diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..056de7c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Dockerfile
@@ -0,0 +1,79 @@
+# stage 1
+FROM python:3.11-alpine AS backend
+
+ARG USER_UID=1000
+ARG GROUP_UID=1000
+
+RUN apk update \
+    && apk add --no-cache \
+        vim \
+        curl \
+        gettext
+
+RUN addgroup -g $USER_UID newsreader && adduser -Du $GROUP_UID -G newsreader newsreader
+
+RUN mkdir --parents /app/src /app/logs /app/media /app/bin /app/static \
+    && chown -R newsreader:newsreader /app
+
+WORKDIR /app
+
+USER newsreader
+
+COPY --chown=newsreader:newsreader uv.lock pyproject.toml /app/
+
+COPY --from=ghcr.io/astral-sh/uv:latest /uv /bin/uv
+
+RUN --mount=type=cache,target=$HOME/.cache/uv \
+    uv sync --frozen --no-default-groups --no-install-project
+
+COPY --chown=newsreader:newsreader ./bin/docker-entrypoint.sh /app/bin/docker-entrypoint.sh
+
+VOLUME ["/app/logs", "/app/media", "/app/static"]
+
+
+
+# stage 2
+FROM node:lts-alpine AS frontend-build
+
+ARG BUILD_ARG=prod
+
+WORKDIR /app
+
+RUN chown node:node /app
+
+USER node
+
+COPY --chown=node:node ./package*.json ./webpack.*.js ./babel.config.js /app/
+
+RUN --mount=type=cache,target=$HOME/.npm \
+    npm ci
+
+COPY --chown=node:node ./src /app/src
+
+RUN npm run build:$BUILD_ARG
+
+
+
+# stage 3
+FROM backend AS production
+
+COPY --from=frontend-build --chown=newsreader:newsreader \
+    /app/src/newsreader/static /app/src/newsreader/static
+
+RUN --mount=type=cache,target=$HOME/.cache/uv \
+    uv sync --frozen --only-group production --extra sentry
+
+COPY --chown=newsreader:newsreader ./src /app/src
+
+# Note that the static volume will have to be recreated to be pre-populated
+# correctly with the latest static files. See
+# https://docs.docker.com/storage/volumes/#populate-a-volume-using-a-container
+RUN uv run --no-sync -- src/manage.py collectstatic --noinput
+
+
+
+# (optional) stage 4
+FROM backend AS development
+
+RUN --mount=type=cache,target=$HOME/.cache/uv \
+    uv sync --frozen --group development
diff --git a/bin/docker-entrypoint.sh b/bin/docker-entrypoint.sh
index 0006178..bb473e6 100755
--- a/bin/docker-entrypoint.sh
+++ b/bin/docker-entrypoint.sh
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 #!/bin/bash
 
-/app/.venv/bin/python /app/src/manage.py migrate
+uv run --no-sync -- /app/src/manage.py migrate
 
 exec "$@"
diff --git a/docker-compose.development.yml b/docker-compose.development.yml
index d00550b..37236f6 100644
--- a/docker-compose.development.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.development.yml
@@ -1,18 +1,11 @@
 volumes:
   static-files:
-  node-modules:
 
 services:
-  celery:
-    build:
-      target: development
-    volumes:
-      - ./src/:/app/src
-
   django:
-    build:
+    build: &app-development-build
       target: development
-    command: /app/.venv/bin/python /app/src/manage.py runserver 0.0.0.0:8000
+    command: uv run --no-sync -- /app/src/manage.py runserver 0.0.0.0:8000
     ports:
       - "${DJANGO_PORT:-8000}:8000"
     volumes:
@@ -21,12 +14,19 @@ services:
     stdin_open: true
     tty: true
 
