CitizenClimate App Tour: Field Data Collection That Works Offline
Most field apps do one thing well. Our 25-second tour shows a single phone doing six: mapping a site boundary, recording a route offline, identifying a species with AI, rewarding the person who did the work, keeping them engaged, and feeding dashboards an auditor can use.
Here's what each feature does, and why it matters if you run a carbon, nature or development project with teams in remote places.
Walk the boundary
Field teams walk the edge of a site and the app drops GPS boundary points as they go. When the polygon closes, it works out the area for you (1.63 ha in the film) and shows GPS accuracy on screen. No separate mapping tool, and no copying coordinates into a spreadsheet afterwards.
Record GPS routes, even offline
Route surveys record the path someone takes and the total distance, with a notification showing that recording is running. Without signal, submissions queue on the phone and a counter shows what's pending. When the phone reconnects, everything syncs and the app confirms it. That matters in forests, on coasts and in farmland where coverage comes and goes.
Let AI identify what you find
The app identifies birds from their song, and plants, insects, mushrooms, animals and crop health from photos. In the film, Bird Song ID picks out a grey crowned crane. Each result comes with a confidence score, and anything below the threshold can go to an expert for review. Anyone with a phone becomes a capable data collector, no field guide needed.
Earn points and currency
Verified submissions earn points, and projects can add a currency reward, set per project and per survey. The film shows 20 points and an illustrative 10 GHS landing after a survey, plus a new badge. Because rewards follow verified work, the incentive stays honest and the project keeps a clear record of who was paid and why.
Leaderboards, badges and lessons
Monthly and all-time leaderboards, a badge collection and short illustrated lessons with scored quizzes keep people coming back. Engagement is easy at launch and hard in year three, so this part does a lot of quiet work for data continuity.
Auditor-grade dashboards
Everything lands in biodiversity and SDG dashboards, with Plan Vivo pillar metrics, CSV and JSON exports and a downloadable audit bundle. The data is structured to align with Verra VCS, Gold Standard, Plan Vivo and Puro.earth, so it's ready for the people who verify your project.
What setting up a project looks like
A project developer creates the project, maps its boundary and invites members with a QR code or invite code. Surveys are built from field types such as multiple choice, numbers, photos and GPS location, with optional points and currency per submission. SDG templates, lessons, a community forum and a grievance mechanism are switched on from the same screens.
Most teams start with one or two surveys, test them with a small group, then roll out. Our walkthrough films show this set-up in full for biodiversity, biochar, regenerative agriculture, SDG tracking, mangroves, solar, electric buses, coffee finance and Plan Vivo nature projects.
Data you can trust
Every submission carries GPS coordinates and a timestamp. AI photo checks confirm that images match where and when they were taken, and suspected duplicates or edits are flagged. Admins can review, approve or query submissions, and rewards follow verified records only. That's what turns crowd-sourced data into evidence an auditor will accept.
How it compares with a generic survey app
General survey tools are good at forms but stop there: no species ID, no SDG scoring, no rewards and nothing aligned with carbon standards. Enterprise satellite platforms cover remote sensing but cost many times more and leave communities out. CitizenClimate sits in between, with community-first field tools and verification-ready outputs in one place, starting with a free tier for up to 100 users.
On every screen, in 11 languages
Join the CitizenClimate movement to track and push forward monitoring progress in your community:
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Download the app – Get started collecting data using questionnaires built for your needs
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Access the dashboards – Use our API to visualise and compare SDG scores
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Share your impact – Show everyone what your community's doing for sustainability
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the CitizenClimate app work offline?
Yes. Surveys, photos, GPS routes and boundaries can all be captured with no signal. Submissions queue on the device and sync automatically when it reconnects.
What can the AI identify?
Birds from their song, and plants, insects, mushrooms, animals and crop health from photos. Each result has a confidence score, and low-confidence results can go to a human reviewer.
Which devices and languages are supported?
Phone, tablet, laptop and desktop, on iOS, Android and the web, with the interface in 11 languages including Kiswahili, Bahasa Indonesia, Tagalog, Hindi and Arabic.
How much does it cost?
There's a free tier for up to 100 users. Paid plans add more users and AI credits, starting at $299 a month for up to 500 users.
Can I build my own surveys?
Yes. Surveys are built from field types such as multiple choice, numbers, photos and GPS location, and each can carry points and an optional currency reward. Templates are included for all 17 SDGs.