diff --git a/.env.example b/.env.example
index 89ce71a2..634ca2b0 100644
--- a/.env.example
+++ b/.env.example
@@ -21,6 +21,11 @@ SECRET_KEY=<Your Secret Key>
 DEBUG=True
 ALLOWED_HOSTS=.localhost,127.0.0.1
 
+# Read when DEBUG is on, i.e. when static and media are served locally
+# rather than from Spaces.
+STATIC_ROOT=staticfiles
+MEDIA_ROOT=media
+
 # ── DigitalOcean Spaces (static + media storage) ──────────────────────────────
 DO_ACCESS_KEY_ID=<DO Access Key ID>
 DO_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=<DO Secret Access Key>
diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 435fe006..2720660a 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -82,6 +82,10 @@ celerybeat-schedule
 # dotenv
 .env
 
+# Local static/media (STATIC_ROOT/MEDIA_ROOT)
+staticfiles/
+media/
+
 # virtualenv
 .venv
 venv/