+  celery:
+    build:
+      <<: *app-development-build
+    volumes:
+      - ./src/:/app/src
+
   webpack:
     build:
+      target: frontend-build
       context: .
-      dockerfile: ./docker/webpack
+      args:
+        BUILD_ARG: "dev"
     command: npm run build:watch
     volumes:
       - ./src/:/app/src
       - static-files:/app/src/newsreader/static
-      - node-modules:/app/node_modules
diff --git a/docker-compose.production.yml b/docker-compose.production.yml
index 46a9c76..24c8cd1 100644
--- a/docker-compose.production.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.production.yml
@@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ services:
       django:
         condition: service_healthy
     ports:
-      # Note that --env-file should be used to set these correctly
       - "${NGINX_HTTP_PORT:-80}:80"
     volumes:
       - ./config/nginx/conf.d:/etc/nginx/conf.d
diff --git a/docker-compose.yml b/docker-compose.yml
index 02f1fab..c348d96 100644
--- a/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.yml
@@ -4,33 +4,43 @@ volumes:
   postgres-data:
   static-files:
 
-x-db-env: &db-env
-  POSTGRES_HOST:
-  POSTGRES_PORT:
-  POSTGRES_DB:
-  POSTGRES_USER:
-  POSTGRES_PASSWORD:
+x-db-connection-env: &db-connection-env
+  POSTGRES_HOST: ${POSTGRES_HOST:-db}
+  POSTGRES_PORT: ${POSTGRES_PORT:-5432}
+  POSTGRES_DB: &pg-database ${POSTGRES_DB:-newsreader}
+  POSTGRES_USER: &pg-user ${POSTGRES_USER:-newsreader}
+  POSTGRES_PASSWORD: ${POSTGRES_PASSWORD:-newsreader}
 
-x-django-build-env: &django-build-env
-  <<: *db-env
-  DJANGO_SECRET_KEY:
-  DJANGO_SETTINGS_MODULE:
+x-db-env: &db-env
+  <<: *db-connection-env
+  PGUSER: *pg-user
+  PGDATABASE: *pg-database
 
 x-django-env: &django-env
-  <<: *django-build-env
-  VERSION:
+  <<: *db-connection-env
+
+  ALLOWED_HOSTS: ${ALLOWED_HOSTS:-localhost,127.0.0.1,django}
+  INTERNAL_IPS: ${INTERNAL_IPS:-localhost,127.0.0.1,django}
+
+  # see token_urlsafe from python's secret module to generate one
+  DJANGO_SECRET_KEY: ${DJANGO_SECRET_KEY:-Ojg68lYsP3kq2r5JgozUzKVSRFywm17BTMS5iwpLM44}
+  DJANGO_SETTINGS_MODULE: ${DJANGO_SETTINGS_MODULE:-newsreader.conf.production}
+
+  ADMINS: ${ADMINS:-""}
+
+  VERSION: ${VERSION:-""}
 
   # Email
-  EMAIL_HOST:
-  EMAIL_PORT:
-  EMAIL_HOST_USER:
-  EMAIL_HOST_PASSWORD:
-  EMAIL_USE_TLS:
-  EMAIL_USE_SSL:
-  EMAIL_DEFAULT_FROM:
+  EMAIL_HOST: ${EMAIL_HOST:-localhost}
+  EMAIL_PORT: ${EMAIL_PORT:-25}
+  EMAIL_HOST_USER: ${EMAIL_HOST_USER:-""}
+  EMAIL_HOST_PASSWORD: ${EMAIL_HOST_PASSWORD:-""}
+  EMAIL_USE_TLS: ${EMAIL_USE_TLS:-no}
+  EMAIL_USE_SSL: ${EMAIL_USE_SSL:-no}
+  EMAIL_DEFAULT_FROM: ${EMAIL_DEFAULT_FROM:-webmaster@localhost}
 
