For the last three years, OhmConnect has been helping folks monitor their energy usage and save money. As the company explains on its website, when you sign up for OhmConnect, you will get notified when your home begins using energy from unsustainable sources, like a power plant that spews carbon emissions. But if you save energy at that time, say by turning off your lights, your AC, or unplugging a few electronics, you can get paid (the company claims between $100 and $300 a year).
Included in OhmConnect’s services is an interactive map that shows users where their electricity is sourced. This, company co-founder Curtis Tongue told NPR, makes the notion of climate change and pollution much more personal. By showing users exactly how they impact the environment on an individual level, OhmConnect hopes they can create a sense of resonance that could help in the global fight against climate change.
“When our users save energy, they earn points,” Tongue told NPR. “We have a dashboard that we’ve built out that’s kind of gamified energy saving.”
OhmConnect features a user dashboard that allows users to keep an eye on just how much energy they are saving and, as a result, how many points they are accumulating. These points can then be traded in for cash via PayPal, or be turned into donations to a nonprofit of your choice. You can even choose to combine your points with others in order to donate a larger sum.
So if you’re looking for a way to go green, OhmConnect just may be the solution you (and your wallet) have been waiting for.
