The United Nations Climate Change Summit comes as global awareness of the dangers of climate change and the need to act to control it is at an all time high. Thousands are expected to descend upon Paris in late November. But that doesn't mean that waiting to march is all you can do to make a difference in the fight for our planet. App developers are also weighing in, with a variety of apps that serve to educate about and illustrate the dangers and damage of climate change, as well as marshal people to act for the good of the environment. Here are eight you should check out now.
#climate (iOS) (Free)
#climate aims to harness social media for social good. Users sign in to the #climate app and then select a number of environmental issue categories to which to subscribe. #climate then updates them with news about the latest causes and news items related to their selected issues, presented in clear, concise language and an accompanying call to action. Not only are you encouraged to participate, but all of this is designed to be easy to share with your friends, contacts,and followers on Facebook and Twitter.
Chasing Ice (iOS) (Free)
A tie-in app to the award-winning documentary of the same name, Chasing Ice chronicles the efforts of photographer James Balog and the Extreme Ice Survey to bring the disappearance of the world's major ice sheets and glaciers to the world's attention. Follow along a unique audiovisual experience as the app delivers stunning photography and time lapse videos of the world's disappearing glaciers.
WWF Together (iOS) (Free)
The World Wildlife Fund has been a long-time stalwart in the wildlife conservation movement, and their WWF Together app is a stunning audio-visual presentation on the many species that the WWF is working to protect. Packed with impressive photographs and videos as well as a wide variety of facts and short writeups on many endangered species, WWF Together examines how human activity and climate change are affecting some of the planet's iconic species.
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Images of Change (iOS) (Free)
Climate change, natural disasters and human activities are changing the face of the world we live in, and NASA's Images of Change app brings that to the forefront with a collection of side by side photographs highlighting the most striking examples of our changing world. Curated from NASA's Global Climate Change website, users can view the retreat of the Muir Glacier at ground level, view the expansion of agriculture in the Saudi Arabian desert, and other places around the world.
Earth-Now (Android, iOS) (Free)
Another NASA app, this time spearheaded by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Earth-Now allows users to visualize the latest climate data superimposed over a Google Earth-style 3D globe, complete with time-lapse animations. Earth-Now provides data for Air Temperature, CO2, sea level variance and more.
Offset (iOS) (Free)
NASA's Offset is a free iOS educational game that aims to illustrate to kids some of the difficulties of tackling global dioxide emissions. "Part pong, part resource management", Offset players need to block an increasing number of CO2 balls before they can escape into the atmosphere, all while slowly accumulating resources in order to counter deforestation, develop clean energy, and efficient transportation solutions. Detailed instructions and a "Learn More" session provide further information to whet the appetite of a science-curious child.
Skeptical Science (Android, iOS) (Free)
Skeptical Science is a quick guide to debunking climate change denial, listing and refuting the most commonly used arguments used to undermine climate change science. The app presents a top 10 list of arguments, as well as searchable categories, and a news feed. It's a great and informative resource for taking the fight to the streets.
Just Science (iOS) (Free)
Novim Group's Just Science app vividly illustrates the changes in the Earth's land temperature between 1800 to 2009. Drawing on data from the Berkley Earth Surface Temperature (BEST) study, the app displays an interactive video map illustrating global temperatures, bringing together historical data from sources like British navigational logbooks to high-tech modern meteorological stations. Users can watch how world temperatures have changed from the Industrial Revolution to today.
Greentech Media (iOS) (Free)
Going green doesn't have to mean bad business. Just ask Greentech Media, which brings the latest and greatest news and research on business-to-business greentech, with articles covering solar energy, smart grid optimization, energy efficiency and more. The mobile app allows you to read the latest stories from Greentech Media, share articles over social media and email, and comment on articles from within the app.
Painting with Time: Climate Change (iOS) ($1.99)
Painting with Time is another software toy that does a great job in illustrating how our world changes with the warming climate. Taking side-by-side picture comparisons a step further, the app allows you to layer images on top of each other and combine the past and present pictures with a combination of digital painting tools.
