Civic Dollars

By project TAAS

Published on 28 January 2025

Ireland

About this good practice

The Civic Dollars platform is an innovative solution to boost public health & wellbeing, community engagement and to encourage touirsts to visit under-utilized areas of Donegal. It’s an inclusive approach that can be used by people of all physical abilities. Civic Dollars operates on a time-based system, where users earn 1 Civic Dollar for every 30 minutes spent in a geo-fenced earn zone, whether they walk, run, cycle, or simply relax on a bench. While citizens keep a central role, tourists are also encouraged to take part in the project and earn Civic Dollars while visiting the outdoor areas of the county including woodland, coastal regions and areas of conservation and heritage.
The key to our success in Donegal was having a “champion” within the councils Healthy Donegal team who was instrumental in identifying parks and open spaces as potential geo-fenced earn zones, connecting us with community groups and charities, and introducing local businesses willing to offer rewards. One major advantage of Civic Dollars is that no hardware was required, meaning no upfront capital investment was needed from the council.
Civic Dollars has the potential to enhance Donegal’s tourism industry by allowing visitors to earn Civic Dollars as they explore the county’s natural beauty. Tourists can extend their stay, spend their Civic Dollars on rewards, or donate to local causes, further supporting the community (in line with TAAS project goals).

Expert opinion

This higly innovative good practice illustrates how Donegal leverages digital innovation to promote public health, community engagement, and sustainable tourism through the Civic Dollars platform. Citizens and tourists alike earn digital credits, Civic Dollars, for spending time in geo-fenced outdoor areas, supporting healthy behaviors and activating underused public spaces. The platform’s anonymised data, enriched by AI, enables insights into user behavior, guides infrastructure planning, and enhances tourism strategies, aligning with social tourism and sustainability goals. Additionally, over 40% of Civic Dollars are donated to local causes, reinforcing social impact. Civic Dollars offers a replicable, tech-enabled model for communities seeking to merge wellbeing, environmental use, and inclusive local development. Its low-cost, inclusive model has already attracted interest beyond Ireland, including from Copenhagen and Myrtle Beach.

Laura Varisco

Works at Interreg Europe Policy Learning Platform

Resources needed

Civic Dollars requires no upfront capital investment. Forging strong links to local authority health promotion officers have proven successful in Donegal and the platform is funded by the Healthy Donegal team. Funding of €5,000 per month would be required to license, support and maintain the system.

Evidence of success

Civic Dollars started with 5 Earn Zones in Donegal and has now over 80 sites, including beaches, playgrounds, parks and trails. Over 1,000 people have registered to use the app. More than 40% of the Civic Dollars earned are donated to local community groups. Success of the project in Donegal has enabled the Civic Dollars team to sell their platform to Copenhagen and The City of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina and are in negotiations with Kansas City to deploy Civic Dollars for the 2026 World Cup.

Potential for learning or transfer

Learning from our partnerships in Donegal, Dublin 8, West Belfast, Copenhagen and Myrtle Beach the data gathered by the Civic Dollars platform when anonymised and analysed by AI can reveal patterns in visitor behaviour, optimize resource allocation, and identify underutilized areas to inform infrastructure development and marketing efforts. AI can also enhance social tourism by designing inclusive programs, analysing reward effectiveness, and creating personalized itineraries that promote health and well-being while showcasing lesser-known attractions. This data has the potential to measure the impact of events, manage visitor flows to avoid overcrowding and develop sustainable practices to protect local ecosystems. By enabling cross-region comparisons and sharing best practices it can inform global tourism bodies, enabling trend analysis and promoting social tourism. Civic Dollars data could inform tourism strategies by fostering both economic growth and social inclusion.