Sorto

The Problem

Waste management is a significant and ongoing issue across the globe, but specifically in Canada. Canada was ranked the world’s largest producer of waste;  only 20.6% of waste is recycled.

This can mostly be attributed to Canadians’ failure to properly sort waste; in Toronto alone, 26% of items in recycling are contaminated, where garbage or non-recyclable materials are sorted into the recycling system. Not only has this increased waste management costs, but with the majority of waste ending up in over 10,000 landfills, this has played a contributing factor to the deterioration of the natural environment; 20% of global methane emissions are from Canadian landfills.

After identifying this issue, it was evident that the waste challenge must be tackled at the consumer level. However, we recognized the importance of invoking systemic change and instilling long-term, waste conscious mindsets and behaviours. Thus, a design challenge emerged:

How can we shift Canadians' mindsets and inspire them to become more conscious consumers and practice responsible waste management?

Secondary Research

Various countries have unique methods and policies of disposing waste. Waste management policies in several different countries were analyzed to derive inspiration in addressing Canada's waste problem.

Countries who were recognized for effective waste management systems all had one common factor: an increase of waste diversion. They separate their waste into 4-6 different categories— increased organization will also increase the ease and accuracy of recycling efforts, subsequently reducing landfill waste, the costs associated with managing them, and encourage the use of reclaimed material.

Primary Research

We began collecting research through observing how 6 different households categorize their waste. Our observations were organized into 4 main factors resulting in poor waste management practices. From there, design requirements were created to address these problems:

Affinity Diagram

The Solution

Sorto is a twofold solution aimed to increase waste categorization and incentivize Canadians to improve their waste management practices.

How Will it Work?

The first step to creating the innovation and to strategize the implementation of it into society, was to further understand the existing waste management and collection process in the GTA. By learning about the City of Toronto's Integrated Waste Management System and each of its components, we were able to identify areas of improvement where the Sorto solution could fit into the pre-existing system.

QR Code Biodegradeable Plastic Bags

The first innovation is colour-coded, QR-code-embedded biodegradable plastic waste bags unique to each household. Sorto’s biodegradable plastic bags will come in six different colours, to represent six categories of waste: organics, garbage, and four different types of recyclable waste:

These bags are made of lignin, a natural by-product from the paper mill industry, as it is more cost-efficient and environmentally sustainable than other materials used to produce biodegradable plastic. Similar to Ontario’s COVID-19 Vaccine Passports, Sorto bags will be manufactured and printed with QR codes unique to each participating household to differentiate their waste from others.

Sorto App and Rewards System

The second innovation is a mobile app with an integrated rewards system where users can track their recycling and disposal efforts. Users are given grades based on their waste management performance, and will be able to redeem their points for rewards, such as gift cards to participating retailers and local businesses. Implementing a rewards system will encourage and incentivize Ontarians to be more proactive in the movement towards reducing waste and sustainable consumption and production.

Information Architecture

Low-Fidelity Wireframes

Mid-Fidelity Wireframes

Usability Testing

To evaluate effectiveness and improve our product, we put our app through 3 in-person usability testing sessions (11 participants in total). As each session went by, we made changes iteratively— addressing user needs and pain points and increasing fidelity. Testing allowed us to evaluate all of Sorto’s features and further identify how we could improve the UI/UX.

Review Usability Testing Session Agenda and Results.

Below are some of the design challenges that were tackled during the process.

Design Challenge #1: Can users efficiently navigate and discern disposal instructions?

When tasked with finding out how a coffee cup should be properly disposed of, 50% of participants in the first session expressed “it takes too long to get to the final result”. Additional frustrations centered around the Browse Items by Category layout being unnecessary. Users expressed there was no need for casual browsing— they want immediate access to the information.

To address these concerns, we revamped the feature to include a search bar and quick search labels for popular items. By simply typing and searching for the item, or tapping on popular shortcuts,  users can  find disposal information more efficiently.

Another challenge that arose in all three user testing sessions were that majority of users struggled to see the upcoming collection date and its respective collection categories in multiple different areas across the app. On the Home page, users mentioned they glossed over it and didn’t notice it.

To remedy this, the New Rewards section was removed— usability testing results deemed it unnecessary, and it allowed us to elongate the Summary box, reducing clutter and creating more space. An extra subtitle “The city will be collecting” was added to provide more guidance and recognition for users to understand that the icons represent the collection categories for the upcoming collection date.

On the Collection Schedule page, participants experienced difficulty comprehending the collection date summaries, and expressed they didn’t realize the date fell under the three categories. To solve this, the date is now wrapped within the box— by emanating this visual closure, this increased the likelihood for relation.

Design Challenge #2: Is the process for redeeming gift cards straightforward and seamless?

Another major challenges in our user testing sessions was the redemption process— a participant expressed frustrations when asked to redeem a gift card with their points, stating they wanted to “know how many points a gift card is worth before I click redeem”. Other users also experienced confusion when trying to redeem a certain amount, not realizing that 1) they didn’t have enough points for the higher amounts, and 2) they didn’t realize they had to select an amount before clicking “Redeem”

To increase feedback to the user, three additions were made:

• User’s points balance is now available in the upper right
• Points Conversion is available for each Amount
• Another screen was added— when users click on the desired amount, users will know the amount was successfully selected via a change in colour in the selection and in the Redeem Button. Users will have a better understanding that selection was successful and they can proceed to the nex step.

Visual System and Style Guide

Final Prototype

Reflection

Sorto is one of my favourite projects I've worked on throughout my studies. The biggest challenge in completing this project was conducting user interviews and testing for the first time. While it was a lot of work, the experience was extremely rewarding. Without these steps, we would not have made many of the important design decisions we did.
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Another challenge going into the project was working in a team environment. Lucky enough, my team and I worked extremely well together as we completed each step of the process in unity. Through this experience, I was able to learn the importance of teamwork and collaboration.

Going forward, I hope to conduct user research and testing from a larger pool of users. This would not only help further validate our existing insights and design decisions, but help us gain new ones in the process.