Solving a World Problem

Like solving any problem, the first step is to brainstorm ideas. Solutions to reduce carbon emissions are not exempt from this process. Whether the ideas are good or bad, they contribute to discovering the ideal solution. Our ideas ranged from storing greenhouses gasses released from smokestacks into the ground to laws that required solar panels to be installed on new houses being built. Ultimately, we decided on tackling emissions caused by transportation due to the majority of emissions occurring from this category. The top solution we found was to reduce the number of gas cars on the streets and replace them with electric cars. How could we do this? Upon further research, it was apparent that the leading cause of consumers not considering purchasing electric cars was battery-related concerns. All of these concerns could be solved by creating charging infrastructure. So, that is what we set out to do. The plan was to strategically place "superchargers" that could charge an electric vehicle 200 miles worth in 15 minutes. There is already a fairly strong charging infrastructure but they lacked enough "superchargers" to alleviate concerns in consumers.

Identify needs and constraints

The need to solve our issue was reducing carbon emissions. Our restrictions were that the solutions needed to be realistic and possible to be done in a timely manner. After extensive brainstorming, the ideal plan our team decided on was creating supercharger infrastructure which would increase the number of electric vehicles on the streets. Creating such infrastructure worldwide is too ambitious of a project at the time restraints we have. Even the entirety of the United States is too large of a project at the time. We decided to stick with California as it was realistic to create infrastructure there given our time limit. Though, after the infrastructure is created in California it could slowly expand across the United States and eventually worldwide. Though, this is beyond the scope of this project.

Research the problem

A plethora of research was done after deciding a solution such as contributing factors to the lack of electric vehicles on the roads. Though, plenty of research was also done before a solution was decided upon. Each member of the team read three reliable articles and analyzed a dataset about carbon emissions. No member read the same article or analyzed the same dataset. Then, each member shared important information they found. This allowed us to have more information in less time.

Develop possible solutions and select a promising one

After researching the issue we had plenty of information to help us brainstorm potential solutions. Many bad and good ideas were shared but all helped contribute to the final solution of curtailing carbon emissions by increasing the number of electric vehicles on the streets. We decided this was a promising solution because our research found that the majority of emissions in the United States came from transportation.

Build a prototype

Our prototype involved a plan and a supercharger system. The plan was to strategically place superchargers in locations that needed them most in California. These superchargers would increase the number of electric vehicles on the streets because it addresses the majority of concerns that consumers had with electric vehicles. We ourselves created a unique supercharger system that pulled a portion of its power from solar panels installed directly onto it.

Test and evaluate prototype

We knew that our final plan would work based on survey data from the 2022 global automotive consumer study. Directly based on the data shown, the 5% of consumers who were considering an electric vehicle for their next car would shoot up to slightly more than 50%.

Redesign as needed

We made a couple of redesigns in our prototype. The largest one was altering where chargers would be placed. Initially, we planned on placing chargers in locations where there was little to none. However, we quickly realized that the places which needed them most were highly populated areas. Many of these cities had a lack of superchargers for the high number of people living there. Another large change was how our superchargers gained energy. We had anticipated that the chargers could get all their energy from solar panels directly onsite. Unfortunately, solar panels slowly input energy meaning the majority of energy would have to come from external sources.

I excelled at critical thinking in this project. Solving a world problem is no easy task. If it were so simple, there wouldn't any world problems. This is where critical thinking comes in. You have to develop a solution to a problem with no easy answer. Thinking outside of the box is essential. For example, our solution of increasing the number of electric vehicles on the road is one many don't think of when trying to solve climate change. The majority view the big smokestacks spewing greenhouse gasses and attempt to find methods to prevent this one source that doesn't account for the preponderance of emissions. Cultural competence is another aspect I excelled in. I was able to view the issue from multiple viewpoints and contribute to solutions that benefit the world. For instance, a person who stays at home and rarely goes anywhere wouldn't be phased by an immediate ban on all non-electric cars. However, someone who relies on their car daily and does not have enough money to buy a new electric car would suffer substantially. I was able to recognize both perspectives and come to the conclusion that banning all gas cars immediately would be unfair. This is why our method relies on making the consumer want the electric car, not being forced into buying one. Although I did do excellent in some aspects, I was lacking a bit in communication. Our presentation was cluttered in some parts and was a bit hard to follow. I am planning on breaking down the presentation a bit more in future projects. Another aspect I could work on is collaboration. Our team had little organization which led to team members contributing lots on some days and little to none on other days. I plan to fix this by assigning roles and steps before beginning work on the project.