New CoCT, UCT climate app challenges Capetonians to act neutral
Climate Campaigners, a free mobile app funded by the European Union and which offers a range of sustainability-based lifestyle changes that can help users take climate action, was officially launched by the City of Cape Town, in partnership with the University of Cape Town (UCT) today, 15 March 2023. These lifestyle changes will enable residents to contribute to achieving the City's commitments of climate-resilience and carbon-neutrality by 2050.
Supplied image: Manfred Braune, Director of Environmental Sustainability at UCT, Cllr Van Reenen, Grant Smith, Senior Research Officer in the Energy Systems Research Group at UCT, and Professor of Chemical Engineering Harro von Blottnitz
Cape Town is joined by 13 other cities around the world as part of the initial rollout of Climate Campaigners, including Milan, Italy; Dublin, Ireland and La Libertad, El Salvador, each with unique challenges, tailored to the city’s needs. The project aims to scale up the number of cities involved, and is scheduled to run for two years.
"The City's 2050 vision for Cape Town is a climate-resilient, resource-efficient and carbon-neutral city that enables inclusive economic development and healthy, thriving communities and ecosystems. To reach our climate targets we need the support of all in Cape Town. Small actions can have a big impact if we act together. Every Cape Town resident is encouraged to become a climate campaigner. With the Climate Campaigners app, everyone can do something towards creating a sustainable future," said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Energy, Councillor Beverley van Reenen, who was at the launch event earlier today.
"The Climate Campaigners app is a community-based platform which aims to inspire Capetonians to choose challenges that can help their communities, while also reducing their emissions. These exciting challenges include saving water and energy, smarter mobility and environmentally-friendly consumption. The app offers tips and inspiration, while tracking and analysing users’ CO2 savings – in detail and in real time. It also provides a community of like-minded campaigners; to network, share experiences and cheer each other on.
"The project is being grounded in science right from the outset. It will provide important anonymised data and findings that can serve as a foundation for policy recommendations for climate action. Let’s act to break habits that waste energy and water. Let’s act for a healthier, more resilient city, and have fun doing it. Join in and Let’s ACT for a stronger Cape Town," van Reenen commented.
Encouraging behaviourial change
"Climate Campaigners hopes to help people follow through on their best climate intentions by providing an app to challenge themselves and see how they follow through on those climate actions. We also hope to introduce people to new, highly accessible behaviours that they may not have considered, but which will help them achieve the climate impact they want to achieve, in their daily lives," said Grant Smith, senior research officer in the Energy Systems Research Group at UCT.
"In the end, it is everyday people, like you and me, who can impact climate change by taking these small actions in our lives. Small changes add up over hundreds, thousands, millions of people."
Download the Climate Campaigners app for free on Google Play or the Apple App Store to get started. For additional information, visit the Cape Town Climate Campaigners website and the general page at www.climate-campaigners.com