   # Sentry
-  SENTRY_DSN:
+  SENTRY_DSN: ${SENTRY_DSN:-""}
 
 services:
   db:
@@ -38,8 +48,8 @@ services:
       <<: *db-env
     image: postgres:15
     healthcheck:
-      # Note that --env-file should be used to set these correctly
-      test: /usr/bin/pg_isready --username="${POSTGRES_USER}" --dbname="${POSTGRES_DB}"
+      test: /usr/bin/pg_isready
+      start_period: 10s
       interval: 5s
       timeout: 10s
       retries: 10
@@ -55,58 +65,23 @@ services:
       - memcached
       - -m 64
 
-  celery:
-    build:
-      context: .
-      dockerfile: ./docker/django
-      target: production
-      args:
-        <<: *django-build-env
-    environment:
-      <<: *django-env
-    command: |
-      /app/.venv/bin/celery --app newsreader
-      --workdir /app/src/
-      worker --loglevel INFO
-      --concurrency 2
-      --beat
-      --scheduler django
-      -n worker1@%h
-      -n worker2@%h
-    healthcheck:
-      test: celery --app newsreader status || exit 1
-      interval: 10s
-      timeout: 10s
-      retries: 5
-    depends_on:
-      rabbitmq:
-        condition: service_started
-      memcached:
-        condition: service_started
-      db:
-        condition: service_healthy
-      django:
-        condition: service_healthy
-    volumes:
-      - logs:/app/logs
-
   django:
-    build:
+    build: &app-build
       context: .
-      dockerfile: ./docker/django
       target: production
-      args:
-        <<: *django-build-env
     environment:
         <<: *django-env
-    entrypoint: /app/bin/docker-entrypoint.sh
+    entrypoint: ["/bin/sh", "/app/bin/docker-entrypoint.sh"]
     command: |
-      /app/.venv/bin/gunicorn --bind 0.0.0.0:8000
+      uv run --no-sync --
+      gunicorn
+      --bind 0.0.0.0:8000
       --workers 3
       --chdir /app/src/
       newsreader.wsgi:application
     healthcheck:
       test: /usr/bin/curl --fail http://django:8000 || exit 1
+      start_period: 10s
       interval: 10s
       timeout: 10s
       retries: 5
@@ -119,3 +94,33 @@ services:
       - logs:/app/logs
       - media:/app/media
       - static-files:/app/static
+
+  celery:
+    build:
+      <<: *app-build
+    environment:
+      <<: *django-env
+    command: |
+      uv run --no-sync --
+      celery
+      --app newsreader
+      --workdir /app/src/
+      worker --loglevel INFO
+      --concurrency 2
+      --beat
+      --scheduler django
+      -n worker1@%h
+      -n worker2@%h
+    healthcheck:
+      test: uv run --no-sync -- celery --app newsreader status || exit 1
+      start_period: 10s
+      interval: 10s
+      timeout: 10s
+      retries: 5
+    depends_on:
+      rabbitmq:
+        condition: service_started
+      django:
+        condition: service_healthy
+    volumes:
+      - logs:/app/logs
diff --git a/docker/django b/docker/django
deleted file mode 100644
index 6e079c8..0000000
--- a/docker/django
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,102 +0,0 @@
-# stage 1
-FROM python:3.11-bookworm AS backend
-
-RUN apt-get update && apt-get install --yes --no-install-recommends \
-        vim \
-        curl \
-        gettext \
-    && rm -rf /var/lib/apt/lists/*
-
-WORKDIR /app
-RUN mkdir /app/src
-RUN mkdir /app/logs
-RUN mkdir /app/media
-
-COPY uv.lock pyproject.toml /app/
-
-COPY --from=ghcr.io/astral-sh/uv:latest /uv /bin/uv
-RUN uv sync --frozen --no-default-groups --no-install-project
-
-
-# stage 2
