Sustainable strategies for consuming on-the-go

Master thesis (2022)

Authors

F.A.M. de Grefte Industrial Design Engineering

Contributors

M.B. van Dijk Design Aesthetics - IDE (supervisor 1)
C.B.A. Kobus Responsible Marketing and Consumer Behavior (supervisor 2)
Faculty
Industrial Design Engineering
Copyright: © 2022 Fay de Grefte
Sustainability Mobility Future vision ViP approach Consuming on-the-go
More Info
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Published Date

17-02-2022

Language

English

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Faculty

Industrial Design Engineering

Abstract

The way we consume when we travel has had a bigger influence on the environment than meets the eye. We see the cups being thrown away, but we do not see the overconsumption, the dodging of responsibility for sustainable production and the food losses. Our quest for convenience has led us to behave in the most environmentally unfriendly way possible.

To contribute to the sustainable development goals of the UN and strive for
a more balanced world, this project created a possible sustainable strategy for consuming on-the-go in 2036. The desired change is constructed using
the ViP-method and Social Practice Theory. In the first part of the report, the current practice is deconstructed and we try to fully understand its impact on the environment. The next chapter uses context factors to make a prediction about the practice of ‘consuming on-the-go’ in 2036. This context is visualised in a future framework. Based on this overview, in combination with the vision of the project, a desired future is presented in the form of a vision statement. By rearranging the social construct of consuming on-the-go out of convenience to one with a motivation of self-care, the practice arguably becomes a more sustainable, and thus desired, one.

An intervention to get from the current practice to a desired one in 2036 could be a product-service system named ‘Tend’. This concept consists of a new system that supports the self-care journey and a digital platform with a product to help actualise your intentions concerning your well-being. The value for the user is added when Tend suggests a consumption that suits your needs at that moment best.

To show how the concept could find its way into reality, a roadmad visualises proposed steps for the service based on the changing context. These parts of implementation are plotted over time and construct a desired final practice
in 2036. Afterwards, an impact analysis compares the old practice to the new one and discusses in what ways Tend leads to less negative impact concerning production and more positive impact concerning health and consumption. This validates the importance of such a transition and shows the value of this projects’ contribution to a more sustainable consumption on-the-go.