Last month we reported on Rippl, a mobile application by the Ocean Conservancy designed to help you lead a more eco-conscious life. Recently the Ocean Conservancy has launched another conservation-themed application. We spoke with Allison Schutes of the Ocean Conservancy’s Trash Free Seas Program about the organizations latest ocean-friendly app.
Each year, the Ocean Conservancy hosts Coastal Cleanup, an international day spent collecting trash and marine debris from the world’s coastlines. In the past, participants have recorded their collections the old fashioned way – on simple sheets of paper. This lead to the creation of their latest app, Clean Swell, which takes data collection off of the paper and onto the web. Clean Swell is a mobile data collection app which allows participants to easily tally up the debris they are collecting. In addition to being sent directly to the Ocean Conservancy, the data is also stored in each users’ account, making it effortless and fun to keep track of your ocean-saving work!
The app is not just intended for use during Coastal Cleanup Day, but also during any time a user takes a walk on the beach. An upcoming version of the app will include a new ‘badges’ feature, which will let users earn distinct, colorful badges the more cleanup they do!
New and creative apps like Clean Swell help the Ocean Conservancy to track both what kinds of marine-debris are most common, and where this marine-debris is being collected.
Written by: Emma Hayward (02/03/2016)