-FROM node:lts AS frontend-build
-
-WORKDIR /app
-
-COPY ./*.json ./*.js ./babel.config.js /app/
-
-RUN npm ci
-
-COPY ./src /app/src
-
-RUN npm run build:prod
-
-
-# stage 3
-FROM python:3.11-bookworm AS production
-
-RUN apt-get update && apt-get install --yes --no-install-recommends \
-        postgresql-client \
-        vim \
-        curl \
-        gettext \
-    && rm -rf /var/lib/apt/lists/*
-
-WORKDIR /app
-
-RUN mkdir /app/logs
-RUN mkdir /app/media
-RUN mkdir /app/bin
-
-COPY --from=backend /app/.venv /app/.venv
-COPY --from=backend /app/uv.lock /app/pyproject.toml /app/
-COPY --from=backend /bin/uv /bin/uv
-
-COPY ./bin/docker-entrypoint.sh /app/bin/docker-entrypoint.sh
-
-COPY --from=frontend-build /app/src/newsreader/static /app/src/newsreader/static
-
-COPY ./src /app/src
-
-RUN uv sync --frozen --only-group production --extra sentry
-
-RUN useradd --no-create-home --uid 1000 newsreader
-RUN chown --recursive newsreader:newsreader /app
-
-USER newsreader
-
-ARG POSTGRES_HOST
-ARG POSTGRES_PORT
-ARG POSTGRES_DB
-ARG POSTGRES_USER
-ARG POSTGRES_PASSWORD
-ARG DJANGO_SECRET_KEY
-ARG DJANGO_SETTINGS_MODULE
-
-# Note that the static volume will have to be recreated to be pre-populated
-# correctly with the latest static files. See
-# https://docs.docker.com/storage/volumes/#populate-a-volume-using-a-container
-RUN /app/.venv/bin/python src/manage.py collectstatic --noinput
-
-
-# (optional) stage 4
-FROM python:3.11-bookworm AS development
-
-RUN apt-get update && apt-get install --yes --no-install-recommends \
-        vim \
-        curl \
-    && rm -rf /var/lib/apt/lists/*
-
-WORKDIR /app
-
-RUN mkdir /app/logs
-RUN mkdir /app/media
-RUN mkdir /app/bin
-
-COPY --from=backend /app/.venv /app/.venv
-COPY --from=backend /app/uv.lock /app/pyproject.toml /app/
-COPY ./bin/docker-entrypoint.sh /app/bin/docker-entrypoint.sh
-COPY --from=backend /app/src/ /app/src/
-
-COPY --from=backend /bin/uv /bin/uv
-RUN uv sync --frozen --group development
diff --git a/docker/webpack b/docker/webpack
deleted file mode 100644
index 11c3d58..0000000
--- a/docker/webpack
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,10 +0,0 @@
-FROM node:lts
-
-WORKDIR /app
-RUN mkdir /app/src
-
-COPY package*.json webpack.*.js babel.config.js /app/
-
-RUN npm install
-
-COPY ./src /app/src
diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index 8e1f60f..d12a88a 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -5,8 +5,8 @@
   "scripts": {
     "lint": "npx prettier \"src/newsreader/js/**/*.js\" --check",
     "format": "npx prettier \"src/newsreader/js/**/*.js\" --write",
-    "build": "npx webpack --config webpack.dev.babel.js",
     "build:watch": "npx webpack --config webpack.dev.babel.js --watch",
+    "build:dev": "npx webpack --config webpack.dev.babel.js",
     "build:prod": "npx webpack --config webpack.prod.babel.js",
     "test": "npx jest",
     "test:watch": "npm test -- --watch"
diff --git a/pyproject.toml b/pyproject.toml
index 5f0d46a..22ae7fd 100644
--- a/pyproject.toml
+++ b/pyproject.toml
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ requires-python = ">=3.11"
 dependencies = [
   "django~=4.2",
   "celery~=5.4",
-  "psycopg",
+  "psycopg[binary]",
   "django-axes",
   "django-celery-beat~=2.7.0",
   "django-rest-framework",
@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ production = ["gunicorn~=23.0"]
 sentry = ["sentry-sdk~=2.0"]
 
