Ecofol.io

Project description:

The Sustainability Game Project will develop a functional web application that will make individualized suggestions to users about how they can lead more environmentally-friendly lifestyles. Key features of the application are as follows:

1. People who are interested in environmental sustainability will input data on their transportation, housing, purchasing habits, and work.
2. The web application will suggest specific changes to users based on their inputted data on how they can reduce their environmental impact.
3. There will be a gamified incentive system to encourage users to change their behavior by comparing their environmental impact (measured in carbon emissions) to that of other users who can be added as friends.

Problem statement:

This project addresses the problem of the negative contributions to the environment by an aggregate number of people not living sustainably. It also addresses the lack of individual responsibility in sustainability (as opposed to corporate responsibility). To date, these problems have been handled via the following ways: • Websites/organizations recommending generic set of suggestions on how to reduce environmental impact. • Websites/apps calculate a user’s specific environmental impact, but cannot provide specific suggestions to reduce impact. • Users taking their own initiative to research specific ways to reduce environmental impact. • Limited incentives for individuals to take individual responsibility in sustainability.

This project will be an improvement to those ways because our web application will calculate a user’s specific environmental impact by leveraging carbon emissions databases and APIs. Unlike other existing websites that provide a generic set of suggestions, this application will provide tailored suggestions on how to reduce environmental impact and metrics (carbon emissions) on how user’s action on suggestions reduces environmental impact. Gamification of web application by comparing a user’s environmental impact to that of other users on the app (who can be added as friends) will grow the user base and incentivize repeated usage.