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In the world that we live in, if you don't recycle, what are you doing with your life?
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What is the Problem?
Australia's poor waste management system and its immense use of single-use items, are causing substantial damage to the environment. The burning of excess waste releases greenhouse gases, filling the atmosphere and causing climate change. This is severely damaging to not only all aspects of the environment, but also to all of the animals living there.Not enough people are contributing and recycling properly. There is a growing need for immediate change, not just in individuals but in communities.
our Objective
We aim to design a solution that addresses the issues that hinder individuals from implementing better recycling habits in their daily life. Our goal is to create a product that utilises positive reinforcement to make these habits long lasting. The interface should be consistent, efficient and aesthetically pleasing 3. Through user testing and a thorough design process, we hope to achieve this goal to the best of our ability.
our Design Criteria
We decided on the digital vending machine because:
- Solution must address the problem directly and aim to solve it either during or immediately after the process
- Design must also encourage users to make changes to their lifestyle through positive reinforcement
- Process must simple, accessible, and convenient (no apps)
- Design must be seamless and unobtrusive to the user
- Solution sustains positive recycling habits post-interaction
Rationale
We decided on the digital vending machine because:
- It achieves all of our design criteria.
- It has potential for further development and growth.
- We see the chance to change minds and daily routines and behaviors of users.
- We see opportunity for a substantial impact to be made.
Whos this for?
Wanna Change the world?
introducing REX
Rex stands for Recycling Express. It is a screen with two bins, one yellow and one red. The yellow bin is split into four shapes, similar to that in kahoot. to allows users to answer fun trivia questions by throwing away their rubbish. Users are also able to throw away their landfill rubbish, to avoid recycling contamination, into the red bin. As a reward, users can donate their recycling money to an ecofriendly charity or leave a comment on a digital community tree. The bins build on the idea of Ballot Bins, which use trivia questions as a motivator to reduce cigarette litter1.
How does it work?
Whats next?
In the future, Rex could be improved with the addition of a washing station, to quicken the process of recycling. A leaderboard aspect where users could create an account and compete with the amount of recycled items could also be added to add friendly competition as motivator. Another additional feature that could be added is an interactions counter, in the form of a small number count on the home screen. This would record and display how many people have recycled, not just those who used the interaction.
How did we do it?
This was our process
Iteration One
From our original idea, we decided to reduce the amount of bins significantly, from 8 to 5. Feedback from our tutor also led us to changing the structure of the screen (from a cube-like enclosure to a singular screen) to lead to a more convenient experience. We also added coffee cups, napkins, cutlery and food waste as items to choose from to allow for a more inclusive recycling experience.
"I just tap tap tap and it tells me what bin...that's kind of boring."
Iteration Two
For iteration 2, our wireframes, we began to experiment with the gamification of recycling. With tetris bins as inspiration from our tutor, we used our mockups to test how users would react to a game being incorporated, specifically hangman. We found it not only made the process too long, but also lacked connection to the act of recycling.
"I just tap tap tap and it tells me what bin...that's kind of boring."
Iteration Three
For iteration 3, our paper prototype, we incorporated the gaming aspect with the actual act of recycling by making users submit their guess to a trivia question with the motion of placing their item into a corresponding color bin. This new technique was wildly liked by participants. A QR code that linked to an app download was also added to encourage users to make changes to their lifestyle. We found that users liked asking questions but were uninterested in an app and wanted to be able to make a donation.
"Pleasantly surprised in the direct and simple education regarding recycling."
"These questions should be about where I want my money to go to."
Iteration Four
Next, we decided to replace the app with a downloadable infographic instead, to allow users to quickly gain more knowledge about recycling. The main user testing insights here were confusion with the color of the bins. Many participants linked the color of bins (ie. the red, green, yellow) to existing bins. Many users assumed if they got the trivia question wrong, their item would not be recycled.
"My concern is that people would go home and remember that plastic goes in this bin when it doesn't."
Iteration Five
For our final iteration, we changed the style of the bins. With just two bins, one yellow (split into 4 sections) to represent recyclables and one red for landfill. Users now answer trivia questions by placing their items into the corresponding shape hole in the yellow bin. The aesthetic and color scheme of the interface was also updated to create a more satisfactory experience.
"Very enjoyable to use because of the questions, tips, graphs and community wall."