EcoScholar
Recycle and Fund Education for Children in Need
Client: Chanja Datti Recycling Co LTD
My Role: UX Research, UX Design, UX Strategy
Tools: Figma, Miro, Zoom
Background: Chanja Datti is a social enterprise that transforms waste to value. Their efforts are currently focused in Nigeria. EcoScholar is the name of their app and the initiative to fund children’s education through donation of recyclables.
Two Real-World Problems In Nigeria
Waste management & children out of school
Nigeria, with population exceeding 170 million, is one of the largest producers of solid waste in Africa. ... Nigeria generates more than 32 million tons of solid waste annually, out of which only 20-30% is collected.
— Source: BioEnergy Consult
This picture was taken in Lagos, Nigeria. As the city grew, the landfill couldn’t keep up.
One in every five of the world’s out-of-school children is in Nigeria.
— Source: Unicef
Part of The Solution
Transforming waste to valueChanja Datti’s app, EcoScholar, is a two-sided mobile application that not only allows users to donate and collect recyclables, but also fund a child’s education.
Meet the Users
Based on user interviews, we created two user personas.The Recycler
Wants:
To support her family, but also give back to her country
A simple way to eliminate and donate recyclables
Resources and guides to learn about recycling
Recycler Pain Points:
Financially can’t support children in need while also supporting family
No time to volunteer
The Collector
Wants:
A calendar tool to keep track and manage recycling pick-ups
Resources to stay engaged in recycling news
A method to contact the recycler for pick-ups
Collectors’ Pain Points:
High gas prices and can’t afford to drive around a lot
Waiting for recyclers at pick-ups
Analyzing the Original Design
By conducting a Heuristic Evaluation
The interface above was created by Chanja Datti before my team and I were asked to redesign it.
About Heuristic Evaluation
During this review, I followed Nielsen 10 Usability Heuristics. Following these guidelines, I came across several potential usability issues. I will list a few of the major concerns below.
Foreseen Critical Usability Issues
Having recycler enter the weight of their recyclables into the app (Lacking Recognition over Recall)
Confusing language in some areas (Lacking between Real World & System).
For example, “Donate your trash to education” on the homepage. The word, “trash,” often has a negative connotation and may be misunderstood.
Hamburger menu hides navigation (Lacking Visibility of Status)
Starting the Redesign
My Team & I Were Asked to Redesign the Mobile Application Using UX Methodologies.How might we…. ?
…. make it simple for the recyclers to donate their recyclables?
… reduce the cost and time it takes for the collector to pick up the recyclables?
Research Findings from Usability Testing
Remote & Moderated Usability Testing on Chanja Datti’s original design to understand usability issues.About User Testing:
The user testing consisted of 6 participants; one collector, and five recyclers. The testing sessions were held remotely via Zoom, participants were asked to share their screen and voice out thoughts as they interact with a clickable prototype. The participants were recruited from Chanja Datti’s existing client base. We tested the existing flows for dropping-off recyclables, requesting a collector to come pick-up and the collector flow. Our goal was to discover any usability issues within the mobile application.
Usability Findings from Recyclers
“How am I supposed to I know the weight my recyclables?”
The Problem
4 of the 5 users didn’t have a scale to weigh the recyclables or have a notion how much their recyclables weighed in kilograms.
Background
The original design asked users to weigh the recyclables themselves so that the collector would know whether or not it would be worth the gas to come pick-up.
“What are tokens, anyway? I have no idea what they could be.”
The Problem
4 of 5 users were confused the meaning of tokens and how what the calculation between tokens and recyclables might be.
Background
The original design incorporated tokens that the user would earn based on which items were donated and their quantity. Each recyclable had a different token value. Once the user obtained a sufficient amount of tokens, the user was able to use the tokens to support a child.
“Can I search for nearby recycling hubs for dropping off recycables?”
The Problem
3 of 5 users spent 10 seconds or more trying to understand what action to do on this screen.
Background
The original design had users click on the map to find a recycling drop-off location.
Usability Findings from Collector
Due to lack of time and not being able to find willing participants, we only interviewed one collector. Looking back, it would have been helpful to have feedback from more collectors.
“Can I filter the pick-up locations?”
Problem
There’s no way to filter or sort the pick-up locations. The collector wished to see pick-up locations by distance or date.
Background
The screen above is the list view of the collections that the collector has.
“I’d like to click on location icons and get more info.”
Problem
The collector reported that the list view was difficult to find. She appreciated the map, but was disappointed there wasn’t additional information that appeared when clicking on location icons.
Background
The screen above is the collector’s homepage of the original design. The screen shows the upcoming collections and their locations.
He’s upset about the waste problem in his country.
He’s also upset so many children are not in school.
But what can he do? He doesn’t have any extra money to donate.
He talks to a friend about the problems in Nigeria and his friend tells him about the app, EcoScholar.
The collector drives to his house at the time he requested.
He downloads the app and selects a child to support.
He meets the collector and thanks him for his work.
He collects used recyclables from his house to donate and co
Now, he is excited to be supporting his country.
Full Prototype
Recycler Dropping off Recyclables
The new desing allows the user to drop off at the recycling center whenever they choose. Once they enter their location, the app finds recycling center nearby. The user does not have a minimum for drop-off, only if the user requests a pick-up.
Recycler Requesting for Pick-up of Recyclables
Chanja Datti Recycling Co Ltd confirmed they would be providing all the recyclers with two standard sized EcoScholar recycling bags. The recycling bags can hold 750 kilograms of weight so they are quite large.
This will ensure that the collector does not waste time or money on gas since there will be a large quantity for each pick-up.
As for requesting a pick-up, our design puts trust in the users. Asking them to confirm when they successfully filled the EcoScholar recycling bags before requesting a pick-up.
We believe further user testing is necessary to see if this solution is successful.
Retrospective
Lessons learned and what we’d do with more timeThis project was not only intrinsically rewarding, but I also learned a lot. We had the opportunity to innovate and solve a meaningful real-world problem.
Throughout the duration of the project, the biggest constraint was the budget. My team and I were in constant conversation with the stakeholders about the cost of adding features. By having a budget, we were able to better focus on the Minimum Viable Product and not become distracted by shiny features.
If allotted more time for this project, we would do another round of user testing on our redesign. We received invaluable insights during the user testing we conducted on the original design. The feedback steered our design decisions.
We recognize that the current design still has room for improvement, but we are happy to have moved one step closer to a design solution.