Designing Recycling for Good Habits

How can we incentivize good recycling habits?

At the time of this project, only 60% of reusable packaging was properly recycled, so we asked is there a way we as designers can increase that amount? In order to design a working solution we needed to learn more about the problem.

What opportunities are hidden in our systems?

The focal point for our research in this endeavor was our existing ecosystems around recycling and waste management. By observing how our current systems worked we were able to make suggestions on how to implement improvements that would affect change.

There was a deep well of knowledge to draw on for this assignment. Through a mix of primary and secondary research methods, our team collected a broad assortment of information and distilled several key findings to begin synthesizing ideas from.

Research Methods

Behavioral Models

Initially we looked to our existing knowledge to speculate what the potential problems and solutions may be. We had a particular focus on behavior models and habit-forming strategies.

Observations and Stakeholder Interviews

We began our primary research with observation. We observed people interacting with current waste disposal solutions. We constructed a stakeholders map and drew conclusions from our collected data.

Cognitive Walkthrough + Personas

Our team made a cognitive walkthrough to look at the lifecycle of waste. Pairing this with personas, we used this model to identify where, when, why, and how users would interact with our waste system. This allowed us to hypothesize what potential pain points our users would be facing.

Secondary Research

To bolster our wealth of knowledge we also conducted extensive secondary research. We aimed our gaze at a number behavioral science texts by authors such as Don Norman. We also referred to several studies conducted by other universities around the world for information.

Primary Conclusions

Incentive-Based Ecosystems are Self-Sustaining

Through our research we found that the monetary bottle recycling incentive had caused Scavengers to dig through any trash receptacles available and collect bottles, taking them to the recycling facilities. Since this was the only place they could receive their monetary rewards, it ensured that the bottles, even if missorted, would be disposed of properly.

We understood we were trying to develop a habit-forming solution, so we conducted secondary research about the topic. We found the concept of The Elements of Simplicity, defined by behavioral scientist BJ Fogg. Fogg described these elements as areas to find deficits in to identify major user pain points.

Through secondary research we discovered the concept of opportunity cost. In an article from 2017, Choi and Koo from Seoul National University created the concept of opportunity cost: the quantification of negative factors considered an inconvenience. We used this in our own research to understand what prevented people to take the time to sort their trash.

Opportunity Costs Impact Habits

Elements of Simplicity Can Guide Solutions

In the book "Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products" Author Nir Eyal states that in order to build successful habitual products a designer must focus on the element of simplicity the user has a deficit in. We held a brainstorming session to create an affinity map around the elements of simplicity to identify the most promising areas of opportunity for concept development.

Identifying Deficits in Simplicity

Once our research period concluded, our team set off to work individually. Using our research, I designed ways of improving the consumer experience of recycling with the aim of making a habit-forming experience.

Initial Concept Sketches

Playing off of our observations with the bottle scavengers, I wanted to explore how one could make that behavior more fun, socially acceptable, and convenient. This first concept proposes a smart bin that users can tap their phone to, deposit their bottles, and collect the return on the bottle in a digital wallet. With Japan's metro card integration in mind, I thought it would also be interesting to incorporate this wallet as a vending machine or arcade payment method or simply as a way of accumulating Google Play credit. With the introduction of super apps in recent years, I can imagine deeper integration into everyday life.

Concept 1: Bottle Smart Bin and App

This concept came from another one of our observations. I noticed that fast food packaging is often disposed of improperly simply because people don't separate their trash. This design proposes an auto-sorting waste bin, standardized packaging for fast food, and an app (either on your phone or built into the bin) that lets users explore where their garbage goes.

Concept 2: Fast Food Packaging and disposal Experience Redesign

After developing the two concepts, I selected one to move ahead with. I chose to address the fast food experience, as at the time I felt that fast food companies would be trying to improve their waste disposal systems in the future. I have used Mcdonalds as an example in this design.

The Final Concept uses the concepts of incentive and variable reward, with the intent of encouraging users to sort their trash. This concept would require 2 conditional changes from Mcdonalds:

Final Concept

In order for this system to work, the restaurant chain would need to ensure that their packaging was reduced to a set number of materials, and limit each piece to a single material.

The restaurant chain would need to make considerations on how this system would impact cost. If there were incentives being offered relating to how packaging was recycled, the cost of the incentives may need to be compensated for in the price.

1. Mcdonalds Reduces the number of Packaging Materials

2. Mcdonalds Arranges a recycling Incentive Program

I proposed that Mcdonalds could reduce the number of materials used in their packaging to make it possible for people to sort their trash easier. In addition, I proposed that the packaging could be patterned based on the material it was made of, allowing users to easily identify each packaging material for more clarity while sorting.

Element 1: Using High-Visibility Patterns to identify Materials

Part of this solution would require a smart bin. This smart bin would be labelled with the patterns of the different packaging materials to identify the correct spots to put them. Users would be able to earn redeemable points for properly sorting their trash. Inspired by the Japanese subway system, I thought the bin could also create a closed-loop system for receipts by making users insert their receipts to confirm what packaging the bin should expect, effectively collecting the paper receipt.

Element 2: A Smart Bin with User Interface and clearly labeled sections

Users would be able to track their points in an additional section of the Mcdonalds app. These points could be redeemed for free items on the menu. I proposed that there could be visualizations of the point progress towards any items.

Element 3: Integration in the Mcdonalds App