UX Case Study: RecycleBuddy
Role: UX Researcher and Designer
Team of three designers
Tools: Miro, Trello, Figma, Google Suite
Timeline: 3 Weeks
Year: 2022
Project Goal: Conduct research and design a mobile app addressing any issue or topic.
Our team decided to address the difficulty of navigating Portland’s recycling programs.
Concept: RecycleBuddy, a resource to help residents navigate the city’s dense recycling infrastructure by providing clear, accurate information in a mobile app.
Short on time?
The Problem
Portland is one of the most eco-conscious cities in America but our recycling engagement and success is in decline, partly due to the lack of convenient and helpful information about the program. Aside from the obvious environmental impact, this is an expensive problem for the city of Portland and has forced them to raise residential prices for waste management services and rely on federal grants to cover the additional costs.
The average Portland household put 614 pounds of recycling in its blue bin in 2018.
9-18% of what we put into our blue bins is non-recyclable.
Between 2017 and 2018 the cost of waste management for Portland residents increased 715%.
The Solution
RecycleBuddy is a resource to help residents navigate the city’s recycling infrastructure by providing clear, accurate information in a mobile app, plus a platform to collaborate with neighbors to increase recycling engagement in their community.
Research
We wanted to further explore the reasons Portland residents are having difficulty effectively recycling. We conducted one on one interviews and distributed a Google survey to gather user data.
Survey Question:
How would you say you approach recycling in your day-to-day life?
50%
If I think it should be recycled, I put it in the bin.
25%
When in doubt, I throw it out.
25%
I’m an avid recycler and take great care to recycle whenever possible.
User Interviews
We interviewed five Portland residents who provided qualitative insight into what users want and need when striving to recycle more effectively.
Sam
Dominique
“I usually throw items that can’t be recycled traditionally in the trash.”
“My biggest impediment to recycling is knowing where things go.”
Kayla
“I would use more third party recyclers if they were easier to find.”
We found that Portlanders care most about convenience, the environment, and their community. These are the main drivers compelling residents to either recycle or not recycle.
Key Takeaways
User Persona: Alex Mossman
Alex is a responsible Portland resident who wishes to maximize the amount of waste he correctly recycles. He cares strongly about his community and the environment, but is frustrated by the immense amount of rules and has difficulty finding information regarding Portland’s recycling infrastructure.
Problem Statement
Portland residents are highly motivated to recycle but find the city’s recycling program and infrastructure to be difficult to navigate, ultimately leading to lower levels of engagement.
Feature Prioritization Matrix
After analyzing the data we gathered from research, we brainstormed and prioritized features our users would find useful on our platform.
User Insight
During our user interviews and as a result of our survey, we found that Portland residents self-identify as being eco-conscious and passionate about recycling, but struggle to find clear, accurate information about the city's curbside program or alternative options for non-traditional recyclables.
In fact, most users admitted to throwing items in the trash if they were unsure of how to recycle them, rather than seeking out the appropriate method of disposal and cited convenience as one of their primary motivating factors.
Therefore, we believe that residents need a simple and concise resource to help them minimize the amount of waste that is thrown away and fully take advantage of Portland's recycling infrastructure.
Prototyping & Testing
User Flow
We planned out an initial flow for our users to access pertinent recycling information, find a nearby recycler, and sign up for the social feature to communicate with other community members.
Wireframing
We started with very low-fidelity wireframes to determine the layout and information architecture.
We used these for our initial user tests to get feedback on the flow of information.
Updates and Iterations
We used mid-fidelity prototypes to refine our flow and layout. Here, we added content like copy and graphics to further refine the interface.
Hi-Fidelity Iterations
By adding some color and inviting icons, we fleshed out our mid-fidelity prototype into a slick looking clickable prototype. We focused on varying shades of green to keep the environment and renewability at the forefront.
Hi-Fidelity Clickable Prototype
Next Steps for RecycleBuddy
Portlanders’ motivation to live sustainably can be achieved by providing access to convenient, clear guidelines for how they should be recycling.
For future iterations we would like to build out the social aspect of the app because we think that would be a very powerful and differentiating feature. It would really allow users to grow their impact by working together.