 [tool.uv]
-environments = ["sys_platform == "linux""]
+environments = ["sys_platform == 'linux'"]
 default-groups = ["test-tools"]
 
 [tool.ruff]
@@ -68,7 +68,7 @@ django = ["django"]
 [tool.coverage.run]
 source = ["./src/newsreader/"]
 omit = [
-	"**/tests/**"
+	"**/tests/**",
 	"**/migrations/**",
 	"**/conf/**",
 	"**/apps.py",
@@ -77,5 +77,5 @@ omit = [
 	"**/urls.py",
 	"**/wsgi.py",
 	"**/celery.py",
-	"**/__init__.py
+	"**/__init__.py"
 ]
diff --git a/src/newsreader/conf/base.py b/src/newsreader/conf/base.py
index 5bee027..b13d732 100644
--- a/src/newsreader/conf/base.py
+++ b/src/newsreader/conf/base.py
@@ -4,6 +4,8 @@ from pathlib import Path
 
 from dotenv import load_dotenv
 
+from newsreader.conf.utils import get_env, get_root_dir
+
 
 load_dotenv()
 
@@ -15,16 +17,13 @@ except ImportError:
     DjangoIntegration = None
 
 
-BASE_DIR = Path(__file__).resolve().parent.parent.parent.parent
+BASE_DIR = get_root_dir()
 DJANGO_PROJECT_DIR = BASE_DIR / "src" / "newsreader"
 
-# Quick-start development settings - unsuitable for production
-# See https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/2.2/howto/deployment/checklist/
-# SECURITY WARNING: don"t run with debug turned on in production!
 DEBUG = False
 
-ALLOWED_HOSTS = ["127.0.0.1", "localhost"]
-INTERNAL_IPS = ["127.0.0.1", "localhost"]
+ALLOWED_HOSTS = get_env("ALLOWED_HOSTS", split=",", default=["127.0.0.1", "localhost"])
+INTERNAL_IPS = get_env("INTERNAL_IPS", split=",", default=["127.0.0.1", "localhost"])
 
 # Application definition
 INSTALLED_APPS = [
@@ -48,7 +47,7 @@ INSTALLED_APPS = [
     "newsreader.news.collection",
 ]
 
-SECRET_KEY = os.environ["DJANGO_SECRET_KEY"]
+SECRET_KEY = get_env("DJANGO_SECRET_KEY", default="")
 
 AUTHENTICATION_BACKENDS = [
     "axes.backends.AxesBackend",
@@ -73,11 +72,10 @@ FORM_RENDERER = "django.forms.renderers.TemplatesSetting"
 TEMPLATES = [
     {
         "BACKEND": "django.template.backends.django.DjangoTemplates",
-        "DIRS": [os.path.join(DJANGO_PROJECT_DIR, "templates")],
+        "DIRS": [DJANGO_PROJECT_DIR / "templates"],
         "APP_DIRS": True,
         "OPTIONS": {
             "context_processors": [
-                "django.template.context_processors.debug",
                 "django.template.context_processors.request",
                 "django.contrib.auth.context_processors.auth",
                 "django.contrib.messages.context_processors.messages",
@@ -88,16 +86,14 @@ TEMPLATES = [
 
 WSGI_APPLICATION = "newsreader.wsgi.application"
 
-# Database
-# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/2.2/ref/settings/#databases
 DATABASES = {
     "default": {
         "ENGINE": "django.db.backends.postgresql",
-        "HOST": os.environ["POSTGRES_HOST"],
-        "PORT": os.environ["POSTGRES_PORT"],
-        "NAME": os.environ["POSTGRES_DB"],
-        "USER": os.environ["POSTGRES_USER"],
-        "PASSWORD": os.environ["POSTGRES_PASSWORD"],
+        "HOST": get_env("POSTGRES_HOST", default=""),
+        "PORT": get_env("POSTGRES_PORT", default=""),
+        "NAME": get_env("POSTGRES_DB", default=""),
+        "USER": get_env("POSTGRES_USER", default=""),
+        "PASSWORD": get_env("POSTGRES_PASSWORD", default=""),
     }
 }
 
