How can we better understand the culture of waste in Savannah, using empathetic qualitative research methods?
Project Duration - 10 Weeks
Team - 4 Members
Focus - Research Methods
Final Deliverable - Insights
Brainstorming
Before beginning our secondary research, our team met to discuss different directions our project could move in. We set to work coming up with various aspects of waste to ground ourselves as we prepared to begin researching.
Secondary Research
The secondary research utilizes information that others have already found. We made great use of the internet as well as printed publications to learn about waste. Pursuing scholarly articles, looking at relevant websites, reading news stories and scanning social media were a few ways in which our team carried out our secondary research.
Innovation Sourcebook
Key Facts
Contextual Research Plan
Evolution Map
Primary Research
As we moved to the primary research portion of our project, we began the third mode of contextual research, Know People. Our team focused on carrying out interviews and setting up participant based observations as well as creating two cultural probes.
Cultural Probe
Cultural Probe
We asked our audience a question and recorded the answers to better understand their knowledge towards waste.
“If you were ___ what would people do with you?“
Interviews
Bede Van Dyke | Retired Architect, Artist
“I don’t look for trash...it finds me.“
Jane Fishman | Savannah Morning News, Columnist, Gardener
“I believe in FOLLY“
Scott Boylston | Emergent Structures
Founder | SCAD Professor
“It is only waste, if you waste it.”
Elaine Adams | SCAD Professor | Sustainable Architecture
“If I don’t need it, I don’t want it”
E2F3 | Non-profit Organization
“One day I hope there is no need for what we do”
Chatham County Recycling | David Nash &
Abby Murphy
“Everything is connected.”
Nick Deffley | City of Savannah
Sustainability Department Director
“Nobody is going to care about what I’m saying unless they can see how it affects them.“
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Erica Jarman| Business Owner
“I want to light fires and kick tires.“
​
Brittany Nearhoof | Jacob G. Smith Elementary School | Art Teacher
“In the art room, we are always turning trash to treasure.”
Andy Schwartz | Grow. Eat. Repeat.
Founder
“We want to focus more on educating people.”
Ralph Douglas Jones | Fish Art Gallerie Founder | Artist
“Be careful what you ask for;
you‘ll get it.”
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Ramsey Khalidi | RK Constructions Southern Pine President
“Everything in the world
is balanced, we are not .“
Tim Arnold | Tybee Clean Beach Volunteers
Nonprofit Organization Founder
​
Larry Newsome | America’s Second Harvest
​
Katrina Walters | America’s Second Harvest
Volunteer Coordinator
“We’re the center of the wheel“
Observations
Affinitizing
Insights
1. We need more knowledge to be waste free.
2. Our waste is alarming.
3. Positive environments facilitate learning.
4. Recycling is challenging.
5. Consumerism produces waste.
6. Local practices affect the world.
7. Need for official city involvement.
8. Industries are evolving sustainably.
9. Community benefits from collaboration.
10. Creativity in Sustainability
HowMight We?
1. We need more knowledge to be waste free.
How might we create more knowledge to be waste free?
• Cultural events
• Education trips (for kids)
• Telling people
• Flyers/pamphlets/brochures/cards/ about waste and how to be waste free
• Facebook and other social media
2. Our waste alarming?
How might we tell people that waste is alarming?
• Representing waste in terms of wealth and money.
• Letting people know actual percentages and figures
• What will happen if the present situation continues.
• Estimating future according to present.
How might we reduce waste so it won’t be alarming?
• Bringing awareness on how to use and what to use / when to use/
how to reduce usage and waste.
• More money - more waste (Reducing).
• Abundance (excess) leads to waste (Reducing).
• Easy access leads to more waste.
• Things that are easily replaced are valued less as they’re
considered replaceable.
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3. Positive environments facilitate learning.
How might we create the environment facilitate learnings?
• Create a local evens (fun) which might - give some facts about waste
to community.
• Guest speakers stand up activities/ stage shows.
• Telling people that their activities will benefit the environment.
• A count or a figure/percentage keeping track of waste which can be flashed at some important place in the city.
4. Recycling is challenging.
How might we make recycling easy and less challenging?
• Collection vehicles
• Telling people which places recycle what
5. Consumerism produces waste.
How might we end waste production from consumerism?
• Spreading awareness that “consumerism is not good”
• Recycling all the possible recyclable materials
How might we end waste production from consumerism?
• Ignorance sometimes may lead to harmful effects
• More consumption / ignoring the waste (How might we change this attitude?)
6. Local practices affect the world.
How might we stop local practices from affecting the world?
• Using digital devices or digital communications to spread awareness.
• Reducing local waste/ educating people on a local scale as well as global
effects.
7. Need for official city involvement.
How might we get city officials involved?
• A city should come up with a good sustainability place.
• City council should devote more time to encourage gardening by using
compost soil.
• Government/ city/ should spread awareness among people where and what to recycle.
• Education is important.
8. Industries are evolving sustainably.
• How might we get industries to evolve sustainably?
• Solar energy must be the main source of energy for industries.
• Reusing of materials wherever possible.
• Medical waste should be taken care of carefully.
9. Community benefits from collaboration.
How might we get community benefits from collaboration?
• Create a local evens (fun) which might - give some facts about waste
to community.
• Guest speakers stand up activities/ stage shows.
• Telling people that their activities will benefit the environment.
• A count or a figure/percentage keeping track of waste which can be flashed at some important place in the city.
10. Creativity in Sustainability
​
How might we tell people sustainability can be done creatively?
• Turning waste into something that one can reuse is creativity recycle
everyone can do/ spread awareness
Final Solution
