Recycle + Reuse app
ROLE
Research, information architecture, wireframing, visual design, interaction design, user experience design, prototyping, quality assurance
TOOLS
Adobe Illustrator + Photoshop
Figma
Whimsical
TIMEFRAME
April - June 2021
Recycling household waste is widely acknowledged as necessary, yet the process can be confusing regarding what items are recyclable or what items can be donated, and where to go for each.
Currently, there are websites and apps that help citizens recycle, but based on my own and user research, the information is often inaccurate. Users are forced to navigate between multiple platforms—websites, apps, and phone numbers—to find the information they need.
A comprehensive, all-in-one solution is needed to streamline and simplify the recycling process.
The proposed app helps users know what, how and where they can go to recycle or donate items. The app will include five key functions:
1. Search
Look up items to recycle or donate.
2. Location
Locate nearby recycling depots, donation locations, and on-street and park recycling bins.
3. Camera
Look up items based on an image.
4. Calendar
Access collection schedules and nearby events such as beach clean-ups and secondhand markets.
5. Learn
Education through fun facts, games and craft ideas.
The purpose of this app is to serve as an all-in-one access point, guiding users to recycle more effectively and leaving them with extra time to appreciate a beaver building its dam using recycled materials.
User Interviews
I interviewed four individuals, living in both apartments and detached houses across Canada. These are the questions I asked:
Warm Up
What is your age and occupation?
Tell me about your place of residence (apartment/house)?
How do you feel about the importance of caring for the environment?
Tell me about your recycling habits?
Do you recycle often, and why?
Do you sort your recycling items into categories?
Be More Specific
Tell me about the last time you had an item you wanted to dispose of/donate that couldn’t simply be done through your home (garbage room /curbside collection)?
What do you do when you’re unsure whether an item can be recycled or donated?
Have you ever dropped off items at a recycling facility, business, or charity?
How did you go about finding where to drop off your items?
What is your thought process like when you’re trying to figure out which waste goes to which bin?
Get Deeper
What is the most confusing part of waste disposal and/or recycling for you?
What barriers do you find to recycling?
How would you describe your behaviour towards recycling at home versus out of home?
Do you use any resources to get information on recycling or reusing goods, and if so, what are they?
What could be improved or enhanced with these resources?
What are some things that will motivate you to sort your waste more accurately during disposal?
User Insights
Pain Points
Key barriers to recycling are convenience, accessibility and not knowing what, how and where to recycle or donate an item.
Unsure of what to do with items that are not common day-to-day items (i.e. not plastics, paper, or organics).
Online information is often inaccurate, limited, or requires sifting through on multiple links, sites, and phone numbers.
No clear guidelines on what can/can’t be recycled/donated.
Motivations
Cares for the environment, and wants to help make a difference.
Recycles as much as possible, but could do more.
Wants accurate, concise, and useful information that is easily accessible.
Wants to recycle, but some uncertainties around recycling and a busy schedule gets in the way.
Recommendations: translation options, QR code option, pictures, easy to understand way of categorisation.
Behaviours
Always recycles if it’s an option - doesn’t feel good about recyclables into the garbage.
Prefers to donate items that are in good condition.
More diligent about recycling at home versus out of home.
If out of home, will use recycling bin if available, otherwise garbage bin.
1 out of 4 users chose the garbage over recycling when in doubt.
Previous app experience found it was hard to search for items.
Information Architecture
Sketches
The app aims to facilitate recycling and donation efforts by allowing users to search for specific items to determine their recyclability or donation eligibility.
Key barriers addressed by the app include improving convenience, accessibility, and providing information on what, how, and where to recycle or donate items.
Use the camera function to find out if an item can be recycled or donated.
Lo-fi Wireframes
Hi-fi Wireframes
Clickable Prototype
Style Guidelines
Future Progresses
The camera feature can be extended to incorporate barcode or QR code detection, allowing the app to recognize items and provide suggestions on how and where to recycle or donate them.
The user interface can be further developed to incorporate animations, such as a 'thank you' pop-up screen, enhancing the overall user experience.
Expand and develop all categories, including functionalities like the 'Calendar' and 'Learn' features.
Given the distinct rules and options for dealing with recycling are unique to each area, the app would initially focus on the Metro Vancouver area, and could eventually be expanded to different jurisdictions throughout Canada.
Through additional testing, the app can be further enhanced to incorporate different languages or even audio recognition for item searches, depending on user feedback and identified needs.
Along the way, I discovered the concept of Repair Cafes, a non-profit organization across Canada dedicated to helping people repair household items. This concept can complement the app, either within the 'Location' or 'Calendar' functions, by providing users with an additional option to extend the lifespan of their items.
