Wicked Solution for a Wicked Problem: Food Sustainability

Brief:

• Deadline: Approximately a week;
• Main focus: User Research;
• Challenge: Ideating solutions to a complex problem that is impossible to solve with one solution alone;
• Goal: Finding two possible solutions (one physical and one digital) for this issue through research.

From research to solutions:

Methods employed

• CSD Matrix;
• Secondary research;
• Interviews on local market food sellers and on buyers;
• Affinity diagram;
• Empathy maps;



Key Insights:

• Sellers at the markets did not grow their own food, however they were as close as possible to the growth process of the food they sold;
• They had a strict 24h sell circuit, which meant that after a day at the market all the food they didn't sell they would take home to preserve or distribute to relatives/friends;
• Due to this they have a lot of insights on food sustainability and how to avoid waste, as well as a lot of tips for people to buy smarter and responsibly long term;
• However, the sellers felt that people in general weren't interested in getting this knowledge;





• Meanwhile the buyers were interested to know more on how to become more sustainable but didn't know where to start;
• They were aware that supermarkets were unsustainable but they couldn't deny their convenience;
• Consumers felt bad every time they wasted food, and wished they could do better;



Quote from one of the interviewees





Problem Statement:

"Problem statement" and "how might we"



Solutions and Implementations:

For our physical solution we decided to go with a community building idea. During concept testing, people suggested adding a few improvements such as:

Governmental Aid;

Food Bank partnerships;

Creating a Recipe book with other preservation tips every X sessions or per season.

Physical and digital marketing campaigns;

Storyboard for the community building



Our digital solution is a food waste management app that scans a desired food through a picture delivering a result comprised of:

Estimated expiration date;

Recipe Suggestions;

Create Reminders;

and extra Features: More Recipes; Storage Tips; and Contact our community (thus connecting both of our solutions).



App Storyboard for concept testing

The key points from our digital solutions:

The pragmatism of the app;

Global access (as it doesn’t have to be region locked);

The community building aspect;

A list for local markets near by where the users can shop and meet the people behind the app;

A list of compost sites to go to when the food you scan is no longer usable;

Etc…



App low fidelity wireframes

You can know more about this project in full article posted on medium!