Frequently asked questions

Questions about Climategames 🎽

What is Climategames?

Climategames converts your health and fitness activities to positive climate action. Connecting organisations and people with planetary health, through the power of movement and play. Our goal is to mobilise 1% of Earth's population by 2027, which will be a community of around 80 million.

Using our platform, every swim, cycle, run or walk you take, you can use this activity to plant trees, remove plastic from the ocean or sequester carbon from the atmosphere with one of our environmental partners. We use blockchain to validate all environmental activity, so you know that your action is protected for the long term.We enable organisations and individuals to create wellness events and workshops where attendees' activity supports a positive climate journey.

We want climate action to be fun, rewarding and engaging, and that’s why we created Climategames.

Why does Climategames exist?

We believe that climate action can be fun and rewarding, while also helping individuals become healthier tooIt is estimated that planting new forests, protecting our ocean and other nature-based solutions can help us reach 33% of the global emissions reductions that are needed by the year 2030.

We are doing our bit to help us reach our 2030 climate targets while also supporting healthy habits for the individual too.

How can I align Climategames to my organisation or personal climate change goals?

For our partners, we offer support to achieve a net-zero target. Partners can either enter a climate goal, or our team can help calculate your carbon footprint and desired target.

Our consulting helps you reduce your footprint and also sequester carbon to offset your usage levels.

What sport can I track on Climategames?

You can upload your swims, cycles, runs, hikes and walks using our app. We do have plans to introduce more activities (such as rowing, canoeing, skiing, SUP and many more), but as we’re still growing our platform, we chose to focus on these 4 sports initially.

How does Climategames differ from paying to plant trees or buying carbon credits?

Climategames allow you to plant trees AND look after yourself too. We realise that many ‘traditional’ climate action activities disconnect the person from the climate activity. It’s not very exciting looking at a spreadsheet and seeing a list of numbers correlating to trees planted!

We know that the more fun we can make climate action, the more engaged people are with the action that they’re taking. People are more likely to continue good habits when there are more rewards and exciting ways to engage.

People and employees who do not have input, visibility and involvement in taking action around the climate crisis are less likely to change behaviour or engage in activities.

We’ve made climate action fun, rewarding, and engaging.

How does Climategames prevent the same tree from being used by two different users?

We document every step of our collection and/or planting process via blockchain. Our technology partners include Veritree and a third-party DNV. This means we can see when a tree is bought and planted as well as see its social economic and environmental impact. This process gives us the highest level of traceability and our community the certainty that their involvement with Climategames truly helps make a difference for our planet.

How do I use my workouts to plant a tree, or remove plastic from the ocean?

As a member of the Climategames community, you can combine physical activity with positive action on climate change. There are two ways you can translate your activity into climate action:

Take part in an online event/challenge that offers climate-action rewards (such as planting a tree). A list of these events can be found on the home page of your app: Choose an event, complete the activity and receive a climate-action reward.
Subscribe to one of our three plans, giving you control to create a real environmental impact through your workouts. The three plans are: Green Fighter, Climate Hero and Planet Champion and start from as little as £3.49 per month.

Can I choose a specific cause to support through my activities?

Yes absolutely! You can choose either planting trees, CO2 removal, plastic removal or a combination of all three as your focus. Please go to “settings” and press “workout offsetting target”. All your activities then equal a climate impact value which is visible in the App.

How do I track activity?

We have an in-built tracker via the App so you can enter swims manually. Otherwise our platform connects to most leading wearable providers including Garmin, Apple Watch, Fitbit, Polar, Wahoo and Suunto all via the cloud API. We currently do not have Bluetooth connectivity with Wahoo.

To add your smartwatch simply connect your device in your settings on your profile page within the App. All your walk, cycle, swim and run data will sync automatically to your profile page and also to any events you have entered.

Is Climategames a charity?

Climategames is not a charity, we are a purpose-led company. We are for-profit and have partnered with charity partners as well as other initiatives, such as B1G1 to maximise our positive impact.

How large is the Climategames community?

Currently, we have thousands of users in over 110 countries. We also work with some leading organisations, businesses and governing bodies who are using our platform for positive action on climate change.

Where are your Climategames communities located?

Climatgames is literally used across the world with the highest percentage of users coming from the UK, USA, Australia, India, Canada, Spain, France, Denmark and Poland.

Where is the Climategames team based?

Our current team is based in the UK, Poland and in the USA. We are always on the lookout for new team members, so if you are interested in working with us, the please send an email to hello@climategames.com

How much of my money goes into climate projects?

