Growing the Eco-Conscious Community Through Low-Waste Products
Background
Single-use plastic is used in a plethora of cosmetic products including hair care, skincare, and makeup. These products have a short lifespan and once consumed end up in the landfill or, if they're lucky, recycled.
CommonGüd aims to eliminate the harmful disposal at the end of a product life cycle while also fostering connections between eco-conscious consumers.
Initial Research
To learn more about the various sectors regarding beauty products I took a trip down to my local Walmart. While perusing through the haircare, skincare, and makeup aisles, I noticed that I was surrounded by plastic products that would be bought, used for a limited time, thrown away, and then bought again.
I began researching initiatives in place to reduce the single-use plastic in cosmetics. I found smaller initiatives that gained close to no traction on their product.
A common denominator being:
High Price Points
Lack of Accessibility
Initial Scope
Using my initial research, I identified key features and stakeholders in the Troy community in this problem space.
Features:
Stakeholders:
Problem Statement: How can I work towards the reduction of single-use plastic while facilitating connections within the community?
Market Research
I approached Market Research using 3 techniques: surveys, interviews, and focus groups. I posted a survey regarding current product lifecycles, preferred material as packaging, and pain points in a reddit thread called r/MakeupAddiction filled with makeup & cosmetic connoisseurs. Out of the 75 responses:
82% have never heard about low waste alternatives
95% would feel discouraged if the prices was more than $10
77% would be interested in a zero-waste product
Using these takeaways, I redefined the scope to include an importance on creating community through education towards low-waste products and a regenerative approach for product disposal.
Materials & Pin-Up
I started by researching natural agents commonly used in packaging for food, toothpaste, and other edible friendly products.
As a result, I came across beeswax which can be used as waterproof coating and mycelium which is the filaments from mushroom roots and can be molded to create different shapes.
By using mycelium, I can create the physical body of the product and beeswax would provide an inner waterproof lining using sustainable and biodegradable sources. After the user finishes using the product, they can compost the product in a local community garden.
Digital Pin-Up
Pivot
In Troy, NY I sourced my material from:
- Ecovative, a mycelium packaging company (founded by 2 RPI Design Grads)
- Bee Hollow Farm, a local family-owned Bee Farm with high quality businesses
I grew the mycelium over the course of 9 days in my dorm; however, due to the humidity of Upstate NY in the summer, the mycelium became moldy rendering it unusable.
Unable to continue physical prototyping, I pivoted to develop a mobile application designed to foster community engagement and connection.
Features
Using a survey sent to my classmates I focused on the top 4 features to create the wireframes and influence the information architecture of the application.
Plant Care
Communities
Community Garden Map
Social Media Features
Wireframes
Lo-Fi Wireframes
Visual Design
Using the mood-board as inspiration, I incorporated colors attributed with sustainable initiatives & brands like earthy browns, greens, and pinks.
Mood-Board
Deliverables
This project connects the Troy community through embracing plant life and sustainable living. Overall, CommonGüd is a beginner friendly app to introduce those initially unaware about environmentally friendly products, like-minded individuals in the community, and different sectors within the sustainable umbrella. However, a limitation of this app is that it does not offer in-depth experiences nor does it provide resources to encourage taking initiative.
Key Takeaways
Further User Research & Testing
I would like to improve on the UX and the features that the app provides through user testing. In turn, other considerations and adjustments would be made as more insight into the consumers needs would be gained.
Time Constraints
As a result of this project starting out as a product design initiative but later becoming a UI/UX design project there was limited time to execute the design process. Initially, I felt disappointed that I "wasted" my time researching about packaging. However, this research was instrumental in developing the idea of the app.
