a culture of resiliency and opens other economic opportunities beside fishing that has since been crippled by the weed in the lake.

Technology is critical to the daily functioning of the lab from the physical technical machines such as computers, tablets, biotechnology equipment like biotech centrifuges, and incubators as these will be the main source for environmental research and hands-on project experimentation. 

Software used for Artificial intelligence, IBM Watson, and CRISPR technologies will also play an integral role in improving the community's role in machine learning for coastal communities and lessen the over-reliance on human experts.  

In the coming months; 

1. We would like to secure a space or lease a building for setting up the lab by partnering with the local cities' green initiatives programs. 

2. The founders will establish a board of directors, who will then come up with bylaws to establish organizational responsibility and governance.

3. Working on getting exempt tax status for Non-profits 501(c) from the Internal Revenue Services

4.Other policies will be created around membership, fees, rights and responsibilities of the community members. 

The lab's vision is to focus on education to encourage a new generation of biotechnology entrepreneurs to be more resilient and self-sufficient. 

The lab also plans to partner with small businesses in green infrastructure to foster Joint Use Agreements for Lab management and cut costs on operations. 

The community lab will reach customers and beneficiaries through initial community outreach meetings, local partners like workforce development, and online marketing strategies. 

The ability to create individual projects and utilize advanced technologies creates a platform of retention to finding personalized solutions. The projects must come from the community members therefore maintaining a coherent sense of identity stemming from the needs of beneficiaries.

The community lab plans to provide services to an average of 10,000 people by giving access to a lab space and equipment, by holding frequent community meetings geared towards civic engagement in environmental science, and opportunity to be part of on-going community research. 

Cultural competency and interpersonal skills

Good managerial and communications skills

Solid background in humanities, community inclusion and development, and environmental sciences.  

Our sustainability model is to run the Community Lab operations through membership fees and renting out lab equipment and space to small businesses

As a non-profit entity, we will seek out grant funding for specific programs, projects and short courses with interested stakeholders like green energy companies, and Workforce developments.  

We are applying to Solve because of our dedication to community advancement and restoration. Disconnected coastal communities of Hampton Roads are our communities, which through SOLVE can be revitalized by resourceful solutions. SOLVE will help us connect us with other groups and ideas that have innovated local solutions to the global problem of coastal flooding.

A community lab is still an unpopular idea among many communities including Hampton Roads and we believe that winning the Solve challenge will help us gain more visibility, credibility and attract potential partners and stakeholders.