City of Raleigh Challenges Employees to Sustainability Buzz-Off With JouleBug

Jayne Kirkpatrick, Director, Public Affairs

 

For more information: Donna-maria Harris, Communications Coordinator, Office of Sustainability, 919-996-4259 or donna-maria.harris@raleighnc.gov

 

February 1, 2013

 

 

City of Raleigh Challenges Employees to

Sustainability Buzz-Off With Joulebug

 

The City of Raleigh today issued the following challenge to its employees: do you think you have what it takes to be the City’s Sustainability Champion?

 

By using JouleBug, the sustainability-themed mobile app, City employees will compete through February 8 to earn the most points for sustainable actions at home, at work, and on the go. The City employee with the most points after the week-long competition will be crowned Sustainability Champion on Thursday, February 8 and receive a “sustainability” prize pack.

 

“There are lots of easy, everyday things we can all do to save money and conserve resources, and we want City employees to lead by example,” said Raleigh Sustainability Manager Paula Thomas. “This is a little friendly competition to help get things started.”

 

JouleBug is a mobile app that helps people cut their utility bills, reduce waste, and conserve resources through simple actions. JouleBug users earn points, pins and badges for everyday sustainable activities, such as using a refillable water bottle instead of a disposable one, properly setting a programmable thermostat, or installing a compact fluorescent light bulb. They can compete with friends from Facebook and Twitter and keep an eye on the competition with the JouleBug Leaderboard.

 

JouleBug was developed in Raleigh by DesignBox team, located in the Warehouse District. “We’re delighted to see our hometown embracing JouleBug this way,” said company President Grant Williard. “We want more people to see how sustainability can be fun and easy. This kind of contest within a community is exactly what we envisioned when we were creating the app.”

 

The City launched its partnership with JouleBug in October 2012 to help promote sustainable living in the City of Oaks. As part of that partnership, JouleBug designed a custom Sustainable Raleigh Badge, which users can earn by completing unique activities around the City, such as:

• Completing the Downtown Raleigh Sustainability Walking Tour;
• Riding an R-Line bus;
• Using a Raleigh electric vehicle charging station;
• Using a BigBelly solar recycle station;
• Exercising along one of the City's sustainable parks or greenways; and,
• Volunteering for eight hours of community service within the City.

 

“We also want everyone to know this isn’t just about City employees,” added Ms. Thomas. “We encourage all Raleigh residents to download JouleBug and see how simple it is to make more sustainable choices in their daily lives.”

 

JouleBug is available on the Apple App Store or at http://JouleBug.com for iPhones and iPads only at this time. An Android version will be released this spring. For more information on the City of Raleigh Office of Sustainability visit http://www.raleighnc.gov/business/content/AdminServSustain/Contacts/OfficeOfSustainability.html.

 

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