@@ -114,8 +110,6 @@ CACHES = {
     },
 }
 
-# Logging
-# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/2.2/topics/logging/#configuring-logging
 LOGGING = {
     "version": 1,
     "disable_existing_loggers": False,
@@ -169,8 +163,6 @@ LOGGING = {
     },
 }
 
-# Password validation
-# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/2.2/ref/settings/#auth-password-validators
 AUTH_PASSWORD_VALIDATORS = [
     {
         "NAME": "django.contrib.auth.password_validation.UserAttributeSimilarityValidator"
@@ -185,8 +177,6 @@ AUTH_USER_MODEL = "accounts.User"
 
 LOGIN_REDIRECT_URL = "/"
 
-# Internationalization
-# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/2.2/topics/i18n/
 LANGUAGE_CODE = "en-us"
 
 TIME_ZONE = "Europe/Amsterdam"
@@ -194,20 +184,33 @@ USE_I18N = True
 USE_L10N = True
 USE_TZ = True
 
-# Static files (CSS, JavaScript, Images)
-# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/2.2/howto/static-files/
 STATIC_URL = "/static/"
-STATIC_ROOT = os.path.join(BASE_DIR, "static")
-STATICFILES_DIRS = [os.path.join(DJANGO_PROJECT_DIR, "static")]
+STATIC_ROOT = BASE_DIR / "static"
+STATICFILES_DIRS = (
+    DJANGO_PROJECT_DIR / "static",
+)
 
-# https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/2.2/ref/settings/#std:setting-STATICFILES_FINDERS
 STATICFILES_FINDERS = [
     "django.contrib.staticfiles.finders.FileSystemFinder",
     "django.contrib.staticfiles.finders.AppDirectoriesFinder",
 ]
 
 # Email
-EMAIL_BACKEND = "django.core.mail.backends.console.EmailBackend"
+EMAIL_BACKEND = "django.core.mail.backends.smtp.EmailBackend"
+
+DEFAULT_FROM_EMAIL = get_env(
+    "EMAIL_DEFAULT_FROM", required=False, default="webmaster@localhost"
+)
+
+EMAIL_HOST = get_env("EMAIL_HOST", required=False, default="localhost")
+EMAIL_PORT = get_env("EMAIL_PORT", cast=int, required=False, default=25)
+
+EMAIL_HOST_USER = get_env("EMAIL_HOST_USER", required=False, default="")
+EMAIL_HOST_PASSWORD = get_env("EMAIL_HOST_PASSWORD", required=False, default="")
+
+EMAIL_USE_TLS = get_env("EMAIL_USE_TLS", required=False, default=False)
+EMAIL_USE_SSL = get_env("EMAIL_USE_SSL", required=False, default=False)
+
 
 # Third party settings
 AXES_HANDLER = "axes.handlers.cache.AxesCacheHandler"
@@ -216,7 +219,6 @@ AXES_FAILURE_LIMIT = 5
 AXES_COOLOFF_TIME = 3  # in hours
 AXES_RESET_ON_SUCCESS = True
 
-# TODO: verify parser works correctly
 REST_FRAMEWORK = {
     "DEFAULT_AUTHENTICATION_CLASSES": (
         "rest_framework.authentication.SessionAuthentication",
@@ -247,7 +249,7 @@ CELERY_BROKER_URL = "amqp://guest@rabbitmq:5672"
 
