fix: load .env before config (proposal)

[ExampleWasTaken]

Description

This PR proposes a change to how the .env file is loaded.

The Problem

At the moment the .env file is loaded after the config. However, node-config relies on the env var NODE_CONFIG_ENV to determine what config to load. .env being loaded after the config, means you need to manually define NODE_CONFIG_ENV before running npm run dev. This defeats the purpose of having a .env file, which is why I propose this change.

The Fix

By loading .env before the config, we get rid of the requirement to define the NODE_CONFIG_ENV manually before running the application.
In fact, this PR follows the officially suggested best practice by dotenv and loads .env as early as possible, thereby removing the need of any environment variable to be defined manually prior to application start.

Test Results

As far I could test it, this works. However, I think it is a good idea to test it specifically against the official staging setup to make sure things like db access and 3rd-party APIs in fact work.

Additional Information

Changelog is missing because this is just a proposal for now and having the check fail prevents merging this PR with a wrong date in the changelog.

Discord Username

examplewastaken

[pdellaert]

Don't forget CHANGELOG :)

CHANGELOG added