MyEarth - Track carbon savings

Name: MyEarth - Track carbon savings
Author: University of Wisconsin-Madison

University of Wisconsin-Madison

TRUSTED

Expert-developed at a leading university

For:General Public & Enthusiasts

Free

Download on the App Store

App Summary

MyEarth helps people track their carbon savings by logging daily energy-conscious activities across categories like recycling, travel, and food. University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers created the app to address the gap between environmental attitudes and actual behavior, drawing inspiration from food-tracking apps. To give users tangible feedback, the app visualizes their cumulative impact with an animation of a polar bear on an iceberg that grows with each saved carbon unit.

App Screenshots

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Detailed Description

Functionality & Mechanism

This sustainability utility app, developed by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Human Ecology, enables users to monitor their personal carbon savings. The application utilizes a diary format where individuals select and log daily energy-saving activities across categories like electricity, travel, and recycling. It then catalogs the cumulative impact by tracking saved carbon units and visualizes this progress through an animated graphic of a polar bear on a growing iceberg, translating abstract data into a tangible outcome.

Development & Context

The news coverage notes the app was created by a UW-Madison team to bridge the gap between pro-environmental attitudes and actual behavior.
Its design was inspired by food-tracking apps, using a simple diary format to help users catalog daily conservation activities.
The project was funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation with support from the UW-Madison Office of Sustainability.
The app launched on April 20, 2015, during the Nelson Institute Earth Day Conference to make energy tracking more accessible.

Intended Use & Scope

This application is designed for individuals seeking to understand and visualize the impact of their daily conservation efforts. Its primary function is to serve as a motivational and educational tool, translating energy-saving activities into a simple visual metaphor. The information presented is based on news coverage of the app's launch and purpose.

In the Media

MyEarth app visualizes energy saving efforts by letting you save a virtual polar bear

University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Human Ecology professor Nancy Wong developed MyEarth to help users track their carbon-saving efforts through a visual diary format inspired by food-tracking apps. The app rewards users with a growing virtual iceberg that saves a polar bear, with Wong explaining "The iceberg is going to grow, and then, eventually, the bear can sit on it." Wong created the app to bridge the disconnect between environmental attitudes and actual behavior by making conservation efforts simple and understandable.

SiliconangleRead article

My Earth' energy-tracking app encourages sustainable behaviors

University of Wisconsin-Madison professor Nancy Wong developed MyEarth - Track carbon savings to make reducing daily energy usage more accessible for tech-motivated users, using a diary format with five main categories of sustainable activities. "We tried to categorize it into the different kinds of activities that you can do so that people can select from whatever suits their lifestyle," Wong explains. The app launched on April 20 during the Nelson Institute Earth Day Conference, featuring a visual polar bear and iceberg system that grows as users accumulate carbon savings.

WiscRead article