Online Games for Good Causes

At work, the Internet is a great tool for research. It is also my escape from work and research. During breaks I usually check personal e-mail and read news stories, but lately I've been visiting freerice.com and playing the vocabulary game found there. Why is a vocabulary Web site called "Free Rice"? According to this Reuter's article by Paul Tomasch, creator John Breen originally created the vocabulary game to help his son prepare for college entrance tests, then later decided to make it a charitable cause and teamed up with the United Nations World Food Program. Freerice.com is a sister site to Poverty.com. Twenty grams of rice is donated to the fund for every question you answer correctly. This got me thinking: I'd play this game even if it wasn't for charity. I wonder how many other games like this are out there.

It took a little searching, but I found some online games for charity. Some of the online casino gaming sites offer charitable options, but I'm not going to promote games of chance in this instance; don't start gambling for charity. And joining a game of Texas hold 'em isn't a practical way to spend a fifteen minute break. However, if you regularly gamble, why not consider a charity game or two? Likely the Web sites you already use will offer some. Look for the links on these sites.

The online games I'm sharing here are short, free, and informative. Freerice.com is the only game I found for which direct charity is given based on your outcome. The games I did find were designed to raise awareness, which, although indirect, is still charity.

Climate Change Pentathlon

The first game I came across was called the Climate Change Pentathlon, offered by the Lift the Label campaign on the youth site of the Tearfund. According to their Web site, the Tearfund's mission is "a Christian relief and development agency working with a global network of local churches to help eradicate poverty." Lift the Label is Tearfund's ethical lifestyle campaign, which aims "to help us think about how our consumer choices in the areas of food, fashion, and finance impact the lives of some of the poorest people in the world." Per the name, the pentathlon offers five different games, each based on earth-friendly living habits and practices. The names of the games are "Lights Out," "Sorted," "On Your Bike," "Cool, Clean, and Green," and "Greenhouse." Before each game is a brief introduction is offered about how to play the game, and why to play the game (you can skip this if you prefer).

The challenge of "Lights Out" is see how many lights you can turn off by clicking on the empty rooms and desks of the animated office. In this game you look down on an office space consisting of a bathroom, kitchen, conference room, lounge, and cubicles. Figures move from room to room, and it's your job to turn the lights off when they leave their room or cubicle. (You can't turn the lights off on people in the rooms-I tried.) Before each game begins, a quick fact is given; for "Lights Out" this is: "Leaving an office light on overnight wastes enough energy to heat 1,000 cups of tea."

"Sorted" is in my opinion the most challenging of the games. Recyclables (a metal can, plastic soda bottle, newspaper, and banana peel) fall from the sky, and it's your job to catch them in the correct recycling bin (metal, plastic, paper, and food) before they hit the ground. The recyclables fall faster as the game progresses.

"On Your Bike" is the simplest of the five. You use the right and left arrow keys on your keyboard to make the animated man peddle on his bike. Your challenge is to maintain a practical speed to achieve the highest points. This game encourages bike use, especially when a high percentage of vehicle use is to places less than two miles away.

"Cool, Clean, and Green" is a game about setting your washing machine at a lower time, time, temperature, and spin cycle to save energy. As the dials for these three settings begin to spin, you have to hit the space bar when the dial reaches the preferred setting, which is marked by a green arrow. The dial spins pretty fast, so the game isn't as simple as it sounds.

Finally, "Greenhouse" is another time challenge game. In this game you click and drag energy saving tools and appliances, such as efficient refrigerators and lightbulbs, solar panels, and insulation, etc., into their correct room in the house. Some of the products have more than one that needs to be installed. I have played this game a few times now and have yet to get all of the products into the house.

Karma Tycoon

A more involved game is an RPG called Karma Tycoon. Like the title says, your job is to become a tycoon of good karma by setting up a successful nonprofit organization. You select a U.S. city and a type of organization, then you begin creating your organization. Dots on the screen represent people or animals that need help, and your karma goes up every time a dot is helped. You can go on to build organizations in other cities, and you can buy and sell products with an initial budget. You'll have to maintain your budget using a virtual credit card or buy applying for grants and loans. The more dots you help, the higher your karma goes, and the easier it is to receive funding. If you run out of money, you have one month to get out of debt. If in one month you are still in debt, you lose the game. This game is more involved than the Climate Change Pentathlon, but once you've registered (for free) the program saves your game for you.

Surfers Against Sewage

Surfers Against Sewage offers a quick game called "How Green a Surf Warrior Are You?" This game tests your carbon footprint. The stick figure surfer begins by sleeping, then showering, the making coffee in the kitchen, then drinking coffee in the living room. In each room you click on objects and are asked a yes or no question regarding your use of the object, for example, "Do you shut off the water while you brush your teeth?" "Do you surf locally or travel?" and "Do you turn off electronics or leave them on standby?" If your use is environmentally friendly, you're score goes up; if not, your score goes down.

Red Nose Day

The UK charity Comic Relief's Red Nose Day Web site offers a few just-for-fun games. These games are "Cheese Roll," "Air Jump," "Space Hopper," "Whack a Snake," and "Breakout." According to the Web site, "Red Nose Day is a UK wide fund-raising event organized by Comic Relief every two years. It culminates in a night of TV treats on BBC ONE." Participants are encouraged to don a red nose for the day and dress outrageously, host a party or event, hold a competition or raffle, all to raise money to help end poverty in the UK and Africa. Why not support the cause by spending some time at their site?

Game for Charity

If you run a nonprofit or need a good fund-raising tool, check out GAme for Charity at gameforcharity.com. According to the site, their aim "is revolutionizing fund-raising by providing organizations a solution that delivers the ability to harness the power of the Internet and entertainment value of games to raise funds." Put your charity online for me to play during breaks!

CharityUSA.com

CharityUSA is the owner and operator of the GreaterGood network of Web sites. These sites do not offer games, but like Free Rice, all you have to is visit the site, point, and click to donate to charity. You are likely familiar with these Web sites, such as the Hunger Site, where you click a button to provide free food to feed the hungry, and theLiteracy Site, where a click of the button donates money toward buying books for children. You can also click and give for breast cancer research, child health care, rainforest preservation, and animal rescue. These are worth the break-time visit-it takes less than a minute to donate to all of these charities! You'll still have time to play games.