Helsinki pays residents to pull invasive plants with mobile game

The City of Helsinki will reward residents with a total of €12,000 this summer for helping remove invasive plant species using a mobile game. The project, now in its second year, uses the Crowdsorsa smartphone app to crowdsource environmental work in urban nature areas.

Participants earn money by removing two of the city’s most harmful invasive species: lupins and Himalayan balsam. The first phase begins on 26 May, when lupins are large enough to identify. Removal of Himalayan balsam is expected to start in mid-June.