GoGreen XOTA

Dear SOTA Friends,

We are happy to announce the launch of the GoGreen XOTA initiative and award scheme that also includes SOTA programme. What on earth does that mean?

There are thousands of amateur radio operating awards available, some of them offer a great way to take outdoor amateur radios. You can hike a high alpine mountain or a local hill, go to a green park or to a sunny beach around the corner, visit a lonely island or your favorite castle and “activate” them to enjoy outdoor amateur radio activities and apply for a corresponding activator award. The idea behind this initiative is not to create yet another outdoor amateur radio program, but to engage and participate in GoGreen XOTA activities that currently incorporate existing outdoor amateur radio programs:

  • SOTA (Summits On The Air),
  • GMA (Global Mountain Activity),
  • WWFF (World-Wide Flora & Fauna),
  • COTA (Castles On The Air),
  • LOTA (Lighthouses On The Air),
  • IOTA (Islands On The Air).

The term XOTA means X-any On The Air . You can activate or chase X-any object which is eligible for activating or chasing by the associated outdoor amateur radio program listed above (e.g. summit, castle, nature park, etc.) as long as you are compliant with the following GoGreen philosophy :

  • Using personal cars, trucks, motorcycles, motor boots, etc. (any personal vehicles with combustion engines, hybrid and electro vehicles) should be avoided for any GoGreen activations.
  • A GoGreen activation should be done on foot, by bicycle/e-bike, by paddle boat/canoe, with the support of an animal, and/or by public transport (bus, train, ferry, etc.).
  • A GoGreen activation starts and ends at your QTH or at an alternative QTH. The alternative QTH is a place where the motorized personal vehicle has been parked and not moved for any XOTA activations for at least two nights or longer, e.g. your holiday destination, resort, etc.
  • A GoGreen activation is an outdoor activity in the fresh air compared to amateur radio indoors. If possible, you should operate the radio outdoors at least 1 km or more from your QTH or an alternative QTH.
  • QRP is preferred, Low Power (100W) should also be fine. Solar and battery powered operations are welcome. Combustion engine generators should not be utilized.
  • Environmental impact and ecological footprint should be minimized as much as possible.
  • Stay happy and healthy while enjoying GoGreen XOTA activities.

The GoGreen philosophy leaves plenty of room for individual interpretations of what GoGreen activation is and what is not. Finally, it is up to you how you integrate the GoGreen philosophy in your outdoor XOTA activities, and whether you judge that your activation corresponds to the GoGreen philosophy or not.

The motivation behind the GoGreen initiative would be to foster:

  • outdoor and /P amateur radio activities in the fresh air,
  • homebrewing and experimenting,
  • personal health and fitness,
  • flora and fauna conservation (less emissions, noise, damage, impact, etc.),
  • “green” thinking (less congestion and traffic jams, better life quality, better use of time, etc.),
  • personal achievements and joint family activities.

The GoGreen XOTA is basically a progress tracking and award scheme that targets your personal goals (health and fitness, number of different activated or chased objects or references, achieved GoGreen points, miles and QSOs, etc.) rather than the competition and ranking. Activators and chasers who wish to participate in the GoGreen award scheme and track their progress must submit their logs showing details of all QSOs through the GMA (Global Mountain Activity) platform at www.cqgma.org. Of course, ideally you should also submit your logs to the associated outdoor amateur radio programs.

Does it sound exciting? Take a quick look at the engagement and participation guidelines and get started!

There are many XOTA objects and references around you that are just waiting to be activated! Take a bike ride or a walk to the next castle, park or hill, enjoy nice weather and some exercise in the fresh air, experience amateur radio and have fun, submit your log to apply for awards. That’s it!

73, 77 de Dzianis, DD1LD es Mario, DL4MFM

7 Likes

I demand bonus points for when I use my XOTA callsign MX0TA.

4 Likes

Hi Andy,

Award certificates are available. Please feel free to apply :slight_smile:
73, 77 de Dzianis, DD1LD

1 Like

Does HEMA count for GoGreen XOTA? Could be a way for me to take part in that scheme.

Yes, I’ve just entered a fake activation of G/HSP-001 Billinge Hill and was credited the kilometers.

Ahoi
Pom

Hi Tom,

The HEMA should work fine for that. You might need to add a reference to the GMA database by yourself. Moreover, the Cloud (SOTA reference) around the corner is a great source of GoGreen Points. Just submit your logs for 2020 and get your GoGreen certificate.

73, 77 de Dzianis, DD1LD

1 Like

Hi All,

GoGreen XOTA chasers do not need to register or enter the QSO details into the GMA database. You can apply for a GoGreen chaser award directly at GoGreen XOTA

I just checked my XOTA logs for the most frequent chasers from EU (EA2DT) and NA (KD1CT) and got this:

Wow! Congratulations to Manuel, EA2DT and Robert, KD1CT!
73, 77 de Dzianis, DD1LD

4 Likes

Hi, Dzianis, DD1LD es Mario, DL4MFM!

Great thanks to your team for the new GoGreen XOTA Program! I’m very excited of it!

I activate a lot, portable, outdoor, for almost every possible for me award program, staring some years ago with SOTA, then WWFF, WCA, WHS, LZAFA, GMA LZMA. So, the GMA Triathlon and GoGreen XOTA (why not hexa-, deca-thlon … in the future :slight_smile: ) are of great interest for me. I travel a lot (to many parts of Bulgaria), 95% by the public transport, i.e. my activations are very suitable for GoGreen XOTA!
73 & 77 de Rumen / LZ2AF