Our goal is to build as much planetary impact as possible, so rather than charging fees to use our App and Platform, or using Adverts as a means of revenue generation, our income comes solely from a margin which we add to all the projects our customers fund. So, if you spend £100 on trees, we will add 20-30% on the project cost, which varies according to what Climategames is charged for different types of tree. to cover our running costs, including maintaining and upgrading the Platform and App, staffing costs, development and licences, attracting new members to our community, as well as our own internal give-back scheme.

Can my activity on Climategames stop climate change?

There are millions of people and hundreds of thousands of organisations who care about the planet and need a way to make a real impact. There is no single solution to prevent global warming. But through supporting well-vetted projects such as Climategames and adopting decarbonizing behaviours you can make a difference.

We support projects such as reforestation, renewables, plastic removal and humanitarian projects. All are ranked highly in terms of climate change solutions.

We know that Climategames alone cannot solve the crisis we all are facing, but it is a great way to connect and accelerate our positive impact.

How do I join an event?

If you have been invited to an event from one of Climategames’ partners, simply download the App, create a profile and press the invite link. If you are already on the App check the rewards page and you will see climate events. You can also filter here or create your own events on the community page.

Questions about climate programs 🌳

How does Climategames choose environmental partners?

We are aligned to ten of the seventeen Global Sustainable Development Goals and focus on partnering with environmental projects that support these objectives. Current partners include The Eden Project, ReSea Project, Veritree and Ecologi.

If you represent an organisation who’s a paid plan on Climategames, you can also choose your own climate program to support via the portal.

If you would like to become, or recommend an environmental partner, please email hello@climategames.com.

Will supporting ecological projects through Climategames be perceived as greenwashing?

Climategames is steadfast in its commitment to transparency & authenticity in environmental claims.We firmly reject the practice of greenwashing, delivering on our promises without embellishments.

Planting a tree is not greenwashing. We disapprove of attributing the tree solely to your carbon net-zero goal or asserting that it negates the necessity to reduce your ‘paper usage.’

We assert that a planted tree is simply that—no more, no less.

Why is it important to remove plastic from oceans and rivers?

Plastic pollution in our oceans is one of the biggest environmental concerns of our time. With the ocean covering 71% of the Earth’s surface, providing 50% of the oxygen we breathe and absorbing 25% of the Co2 we emit, we need to protect it. Today 11 million tons of plastic enter the ocean every year.

Plastic bags can take 20 years to decompose, plastic bottles up to 450 years, and fishing line, 600 years but no one truly knows how long it takes plastic to decompose in the ocean. This plastic is quite literally suffocating our planet.

Without clean oceans, the impact on life in the water and on land is enormous and there are already cases of discovering microplastics in our food, in fish and in human blood. We need to reduce our use of plastic and also make a conscious effort to remove the plastic that is currently polluting our oceans.

What happens to the plastic waste collected?

The plastic we collect is weighed at the plastic collectors’ local storage unit. It is then transported to a centralised sorting station where each batch of plastic is weighed using digital scales with automated weight software. This ensures automatic, accurate documentation of the weight of the batches of plastic. The weighing process concludes with documentation of the weight results in our tracking app. After weighing the plastic waste it is fine sorted. Each batch of plastic is sorted on sorting conveyor belts in the categories HDPE, LDPE, PP, PET and “Other Plastics”. After sorting the plastic is bale pressed (to decrease the density and limit the need for truck capacity), stored at the sorting station and is either recycled or properly treated and disposed of safely.

Surely my carbon footprint isn't that big?

Your footprint depends on a number of factors, including where you live and how you live your life. Factors such as the food you eat, your clothing, how frequent you travel and your energy consumption all play a huge part.

If you live in the Global North, it is very likely your carbon footprint is currently well beyond the tolerable amount for limiting global warming to +1.5ºC.

We recognise that the concept of an individual carbon footprint is controversial and achieving a net-zero lifestyle is almost impossible. This is especially difficult given that it is often reported that most emissions come from just a small percentage of ultra-high emitting companies. However, Climategames is built around the idea of inspiring millions of individuals and organisations to all take action through wellbeing. Everyone can easily share a small part of the climate load.

What's stopping someone from cutting down the newly planted tree?

This is an obviously important question that needs a good answer. Please find below a response from the Eden Reforestation Projects who do a large amount of planting with our partners Ecologi and Veritree.

