2017 Circular Design Challenge
Rethinking the way we make, use and re-use plastics so that they don’t become waste in the first place
THE CHALLENGE | How might we get products to people without generating plastic waste?
THE PARTICIPANTS | 28 talented individuals | UI designers, product designers, materials experts, management consultants, software engineers & developers, and students
THE PROCESS | 5 exciting, jam-packed hours | 1) Guest speaker, 2) Team Formation, 3) Insights Generation, 4) Ideation, 5) Prototyping, 6) Idea Sharing
THE INSIGHTS
Professor Blundell, from the adjunct faculty at the Rotman School of Management, UofT, kicked off the event with an inspiring talk about how we can tackle the world’s biggest sustainability issues. He encouraged us to think beyond innovative technology to innovative business models, emphasizing his point with examples from around the world. By focusing on the business model, companies can embrace sustainability as a culture, not just a department, and keep sustainability as the outcome, rather than the objective, of a good business. Prof Blundell went further with a surprising directive to steal ideas by observing value chains in very atypical industries and leveraging open source models. The world is the new innovation lab and it’s time we use it for good!
THE DESIGN CHALLENGE
After being freshly inspired by Professor Blundell and forming teams with new friends, we sifted through the OpenIDEO research, use cases, and personas on how we might get products to people without generating plastic waste. As insights were shared around the room, three major themes emerged about this challenge.
It’s a systemic challenge. There are so many stakeholders and factors when it comes to plastic waste that the opportunities to intervene are plenty and diverse. Each team highlighted a different opportunity, whether for better dumping, better collection, better materials, better physical designs, or better consumer behaviour.
It’s a global challenge. Individual packaging is preferred in the firstworld, which prioritizes convenience, while individual packaging is a necessity for the third-world, who can’t afford to buy in bulk. In both cases, individual packaging is in demand. This presents the potential for one solution to impact many around the world.
It’s an intergenerational challenge. We were passionate about the problem, but it was not one we necessarily chose. It was part of the system passed on to us from our parents and grandparents when they were facing a different set of challenges
THE IDEAS
- Recyclift: An on-demand solution for recycling pickup through an app to help reduce the inconvenience that is often associated with recycling and waste removal.
- Snap-on Straw: Redesigned and retrofitted disposable drinkware so that small plastics, like straws, can snap on to lids and cups to travel as one unit to the end destination — the recycling centre.
- Bulk Dispensary for Liquid Products: A one-stop shop retail solution allowing consumers to access different liquid products on an as-need basis to eliminate the small plastic packets of liquid products.
- Open Source Recycling: An end-to-end tracking and micropayment system for recycling plastic bags to encourage recycling, create accountability, and diagnose sources of waste.
- Soap Packaging: A packaging for soap bars that can be repurposed for baby diapers or returned for money to reduce the plastic waste from soap packaging in impoverished areas.
- UnPact: Accessible bulk purchasing for condo dwellers to encourage residents to participate in bulk purchases of non-perishable items using refillable containers.
THE EXPERIENCE
“Overall, event was well organized by a team who is passionate. I found Prof. Richard Blundell’s talk very interesting and educational. Hope to see more of such talks going forward. The process laid out was in line with my expectations and I was glad to see other attendees from different backgrounds at the event.” — Sanjeev
“I really enjoyed the guest lecture and how OpenIDEO gave us the opportunity to meet other people to brainstorm ideas together. I think the most challenging part, which was also the most fun and interesting part, was how we worked with others with different disciplines in a short period of time. We had to understand each other’s perspective and respect each other’s ideas to create a great working environment.” — Eva
“The most challenging process was narrowing down our ideas in the time that we were given. One of our team members, Josh, took charge and allotted time towards brainstorming/designing our prototypes, and overall it really helped us formulate our ideas. I was also interested in the guest speaker since I came from a software background and we were not taught some of these principles. It was definitely eye-opening.” — Sean
“I really liked that your team walked us through the process of forming ideas and did not simply let us go off on our own. I felt like I learned about the process just as much as I was forming ideas.” — Angela
