Zoe S. Leung
Program: MDes Design Practices
Year of Graduation: 2021
Topic: Life Centric Design
Project Type: Capstone Project
The research for this project investigates the dynamic between takeaway food vendors and their customers, and the design process involved creating a service solution that eliminates single-use plastic waste from entering municipal waste streams.
The primary and secondary research focuses on Hong Kong office workers as the target customer, investigating their habits and behaviour surrounding takeaway food. The secondary research showed a disconnect between government recycling initiatives, and the types of SUPs being distributed to customers via takeaway food vendors. Furthermore, the fast-paced lifestyle of Hong Kong office workers favours convenience often at the cost of environmental choices i.e. using reusable containers and utensils.
The service solution creates a zero-waste relationship between the customer and the vendor. A service that provides and maintains reusable vessels on behalf of the customer and the vendor. Meeting the customers needs for removing the pain points of a personal reusable container i.e. cleaning and transportation. In addition, meeting the vendor's needs by designing a service system that would help them meet sustainability goals while streamlining their processes. The outcomes for this project include a service system concept, outlining the new user journey and a branding proposal.