The bench and bin spotting in Vuosaari and Tapaninkylä starts on Monday, 15th July at 9 am. By downloading the free Crowdsorsa mobile game to their phone, anyone can participate in the mission. Players earn money by photographing park benches and trash bins and marking their exact location on the map.
– The benches and bins spotted by users will appear as icons on everyone’s map, allowing players to easily keep track of what others have found and where there is still more to survey, says Toni Paju, CEO of Crowdsorsa.
There is a total of about 2000 park benches and bins in Vuosaari and Tapaninkylä, each worth one euro to the person who spots them first. Detailed participation instructions are available in the Crowdsorsa app, where users can familiarize themselves with the task beforehand.
– We are expecting adequate footage of the various benches and bins in parks, other green areas, and street areas in Tapaninkylä and Vuosaari. Based on the images, we will classify the photographed furniture into condition classes and test the method to see if it is possible to determine the condition classes based on the images. Everyone is welcome to participate, states Ritva Keko, project manager for the city of Helsinki.
This summer, the Crowdsorsa app is also being used in Helsinki for accessibility mapping and invasive species control. The same method was used in 2021 and 2023 for the condition survey of Helsinki's bike paths.
How to participate
- Download the free Crowdsorsa mobile game to your smartphone. Create a username.
- Open the task "Helsingin penkki- ja roskisbongaus" and read the instructions carefully.
- Starting from Monday, 15th July at 9 am, take pictures of the benches and bins you find in the game area. You will earn a reward of one euro for each new discovery you make.
- Upload your photos to Crowdsorsa for a review.
- Once the photos have been approved, you can request a reward for the photos to be credited into your bank account.