The Gamification of Sustainability

People who actively care about the environment want to motivate as many other people as possible to work for the same cause. Often, this seems very difficult. When green-minded individuals try to convince people to make changes in their lives, the people may think it sounds like too much hassle at first. They may say, You mean, I have to watch my energy consumption? or, I have to drive this to a special place? But people will spend countless hours in front of a TV or computer screen playing games where they fight imaginary battles and tackle complicated problems. How do we motivate people to expend even a fraction of that energy and attention to sustainability? The answer is gamification.

What is Gamification?

Gamification refers to making real life tasks seem more like video games. Things like points, badges, and achievements leave the boundaries of the gaming world and merge into real life. It sounds farfetched, but this strategy is already being utilized with very rewarding results in employee engagement and marketing applications.

Why do we need gamification?

Video games have infiltrated people’s lives to the point that video game realities frequently creep into their speech. For instance, people use video game terms like “spawning” and “pwning” to illustrate real life thoughts and happenings. While this is a modern day issue, the reasoning behind it is very old. Ever since the first humans developed speech, we have understood that in order to reach another person, we had to speak their language. The vast majority of people born from the 80s until today find video games to be a huge part of their lives. They were raised with video games and found both a powerful draw and a therapeutic release in this form of play. Video game mechanics and terminology are a major “language” and one that is highly motivating. When you want to engage someone, you go to them, you speak to them, and you do it in a way that they will readily understand.
While video games get a lot of flack for violent imagery and luring kids from playing outside, they are also well known for tapping into and strengthening certain mental processes as well as activating a person’s sense of learning, achievement, courage, and altruism. All of these qualities suit the move toward sustainability to a tee.

So how does gamification work?

The most commonly used method so far involves setting goals and rewarding those who reach the goals with points or badges.

• The mobile app Greenopolis gets people to share recycling photos and vote on photos for points and rewards.
• Real-time data from JadeTrack makes managing utility bills and utility consumption easier and even fun by utilizing an interface with functions inspired by leaderboards and a concept of “leveling-up.”
• Greenbean motivates people to recycle with gusto non-deposit items by engaging users in challenges and offering rewards.

Often, people deeply moved by causes feel that they are trying to force people to think about or care about their cause. On even the best days, it seems like an uphill battle. By using gamification, people can use this “language” to get to the people around them.