The recycled materials industry is large market, which we believe has the potential to grow. Companies and consumers are interested in purchasing items which have been made out of recycled materials. In order to increase the supply of recycled materials and redirect waste from ending up in landfills, the percentage of materials that are recycled needs to increase.

In our research, we have found that a vast majority of people believe that recycling is important, but everyday, many recyclables are thrown right in to a landfill or have to be trashed due to contamination from improper recycling. This is something that we can work to improve!

Recycling Behaviors

We conducted a survey of potential users of our app to gain a better understanding of how and what people are current recycling. Supporting the conclusion of wider industry research, we found that an overwhelming majority of people say that they recycle, but that they do not look up local guides when doing so, which can lead to confusion and mistakes. 

What are the common mistakes that are being made?

We posed several questions to our surveyed users asking them to identify which common disposables were recyclable. We found several items where a majority of people could not identify the correct bin it belonged in. With our app, we hope to increase the availability and ease of information on recycling to help reduce these recycling mistakes.