 # Sentry
 SENTRY_CONFIG = {
-    "dsn": os.environ.get("SENTRY_DSN"),
+    "dsn": get_env("SENTRY_DSN", default="", required=False),
     "send_default_pii": False,
     "integrations": [DjangoIntegration(), CeleryIntegration()]
     if DjangoIntegration and CeleryIntegration
diff --git a/src/newsreader/conf/ci.py b/src/newsreader/conf/ci.py
index 40c4a2f..e69e079 100644
--- a/src/newsreader/conf/ci.py
+++ b/src/newsreader/conf/ci.py
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 from .base import *  # noqa: F403
-from .version import get_current_version
+from .utils import get_current_version
 
 
 DEBUG = True
diff --git a/src/newsreader/conf/dev.py b/src/newsreader/conf/dev.py
index d048f6d..2bd7625 100644
--- a/src/newsreader/conf/dev.py
+++ b/src/newsreader/conf/dev.py
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 from .base import *  # noqa: F403
-from .version import get_current_version
+from .utils import get_current_version
 
 
 SECRET_KEY = "mv4&5#+)-=abz3^&1r^nk_ca6y54--p(4n4cg%z*g&rb64j%wl"
@@ -10,6 +10,11 @@ EMAIL_BACKEND = "django.core.mail.backends.console.EmailBackend"
 
 INSTALLED_APPS += ["debug_toolbar", "django_extensions"]  # noqa: F405
 
+
+TEMPLATES[0]["OPTIONS"]["context_processors"].append(
+    "django.template.context_processors.debug",
+)
+
 # Project settings
 VERSION = get_current_version()
 
diff --git a/src/newsreader/conf/docker.py b/src/newsreader/conf/docker.py
index 0d6e6ee..0bddf32 100644
--- a/src/newsreader/conf/docker.py
+++ b/src/newsreader/conf/docker.py
@@ -1,8 +1,8 @@
 from .base import *  # noqa: F403
-from .version import get_current_version
+from .utils import get_current_version
 
 
-ALLOWED_HOSTS = ["django", "127.0.0.1"]
+DEBUG = True
 
 INSTALLED_APPS += ["debug_toolbar", "django_extensions"]  # noqa: F405
 
@@ -16,7 +16,10 @@ LOGGING["loggers"].update(  # noqa: F405
 
 EMAIL_BACKEND = "django.core.mail.backends.console.EmailBackend"
 
-DEBUG = True
+
+TEMPLATES[0]["OPTIONS"]["context_processors"].append(
+    "django.template.context_processors.debug",
+)
 
 # Project settings
 VERSION = get_current_version()
diff --git a/src/newsreader/conf/production.py b/src/newsreader/conf/production.py
index ea22f30..bfe665d 100644
--- a/src/newsreader/conf/production.py
+++ b/src/newsreader/conf/production.py
@@ -1,49 +1,20 @@
 import os
 
+from newsreader.conf.utils import get_env
+
 from .base import *  # noqa: F403
-from .version import get_current_version
+from .utils import get_current_version
 
 
 DEBUG = False
 
 SECURE_PROXY_SSL_HEADER = ("HTTP_X_FORWARDED_PROTO", "https")
 
-ALLOWED_HOSTS = ["127.0.0.1", "localhost", "rss.fudiggity.nl", "django"]
-
 ADMINS = [
     ("", email)
-    for email in os.getenv("ADMINS", "").split(",")
-    if os.environ.get("ADMINS")
+    for email in get_env("ADMINS", split=",", required=False, default=[])
 ]
 
