HomingWorld: A Homework For a Better World

We need to encourage reverse logistics of all possible non-organic materials, drastically facilitating the large-scale recycling job of the government and bringing all stakeholders (citizen, city halls and companies) to their role of environmental responsibility. Today, companies are not aware of a massive part of the disposal of their generated materials, municipalities in general have a lot of effort in collecting and recycling the volume of these wastes, and the population has low adherence even to the programs of awareness for reverse logistics. Therefore, the solution aims at healing the above points simultaneously, exploring the lifecycle of these materials that will be discarded, and presenting as a solution of continuous and necessarily intense use by the population. In addition, it makes it possible to provide tax benefits to the citizen and / or companies by the city hall and the recognition of companies through environmental liability stamps.

City halls in major cities, such as São Paulo, collect and grind the trash in trucks without necessarily having a preliminary separation between the types of materials (plastic, paper, glass and organic). This form of disposal, quite common from houses, residential condominiums and smaller establishments, contributes to the increase in the municipal cost for the separation of garbage and makes it difficult or even impossible to recycle the same.

In this way, besides contributing to environmental pollution, the lack of garbage separation, as well as reverse logistics, places a high cost on the local government, which in turn reverses the burden of the service generated to the population.

According to the World Population Prospects (UN-2019), over the next 30 years the world population is expected to increase by two billion people, which will definitely generate alarming environmental impact if any action is not taken immediately to contain the waste of potentially recyclable materials. This solution aims to promote the adhesion of a large part of the population so that selective collection becomes a predominant and value-creating reality for the environment and for the end user in the short and long term.

This solution intends to serve three types of users:

1) Citizen: in a short term, allows the citizen to have a reduction in taxes paid, according to quantity and type of disposal, and stipulated by the local city hall, in addition to having an improvement in the proper disposal of waste; another benefit to be negotiated is the discount on the acquisition of new products when these materials are delivered to commercial establishments. In a long term, it contributes to facilitating recycling and hence the environmental quality of its region;

2) Commercial establishments and companies: each citizen carries out reverse logistics, separating and delivering the packaging and other non-organic materials to the establishments or even to the companies that generate these materials, which can recycle them on their own, of the investment in these products, or even destined them to the local city hall, being recognized and certified like promoter of correct discard;

3) City hall: the costs incurred with the collection and separation process of these materials would be drastically reduced, and the economy could be reversed in bonuses such as tax relief for citizens and companies.

The solution is an app managed by the local city hall, and used by each citizen and collection establishment (eg. Companies, small businesses). The citizen registers in the app and allows its geolocation. When purchasing a particular product, it registers its bar code (unique product identifier ID) in the app, which associates that product with the registered user. Once the product is used, the user is going to a commercial establishment accredited by the city (that is, that also uses the app) and delivery to discard this and other registered products. The establishment or company validates the barcode in the app, and the city hall receives in its version of the application information that a particular product or packaging was properly discarded on behalf of that user. As this action is performed, more points are generated for that user, being converted by the city hall into rebates on their tax. The establishment, when delivering the product properly separated to the city hall, is certified with the correct discard recognition mark. In addition, companies that receive the materials, which are also capable of recycling the product, may promote discount actions or other benefits to these users.

There is still little culture in Brazilian cities that actually
encourages citizens to practice separating materials for recycling.
Selective pickups exist in some subway stations, business condos and
even in airports. However, it is known that much of the garbage
generated is part of private residences or condominiums, but there is no
individual interest in selective practice. From a systemic view on this
cyclical process of individual disposal and separation for material
recycling, it was possible to understand the main points of pain in the
journey of these residues, from their acquisition in the trade, to their
renewal and return to the shelf.

The innovation of this solution is to encourage the citizen through the app to promote good practices for recycling, rewarding it or even subsidizing it by reducing taxes paid. In addition, geolocation allows local prefecture to determine sites of higher or lower collection, allowing it to adopt awareness programs, as well as generation ranking of correct collection recognition by neighborhood, or other strategies. This solution brings together the socio-environmental responsibility of each citizen, sharing with them their role of preserving the environment. It also aims to strengthen the relationship between consumers, businesses and local authorities.