We work carefully with all levels of government to secure written agreements designating the restoration sites as protected in perpetuity.
We hire local villagers to plant the trees. In this way, we alleviate extreme poverty within the impacted community. The villagers now have an economic incentive to ensure the wellbeing of the restoration project. They also have a sense of “ownership” over the trees and restored forest and they protect it with great care.
A minimum of 10% of the trees to be planted are agroforestry species (fruit, fodder and construction species designed to provide food security and benefit legitimate human needs). Over time these trees become a source of sustainable income.
We do all possible to supply the local villagers with alternative fuel sources (fuel efficient dry wood stoves and solar parabolic stoves), which reduces and or eliminates - their dependence on charcoal.
We also hire forest guards as part of the labour force. Forest guards are part of the overall budget.
Most significantly, we have seen the villagers fall in love with THEIR forest. They also recognize and benefit from the restored forest through increase in fisheries, improved farming, cleaner water and the formation of micro enterprises.

How much carbon does a tree sequester?

All of the trees funded by our community will absorb and lock away carbon over their lifetime, approximately 30 years. At a density of 10,000 trees per hectare, it is estimated that the long-term store of carbon is likely to be around 807.4 tonnes of CO2 per hectare.

For the purposes of our own reporting, we do not calculate the carbon absorbed by our trees planted and offer an equivalent carbon credit. This is because the calculation of carbon sequestered by a tree over its lifespan varies greatly. We have contacts with specialists who can share a more exact appropriation of the carbon value of the trees you choose to plant.

Climategames only purchases carbon credits from the most reputable carbon standards, such as Gold Standard and Verified Carbon Standard. With your Climategames subscription, you regularly contribute towards purchasing carbon credits per month, and (separately) you plant trees.

Is my footprint neutralised by newly-planted trees?

In short, no, it is not. The trees you’re funding right now are years away from doing their thing.

That’s why we recommend you add carbon sequestering to your subscription, allowing you to offset your carbon footprint from day one.

Who is checking to see if the tree was planted, and whether it grew up?

This is another major aspect of a responsible reforestation project. Our planting sites are routinely audited by third parties and we use Veritree blockchain to check the reported number of healthy trees match our records. Eden Reforestation Projects, our largest tree-planting partner, has a brilliant track record of meeting the reported numbers of trees. Please contact them if you want to see copies of these reports or check our forest on Veritree.

Does having a Climategames account support animal protection and re-population projects?

By planting trees and removing plastic waste from the ocean, the species diversity of the ecosystem will increase. There will be more habitats, a greater range of food sources and the populations of animals and plants will increase.

Through Climategames we plant a range of different trees including mangroves which are a group of trees and shrubs that live in the coastal intertidal zone. It is estimated that there are around 100 different species of mangrove trees worldwide. These forests not only provide the primary habitat for thousands of species, from green turtles, proboscis monkeys, fishing cats, to sambar deer, but also breeding and nursery grounds for many fish and invertebrate species. The rich biological diversity and highly productive nature of forests, especially mangroves, means that animals can survive more easily.

Connecting your Strava account or Smartwatch ⌚

Connect to Leading Wearables

Our platform connects to most leading wearable providers including Garmin, Apple Watch, Fitbit, Polar, Wahoo and Suunto all via the cloud API. We currently do not have Bluetooth connectivity with Wahoo. To add your smartwatch simply connect in your settings on your profile page within the App or when first downloading. All your walks, rides, swims or run data will sync automatically to your profile page and also any events you have entered.

On the Climategames App on the profile page, select the settings “cog” next to your notification’s bell.
Go down to “Training” and select “Connect Device”
Once there, you can turn on your Apple Health Kit by pressing “Connect Apple Watch” or connect your chosen wearable via the appropriate cloud API. You will need your smartwatch login info at this stage to connect.

Connecting to Strava and Zwift

Our platform connects Strava and Zwift through your Apple Health Kit. This means all workouts that pull into your Apple Health App will automatically sync into the Climategames platform. This will include all your walks, rides, swims or run data.

There are two steps involved;

‍Firstly, make sure you have connected your Strava account and the Apple Health App. To do this:

‍On the Strava mobile app, open your settings from the gear icon in the upper right-hand corner of the Home, Groups, or You tab. Select Applications, Services, and Devices > Health > Select the plus sign icon.

Tap Connect on the next screen.

You'll be taken to the Health Access page where you can enable the sharing of data from Strava to Health. You can control which types of information Strava will read and write to Health.You must enable Workouts for the sharing of any data (cycling, running, calories, etc.) to work. After the initial setup, you can modify Strava's Health Access by going into the Health app and clicking on Sources > Strava.

‍Second Step, Health to Climategames:

Within the Climategames App on the profile page, select the settings “cog” next to your notifications
Go down to “Training” and select “Connect Device”
Once there, you can turn on your Apple Health Kit by pressing “Apple Watch”. You must enable Workouts for the sharing of any data (cycling, running, calories, etc.) to work. Health to Climategames will have now started.