Invasive species to be controlled again through mobile game this summer

This campaign of crowdsourced control of invasive species will start on 3 June in Espoo with the eradication of lupines. The lupines will be blooming by then, making them easily recognisable. The fight against the Himalayan balsam will begin later in the summer. The campaign is open to all and only requires downloading the mobile game Crowdsorsa(external link, opens in a new window) to your smartphone. As a reward, players can earn up to 25 cents per square metre of space controlled.

“The good results in controlling invasive species that were achieved last summer through the crowdsourcing function of Crowdsorsa encourage continuing the work. Using different forms of volunteer work and effort, we can inspire Espoo residents to get involved in the important work of combating invasive species. We hope that Espoo residents will answer this call to protect biodiversity. The operating model of Crowdsorsa is an excellent tool for this,” says Anne Mannermaa, Green Production Manager at the City of Espoo.

“You play the game by removing occurrences of lupines and Himalayan balsams, either ones you have found yourself or those already marked on the map. The occurrences must be filmed before and after the removal, and finally the videos are uploaded to Crowdsorsa for review. Once the videos have been approved, you can request the reward from a virtual wallet to your own bank account,” says Crowdsorsa CEO Toni Paju.

The control reward calculated automatically by the game is based on the surface area, density and species of the occurrence. The campaign will remain running for as long as there is money in the reward budget, and its progress can be tracked in the app. In order to achieve the best possible result, the second half of the campaign will no longer include new sites; instead, the focus will be on controlling old occurrences.

This summer, Crowdsorsa is helping to combat invasive species that threaten biodiversity in more than 30 municipalities across Finland and Sweden. The total budget for rewarding people participating in the campaign is EUR 100,000.

Participation is easy and fun using the Crowdsorsa mobile game:

1. Download the free Crowdsorsa mobile game(external link, opens in a new window) to your phone and create a user name.
2. Open Espoo’s invasive species control campaign (Espoon vieraslajitorjuntatehtävä) and read through the instructions.
3. When the campaign starts at 09.00 on 3 June, go outside to find and remove lupines and Himalayan balsams (from 15 June onwards). Use the app to film the occurrences both before and after the removal.
4. Upload the videos on Crowdsorsa for review.
5. Once the videos have been approved, you can request a reward for them to your bank account.

If you need help or additional information related to the campaign, you can contact Crowdsorsa through the app.

Crowdsorsa is a startup company based in Tampere. Its concept has been introduced in Finland, Sweden, Estonia and the UK. The mobile game Crowdsorsa has been developed so that data collection and micro work can be outsourced to municipality residents. The game as been used to survey things like streets, bicycle lanes, manhole covers and park benches at record speeds.

Contact information:

Anne Mannermaa
Green Production Manager, City of Espoo
+358 50 5285928
anne.m.mannermaa@espoo.fi

Toni Paju
CEO, Crowdsorsa
+358 50 3226263
toni.paju@crowdsorsa.com