“Erika” – A Digital Companion for Climate-Conscious Everyday Living

The free web application “Erika” supports municipalities and companies in promoting climate-friendly behaviour in everyday life. Using playful elements, the tool makes sustainability easy to integrate into daily routines and organisational contexts. The app was developed in a research project by USTP – University of Applied Sciences St. Pölten in collaboration with TU Wien, upper secondary vocational school HTL Waidhofen, and the city of Waidhofen. 

Many barriers to climate‑friendly behaviour are not driven by a lack of goodwill, but by missing cues, incentives or practical opportunities to act. However, it is often the accumulation of many small, everyday actions by everyday citizens and employees that can make a measurable contribution to achieving climate targets. This is precisely where the app Erika comes in. It offers municipalities and companies a low‑threshold, playful and practical way to encourage climate-friendly behaviour free of charge.

From Research to Practice: Erika for Municipalities and Companies

Erika is tailored to organisations that reach many people: Municipalities and companies are invited to integrate the app into their existing structures and actively promote climate-friendly behaviour.

“Erika allows us to help people to handle everyday challenges by integrating climate-friendly behaviour into their daily lives. Small actions are made visible and rewarded. Each institution can decide for themselves which incentives they want to offer to their target group – for example, they can issue vouchers for regional products”, explains project lead Gernot Rottermanner of USTP’s Institute for Creative\Media/Technologies.

Playful Motivation with Lasting Impact

At the heart of Erika lies a gamification approach. Users earn points for climate‑friendly activities in their daily lives and can redeem these points for rewards offered via the app. This creates a direct link between sustainable behaviour and personal benefits.

“Digital technologies are effective tools for promoting climate-friendly behaviour. Our mobile application Erika is designed as a context-aware service that informs, motivates, and rewards users”, elaborates Rottermanner.

Open Source and Flexible to Deploy

Erika is made available as an open-source solution and may be operated by municipalities and companies on their own servers. This allows for a flexible, secure, and target-specific use.

Successful Practice Test in the Waidhofen Model Region

The app was tested over several months within the framework of a pilot study conducted in the Lower Austrian region of Waidhofen an der Ybbs. Developed jointly by USTP – University of Applied Sciences St. Pölten, TU Wien, HTL Waidhofen, and the city of Waidhofen, the project was funded by the Lower Austrian Chamber of Labour (AK Niederösterreich).

Erika has already been integrated into the Waidhofen app, where it successfully makes local climate action initiatives more visible.  

How to Use Erika in Companies, Municipalities and Regions  

Everybody who wants to know more about the project and those who are interested in testing Erika but do not know where to start are encouraged to contact project lead Gernot Rottermanner. 

Further Links:

• For more details on how to use Erika, go to the whitepaper about the app.
• Access this explainer video to find out how citizens, pupils, and staff members can use the app.
• Information about the project