E-Cycle

Case Study: E-Cycle Responsive Interface Design. Website to Improve Recycling Practices.

​

Intro/Overview

Environmental issues are something we hear about all the time. How can we, as individuals, help our planet?

Most people, especially in large cities, are involved in recycling. Every day we have to make choices: “Which basket should I put this or that item in?”, “Where to recycle my old computer”, “Does anyone want my old Ikea table?”. And almost everything can be recycled, reused, repurposed, we just need to be better connected to recycling centers and have a better understanding of recycling methods and standards.

Roles/Responsibilities

The project was carried out by a team of three people throughout the duration of the assignment.

Problem Space/Area

The team was instructed to focus their research on the topic of the environment. This group researched and created a responsive web product that will solve the user's problem in the research area.

Users/Audience

Our product is aimed at people who are interested in recycling and want to make this process more convenient.

Scope and Constraints

The team conducted a multi-stage user study to get data on the pain points and barriers people face in this area. The first step to identifying the best candidates for user interviews is through a screening survey. We then interviewed users to find out what they think of our theme. Synthesized affinity map information from user interviews helped create a personality and journey map, which then helped us develop a responsive interface design.

The entire duration of the project was eleven days.

Process

• Screener Survey

The screening survey was the first step in our research process. This helped identify contributors who represent a real audience and provide the right information for the project.

The survey was completed by 18 participants in Google Forms. The questions were designed to understand what items users recycle, how often, and what methods they use.

The study data showed that all participants recycle the waste each week (~67%). More than half answered that they are well versed in general issues, but do not know the specifics. 61% have never taken items to a recycling center. But 100% recycle plastic and use recycling bins.

• User Interviews

During our screening survey, five respondents were selected for contact. We carefully created a discussion guide and interviewed via zoom.

During the interview, we gain a deeper understanding of user practices regarding recycling. This information was collected and used for the next steps in developing the affinity map.

• Research Synthesis

The purpose of synthesis research is to filter the main statements of all participants and understand their main pain points that we need to solve in the project.

We grouped the main ideas and statements extracted from user interviews into groups. These groups of I-statements were used for our affinity map (see below). The next step was to define insights:

• Users care about the environment and want to get involved.

• Users have some understanding about recycling, but want to be more informed.

• People want to know that their recycling effort doesn’t go to waste.

• If it’s not convenient to recycle, people will throw away their waste.

• People are “recycling” through different methods.

• People are recycling many types of waste.