Curtin University
Year Completed | 2024
Intro to ecoinsight
Traditional product labels primarily focus on composition and nutritional benefits, offering details like ingredients, calorie count, and vitamins. While this is important for health-conscious consumers, it often overlooks a product’s environmental and ethical impact. ecoinsight changes that by using Augmented Reality to provide detailed sustainability information instead, such as the carbon footprint, material sourcing, ethical certifications, and disposal options. By scanning a product, consumers can instantly access its full sustainability profile, empowering them to make more informed, eco-friendly choices beyond just its composition and nutritional value.
ecoinsight - An AR Labels Leading the Way to Smarter, Sustainable Choices
Showcasing ecoinsight APP scanning products and revealing sustainability information
Research Problem
Many designs fail to predict the wider social, sociological and technological ramifications of their products and systems. They unknowingly create and contribute to further societal and environmental challenges.
Research Question
How can we leverage technology and systems thinking in the design process and contribute to addressing social and environmental challenges?
Ideation
To answer the research question two ideas were developed. One deals with societal issues and the other deals with environmental issues - both key aspects of the research question. Idea #1 dealt with the societal issue of people spending an enormous amount of time glued to the smartphone screen. Likewise, idea #2 was conceptualized to deal with problems of sustainability.
Upon consulting with tutor and getting feedback from peers, idea #2 was considered as sustainability is a more pressing issue.
Literature Review
Research highlights mindless consumption as a significant environmental issue, driven by consumer ignorance and impulsive behaviors, influenced by advertising and materialism (Parvatiyar & Sheth, 2023; Bahl et al. 2016). A 2005 survey by Hamilton, Denniss, and Baker found that Australian households spent over $10.5 billion annually on unused items, reflecting the scale of this problem. Lack of awareness about sustainability, especially in industries like fashion, contributes to irresponsible consumption (Williams & Hodges 2022). Inadequate communication by brands further exacerbates the issue (Primožič & Kutnar 2022; Morris Koep & Damert 2021). Mindful consumption, which involves making informed and sustainable choices, is essential for addressing this gap (Sermboonsang et al. 2019; Armstrong & Jackson 2015).
Existing Solutions
Existing solutions for sustainability communication include apps like Foodsteps and Yuka, which focus on food products. Foodsteps helps create sustainability labels for both packaged and cooked meals, providing consumers with information about the carbon footprint of the food they consume. Yuka, on the other hand, scans the barcode of food products to display nutritional information and offers health-related suggestions. While both apps contribute to promoting sustainable choices by informing consumers about the environmental impact and health implications of food, they are primarily limited to the food industry and rely on barcode scanning, which may not be applicable to all product types.
Design Thinking
ecoinsight applies design thinking steps to create an intuitive and sustainable solution. By empathising with consumers, defining the need for accessible sustainability information, ideating innovative uses of AR, prototyping the app, and testing user interactions, it delivers a seamless, engaging experience that empowers mindful consumption.
Exhibition
To showcase the app, a concept for a small retail experience was developed. Various products ranging from fashion and furniture to cosmetics and food items were included. The plan involved suspending these items in the exhibition space, allowing users to walk around them and experience the augmented reality from multiple perspectives.
Exhibition Concept Drawings
Exhibition Concept Mockup
UI Design
References
Ahmad, Alaeddin Mohammad K., and Qais Mohammad K. Ahmad. 2015. “Factors influence on packaging design in an impulse consumer purchasing behaviour: a case study of Doritos pack.” International Journal of Marketing Studies 7 (6): 92-101.
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/7210/f69300776405fb4b657d338d36eb0d7b3711.pdf
Apple Inc. 2024. Product Environmental Report. Apple Inc.
https://www.apple.com/environment/pdf/products/iphone/iPhone_15_Pro_and_iPhone_15_Pro_Max_Sept2023.pdf
Armstorng, A., and T. Jackson. 2015. “The Mindful Consumer. Mindfulness training and the escape from consumerism.”
https://openresearch.surrey.ac.uk/esploro/outputs/99513944502346?institution=44SUR_INST&skipUsageReporting=true&recordUsage=false
Bahl, Shalini, et al. 2016. “Mindfulness: Its transformative potential for consumer, societal, and environmental well-being.” Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 35 (2): 198-210.
https://doi.org/10.1509/jppm.15.139
Brydges, Taylor, Claudia E. Henninger, and Mary Hanlon. 2022. “Selling sustainability: Investigating how Swedish fashion brands communicate sustainability to consumers.” Sustainability: Science, Practice and Policy 18 (1): 357-370.
https://doi.org/10.1080/15487733.2022.2068225
Hamilton, Clive, Richard Denniss, and David Graham Baker. 2005. Wasteful Consumption in Australia. Canberra, Australia: Australia Institute.
https://australiainstitute.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/DP77_8.pdf
Acknowledgement
Dr Monika Lukowska-Appel - Unit coordinator
This project is part of the Design X unit assessment for the Master of Design at Curtin University.