“From a corporate perspective, you want to align your brand with organizations that have a good track record but also align closely with your ideals." Turner wanted his gaming company to make money, but he also wanted it to benefit society as a whole. To make this happen, Guerillapps decided to team up with corporations, such as TerraCycle, Carbonfund.org, TreeHugger, and Kraft, who were already encouraging recycling. The company combined their two passions: recycling and gaming and the end result is a product called Trash Tycoon, which integrates real-life recycling with the advancement of the online game.

Social entrepreneurs create innovative solutions for tackling the world’s most vexing social problems. Whether they’re solving hunger, improving the environment, or fighting for political freedom, these entrepreneurs place social missions at the center of their business activities — aiming to maximize social value instead of profits, though both are important for maintaining a sustainable organization. As a result, social enterprises come in both for-profit and not-for-profit models, though some believe the secret to a successful social enterprise is acting like a business. Raviv Turner, cofounder and CEO of Guerillapps — a startup focused on developing social games to support real-world causes — would agree that successful social entrepreneurs are the ones taking queues from their for-profit counterparts. Passion and drive, though, are also essential components.

Mat McDermott/CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 Social media is applauded as a means of engaging crowds, creating change and encouraging action. To see where the perception of social media’s power originated, we need only to look at the pivotal role it played in political events such as the Arab Spring and Green Revolution in Iran. Not to mention those here at home – think: #occupy. Social media certainly helps spread the word, but does it mean that less people are actively participating in events? While the actual news can spread like wildfire across the Internet, do as many people get off the couch or get up from their desk to follow through on the things they “like” or “share”? I’m wondering how much “good” social media can really do for the environment. If someone clicks “Like” on TerraCycle’s Facebook page, or retweets a Treehugger.com tweet, that’s fantastic. But it doesn’t take down our carbon output or bring back a demolished forest. I love seeing the good social media is doing – don’t get me wrong. It’s a large part of TerraCycle’s initiatives, and same goes for many other companies. Check it out:

TerraCycle, upcycled design powerhouse and purveyor of worm poop plant food, helps usher in spring with two new products: A watering can made from granola bags and a plant caddy made from juice pouches.

Trash Tycoon, jogo recém lançado coloca você como um empresário verde que deve ajudar a cidade a ficar mais bonita e sustentável transformando lixo em novos produtos. (link para o aplicativo no facebook) Você limpa as ruas, coleta lixo reciclável, constrói uma fazenda de minhocas e utiliza o lixo orgânico para alimentá-las. Realizando essas tarefas você ganha pontos, experiência e dinheiro (fictício, é claro).

TerraCycle, the Newark, N.J. based brand has evolved into a $20 million-a-year operation, since it was founded in 2001 by Princeton University dropout Tom Szaky. In a few short years, the company has pivoted but not abandoned its original focus on "worm poop" fertilizer -- the innovative organic plant food, packed in recycled bottle, that was brewed from worm-rich compost piles -- towards a broader focus on packaging reduction and reuse. Partnering with schools and numerous major consumer packaged good companies, TerraCycle is capturing both pre- and post-consumer packaging waste to upcycle it: such as converting Capri sun bags into satchels, pencil cases, and other merchandise.

Ninety-seven percent of participants of the Green Your Home Challenge said it increased their knowledge of how to help the environment. The tale of one online game serves as a powerful example of how approaching old problems in new ways can bring about significant changes – in a relatively short space of time. The Green Your Home Challenge, a month-long game run by Recyclebank <http://www.recyclebank.com/>  in April last year, was highly successful in getting people to adopt more eco-friendly habits, simply by framing their actions in a gaming environment.

Looking for a fun, recycled craft for your Valentine? Based off a beaded necklace users create in Terracycle's Trash Tycoon game on Facebook, this do-it-yourself project is made from Kraft Cheese wrappers. It teaches kids (and adults) about recycling while preventing one more piece of garbage from going to the landfill, where it would last, forever. Instructions are available for download here: bit.ly/ValentineBraceletDIY.

Love it or loathe it, Valentine’s Day is quickly approaching. Some are planning romantic dates with their longtime sweetheart. Some are planning to finally ask out their crush at recess. Regardless of your plans this Valentine’s Day, TerraCycle has sweet ways to celebrate that are good for the planet, good for the wallet and good for you.

Gamification.org defines gamification as "the concept of applying game-design thinking to non-game applications to make them more fun and engaging." In gamification study, regularly used game design techniques and mechanics are defined and introduced into atypical game scenarios. An example is the game Trash Tycoon where the player has been left behind in a city abandoned because of its extreme garbage problem. The player takes time to build a trash collecting empire that incorporates recycling and organic trash collection solutions often seen in real-life situations. The game employs the popular game mechanic of community collaboration as it is played on Facebook.