-TEMPLATES = [
-    {
-        "BACKEND": "django.template.backends.django.DjangoTemplates",
-        "DIRS": [os.path.join(DJANGO_PROJECT_DIR, "templates")],  # noqa: F405
-        "APP_DIRS": True,
-        "OPTIONS": {
-            "context_processors": [
-                "django.template.context_processors.request",
-                "django.contrib.auth.context_processors.auth",
-                "django.contrib.messages.context_processors.messages",
-            ]
-        },
-    }
-]
-
-# Email
-EMAIL_BACKEND = "django.core.mail.backends.smtp.EmailBackend"
-DEFAULT_FROM_EMAIL = os.environ.get("EMAIL_DEFAULT_FROM", "webmaster@localhost")
-
-EMAIL_HOST = os.environ.get("EMAIL_HOST", "localhost")
-EMAIL_PORT = os.environ.get("EMAIL_PORT", 25)
-
-EMAIL_HOST_USER = os.environ.get("EMAIL_HOST_USER", "")
-EMAIL_HOST_PASSWORD = os.environ.get("EMAIL_HOST_PASSWORD", "")
-
-EMAIL_USE_TLS = bool(os.environ.get("EMAIL_USE_TLS"))
-EMAIL_USE_SSL = bool(os.environ.get("EMAIL_USE_SSL"))
-
 # Project settings
 VERSION = get_current_version(debug=False)
 ENVIRONMENT = "production"
diff --git a/src/newsreader/conf/utils.py b/src/newsreader/conf/utils.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2e084f6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/newsreader/conf/utils.py
@@ -0,0 +1,85 @@
+import logging
+import os
+import subprocess
+
+from pathlib import Path
+from typing import Any, Iterable, Type
+
+
+logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
+
+
+def get_env(
+    name: str,
+    cast: Type = str,
+    required: bool = True,
+    default: Any = None,
+    split: str = ""
+) -> Any:
+    if cast is not str and split:
+        raise TypeError(f"Split is not possible with {cast}")
+
+    value = os.getenv(name)
+
+    if not value:
+        if required:
+            logger.warning(f"Missing environment variable: {name}")
+
+        return default
+
+    bool_mapping = {"yes": True, "true": True, "false": False, "no": False}
+
+    if cast is bool:
+        _value = bool_mapping.get(value.lower())
+
+        if not value:
+            raise ValueError(f"Unknown boolean value: {_value}")
+
+        return _value
+
+    value = value if not cast else cast(value)
+    return value if not split else value.split(split)
+
+
+def get_current_version(debug: bool = True) -> str:
+    version = get_env("VERSION", required=False)
+
+    if version:
+        return version
+
+    if debug:
+        try:
+            output = subprocess.check_output(
+                ["git", "show", "--no-patch", "--format=%H"], universal_newlines=True
+            )
+            return output.strip()
+        except (subprocess.CalledProcessError, OSError):
+            return ""
+
+    try:
+        output = subprocess.check_output(
+            ["git", "describe", "--tags"], universal_newlines=True
+        )
+        return output.strip()
+    except (subprocess.CalledProcessError, OSError):
+        return ""
+
+
+ROOT_MARKERS = ("pyproject.toml", "package.json", "README.md", "CHANGELOG.md")
+
+
+def get_root_dir() -> Path:
+    file = Path(__file__)
+    return _traverse_dirs(file.parent, ROOT_MARKERS)
+
+
+def _traverse_dirs(path: Path, root_markers: Iterable[str]) -> Path:
+    if path.parent == path:
+        raise OSError("Root directory detected")
+
+    files = (file.name for file in path.iterdir())
+
+    if not any((marker for marker in root_markers if marker in files)):
+        return _traverse_dirs(path.parent, root_markers)
+
+    return path
diff --git a/src/newsreader/conf/version.py b/src/newsreader/conf/version.py
deleted file mode 100644
index 806adef..0000000
--- a/src/newsreader/conf/version.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,26 +0,0 @@
-import os
-import subprocess
-
-
-def get_current_version(debug=True):
-    version = os.environ.get("VERSION")
-
-    if version:
-        return version
-
-    if debug:
-        try:
-            output = subprocess.check_output(
-                ["git", "show", "--no-patch", "--format=%H"], universal_newlines=True
-            )
-            return output.strip()
-        except (subprocess.CalledProcessError, OSError):
-            return ""
-
-    try:
-        output = subprocess.check_output(
-            ["git", "describe", "--tags"], universal_newlines=True
-        )
-        return output.strip()
-    except (subprocess.CalledProcessError, OSError):
-        return ""