Idea Profile

BIMAM: Banque interactive MAM

The main objective of Matériaux pour les arts Montréal (MAM) is to keep on developing a programme allowing waste and surplus materials from industries, commerce and institutions (ICI), to be distributed to artists and art programs that need them. In becoming an innovative source of supplies for the arts in Quebec’s largest city, MAM enriches the creative and cultural spirit of Montreal and in doing so has the potential to remove a significant amount of waste from the system and promote a timely and ecological and approach to the re-use of materials. To date, the mandate of MAM has been developed through a web-bases platform known as la BIMAM : La Banque Interactive MAM www.bimam.qc.ca. This on-line warehouse allows for ICI to offer materials to eligible beneficiaries, thus providing concrete environmental and social solutions to ICI and a wealth of materials to arts education and non-profits working in the arts.

11 comments
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Comments

Christine (not verified) Montreal wrote on Wed, 04/01/2009 - 15:05

Hey Nadia! Great meeting with you today. Looking forward to figuring out the business model for this awesome idea. Yay!

Christine (not verified) Montreal wrote on Wed, 04/01/2009 - 15:33

Okay. So a few points that I've made but that should be documented here. You have the environmental side down. The social should not be difficult. And profit potential because:

• A service to businesses who have to cart away refuse and comply to government standards
• A service to artists who need to purchase materials
• A service to governments who have waste-reduction targets

I if looking at fulfillment businesses and ways that companies (especially online ones) minimize coordination and shipping costs would help? Will think more on this.

Cameron Stiff Montreal wrote on Wed, 04/01/2009 - 16:08

I think there would be additional opportunities for other businesses and organizations interested in using wastes. For example, a community environmental organization creating planters from reused materials. Perhaps they would be able to pay on a deferred payment program if they don't have cashflow financing.

I think the website needs to be cleaned up and simplified.

It would be great to have examples of commonly landfilled/recylced materials and their possible second life opportunities prominent on the site.

I really like the diagram and think more visuals would great. However I think the diagram doesn't tell the whole story - it needs to show the materials coming from the producer to the new user. It should also show the different types of industries targeted for their waste products, and what those products can become (a la the paragraph above).

On the whole I think this shows much promise.

By the way Nadia it's my birthday this weekend and I'm throwing a party at Barouf on Saturday night and would love to see you!

Korantin Madrid wrote on Thu, 04/02/2009 - 00:40

Someone could explain me if Challengeyourworld is done to create something from nothing and help people to build their ideas or to provide money at some existing projects with money problems ? This project has several partenairs already, several supports and objectif is not to have benefit but to provide at schools and some poor artists several materials.
From the sustainability it miss the benefit (=0 here) because investissors will never see their money back.

http://www.bimam.qc.ca/pdf/bimam_presentation.pdf

Ask money against materials is against their principes.

Christine (not verified) Montreal wrote on Fri, 04/03/2009 - 11:06

@ Korantin

Challenge Your World exists to create a new generation of businesses. We think businesses should be socially responsible, environmentally friendly, and profitable.

This platform — the online community — brings together people who care about this topic and have a vision for a better way of doing things. We need a place to throw up ideas, share resources, debate.

All ideas are valid — does not really matter what stage it is at or what form it currently takes. The most important thing is to get the ideas out there so that we can build on each others' thinking.

Matériaux pour les arts Montréal's Materials Bank is a non-profit. But I think it is an idea with great business potential and that is why I encouraged Nadia to put it up here. So my question for you is do you see business potential? Why or why not?

Christine (not verified) Montreal wrote on Fri, 04/03/2009 - 11:08

@ Nadia

I looked over your presentation. The next time you update it I'd suggest you limit your use of acronyms. I found it hard to follow. (Plus it's my mission in life to destroy most acronyms!)

Also I was thinking that you could have a business component to this (for other business, for artists) and a non-profit component (for schools, community groups). Something to think about.

Martin Montreal wrote on Fri, 04/03/2009 - 14:03

To invite idea to seek its business potential seems good sense to me. Maybe not all non-profit are meant to be profitabel, but some may. Seeing business potential is for sure not easy. But Christine's question seems relevant: why not! Nadia's project may be profitable at some point...