Richmond, New Westminster, and Surrey. Farrah Olegario Nazareth, Tong Guan and myself performed a test installation at the New Westminster Skytrain Station. Before conducting the experiment, we had a week to develop a concept and build card- board prototypes. To understand the site better and find a spot to install our models, we visited the station several times. We finally decided to use the space between a nearby Safeway and the Skytrain entrance, the most accessible area for people com- ing from different pathways. Our con- cept focused on creating an eye-catching installation that would change people’s thoughts about the usual recycling sta- tion: dark-coloured, dirty, smelly bins. We decided to use colourful umbrellas and triangular bins. Based on our location, we used three streams: Landfill, Refundables, and Paper. We chose three colours: brown for landfill; blue for refundables, like the recycling bin that many have at home; and yellow for the paper stream bins located at every Skytrain station. We also added clear and understandable graphics and text to the bins. SECOND INSTALLATION One week later, we began work on the second installation in one of five dif- ferent contexts: Parks, Festivals, Busy Intersections, Skytrains, and Ticket Stations at Skytrain Stations. Kai Le Sun and I began work in a Parkscape Context. From our initial research, we conducted observations in municipal parks in Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Burnaby, and Vancouver; we received additional infor- mation from a Metro Vancouver expert, Karen Storry, specializing in park con- texts. We decided to do the installation at Sutcliffe Park on Granville Island. Our concept focused on two major streams especially important for parks: pet waste and food waste. Unfortunately, the picnic season had passed, so we were not able to do food waste testing. Focusing ona recy- cling station for pet waste was therefore our primary goal. Having previous instal- lation experience, we knew that priming the user is significant. As such, we created a double set of arch-shaped bins consist- ing of two streams: Landfill and Pet Waste. Colour was another focal point: grey for landfill, and orange for pet waste. The final prototypes were eye-catching. The other priming element we used was dog- poop bag dispensers attached to each pet waste bin. This additional element was to encourage people to clean up after their dogs, and maintain a neat environment. People in this jurisdiction throw away nearly 1.5 million tonnes of garbage every year. FINDINGS From these two installations, we gath- ered distinctive data and information, and assumed that the locations and streams we chose were significant causes for these differences. During the New Westminster Station testing, we observed that visual inter- est drew people to look twice. Some people were attracted by the umbrel- las, and stopped to see the installation. Most people were passing through from the Skytrain to street level, or vice versa. Others went to stores or restau- rants located nearby. No potential users appeared concerned that the bins were not genuine waste receptacles. Asa result, we observed eight people using the bins within one hour; fortunately, there was no contamination in any of the bins. The outcome of our second installa- tion at Sutcliffe Park was interesting: the contamination rates in both pet waste bins were unexpectedly high. Before the testing, we thought people would con- taminate the landfill bins with dog poop, because dog owners usually deposit pet waste in garbage bins. Thus, it was sur- prising to see coffee cups, a receipt, bub- ble wrap, and beer cans in the pet waste stream prototype. Kai and I imagine that people need to go through a learning pro- cess to understand how to use the divided pet waste /landfill receptacles. In addi- tion, we observed that users did not spend more than two seconds to make their deci- sions; we guessed that was because the bins were located in an area highly visible from a distance, due to their colours and shape. It was interesting to see how people interacted with the station; some would stop and talk about it, while others would walk through the area without stopping. Near the end of our observation, a couple walked toward the station, discussing it. When they walked away, the man came back, touched one of the bins and said, “Oh, it’s cardboard. I thought it was real.” This surprised us favourably, as we were not entirely satisfied with the appearance of the prototypes. Overall, both obser- vations were interesting and successful. They helped us develop further ideas for the recycling station and system. sustainability + 19 = [2 [3 [4 [5 CONCLUSION Through this project, I realised that cre- ating a recycling system is challenging. Considering aspects such as the defini- tion of waste, current system problems, human behaviour, and design criteria were equally important. Besides design development, working with teammates was a learning experience; there were disagreements during the process and cooperation and effective teamwork proved valuable lessons. In the future, I would do more on-site research; seeing how the public reacts is essential. Being an industrial design student is not just about creating viable ideas, but about designs which make life better —in this instance, making people understand that recycling is beneficial for not only the individual, but for the Earth. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to acknowledge Evan Hutchinson, Farrah Olegario Nazareth, Tong Guan, and Kai Le Sun, my fellow students, who worked with me on differ- ent assignments for this project. I also would like to thank Louise St. Pierre and Andreas Eiken for assisting us throughout the project. Finally, I would like to thank Peter Cech and Karen Storry for their expertise and support during the project. e REFERENCES “About Us.” Metro Vancouver, n.d. 19 January 2014. Schiller, Ashley. “Why People Don’t Recycle.” Earthg71. Quest Resource Holding Corporation, 25 Oct. 2010. 19 January 2014. “Solid Waste and Recycling.” Metro Vancouver, n.d. 19 January 2014. St. Petersburg College. “Away: A Story of Trash.” Online video. YouTube. YouTube, 11 May 2011. 19 January 2014. “The World’s Deepest Bin.” The Fun Theory. volkswagen, 2009. 19 January 2014.