Users can engage with the app on a daily basis by taking part in a wide range of different tasks across seven key environmental themes.

Amidst all the environmental hazards the world is facing at present, sustainable living is the way forward and to bring a sense of environment-friendly living, Environment Agency Abu Dhabi has launched a new app ‘Baadr’.

The app, named after the Arabic word for ‘initiate’, aims to help citizens and residents of the UAE embrace a more sustainable lifestyle by educating and encouraging them and by rewarding users to shift to a more environmentally friendly way of living.

Launched in partnership with Sustainable Campus Initiative and Borouge, the application offers incentives for environmental actions with more than 30 tasks to choose from and is based on seven central themes – Move, Reuse, Switch, Grow, Initiate, Conserve and Join.

Designed to be fun and interactive, the app’s main focus is to help foster long-term behavioural change and encourage mindful living. It aims to reduce carbon emissions, reduce food waste and the consumption of single-use items, conserve energy and encourage people to reuse and recycle their day to day products.

To use the app, one needs to register, select a theme and then complete the tasks set. For instance, actions such as ditching the car and cycling instead, or growing a favourite herb on the window sill will earn users rewards when they take a photograph of their task and upload it to the app.

By doing so, users can earn reward points that can be redeemed at nine different companies. For example, users can enjoy a free boardwalk through Mangrove Park, get a 10 per cent discount on kayaking, or take part in mangrove tree planting.

Not just that, people can also attend workshops or events to improve their environmental knowledge with the help of the app.

Designed to engage the youth and the camera-savvy, the app encourages active participation and hopes to nurture a like-minded community and plays a vital role in raising awareness of the importance of the environment for the younger generation.