This solution may link to social networks, allowing the exchange users for sharing of materials or even transfer of points acquired. Through the use with artificial intelligence, it will also be possible to understand user consumption habits, giving companies information that allows them to optimize the offer of their products to the end user.

The use of the app the city hall can more effectively manage the consumption and its correct disposal of materials, and it will be easier to obtain adhesion of the population for the use of the app. Still, when obtaining the information of the relation consumption X discard, will know in large scale the effort and investment saved in the job that would be done in the collection and separation of materials. Actions that promote financial return to the citizen are strong attraction for its adherence to the use of the app, in addition to environmental responsibility.

We are currently serving zero people because the solution is in the stage of prototype. However, with adequate funding, and participation of the city hall that there is adhesion of all citizens with access to the internet and residing in the municipality where the solution can be applied. Although the city in the example is São Paulo, the same partnership can be made with the New York city, or another one that has interest in increasing the awareness of the local population and at the same time reduce costs with collection and separation of materials.

Once approved the project, next year the goal is to obtain a prototype for usability testing with a sample of the target audience. For this, we will have to rely mainly on the support of developers and the partnership of the city hall with companies that are potential participants. Still in the next year the objective is that there be the launching of tests and the initial disclosure of the product by the government, for analysis of the use of the same and expected return. As there is membership and based on new feedback from users, the next five years is intended to expand the app to other cities, and evaluation of information exchange on percentage of collection and recycling among municipalities, promoting the exchange between them and contributing to the implementation of smart cities.

The first barrier is the lack of funding and the availability of people to build the app within a year. The second barrier is the lack of interest of the city in managing the app to reverse the cost with collection and recycling in points for deduction in the individual tax.

The first barrier should be overcome through donors or providing financial incentives for innovation solutions, including to fund people in the market willing to develop the solution app. As a way to overcome the second barrier, it is intended to deploy the app initially in 01 municipality (eg São Paulo or New York), and as its government acceptance is positive, expand its use.

Three people, however, we will be partnering with fellow programmers and teachers.

Both I and the team have great empathy and systemic vision to assess the pain points in the user and product journey as well as in the feedback collection to optimize and identify improvements in the application and potential new applications in its use.

We are not in partnership with any organization these days. However, we are looking for partnerships with large companies such as Unilever and Procter & Gamble Company (P & G). As well as being global companies with subsidiaries in Brazil and the United States, they are also generators of packaging and large stakeholders in reverse logistics.

The city that adopts and diffuses the app to its population will have better engagement and visibility as a body that promotes environmental responsibility. It will manage the disposal of diverse products of its population, allowing to optimize its efforts in the recycling of products by region.

The citizen user of the app can manage their use and disposal of products, and thus will know how is their consumption, enabling even better financial planning of the same. In addition, by validating the disposal with a collection establishment, you can accumulate points with the city hall that are reverted in rebate on your taxes. You can also, through a partnership of recycling companies, obtain discounts and benefits in the purchase of products of your brand. And undoubtedly, as a major benefit, it will contribute to the preservation of the planet's environment and longevity. The partner company, in addition to receiving from the city hall the certificate of responsible collector, will make the link between city hall and citizen, directly or through commercial establishments. In this link, the company will have, in relation to the local population, information on consumption habits by geolocation, enabling better targeting of their products by region. You will also receive materials that can be delivered already selected to the collection of the city hall, or even recycled so reused by the receiving company itself.

To obtain funding and initial donation to meet this challenge, we will seek with the support and interest of the local city government the necessary partnerships of private investors. In the long term, information will be offered to companies with the effective habits of consumption by geolocation, to a monthly subscription; it is known that even products purchased on the market are not always consumed in the same region, ie there is no precise analysis of perennial consumption by region. Information generated from the application can provide this consumption information as fed by the end user.

Due this opportunity, I want to be able to make a difference to a better world by promoting benefits with the use of the app for everyone involved and responsible for preserving the environment. The main idea is to make the planet a less polluted place to live, and to make better use of our resources through its reuse.

Firstly, I would like to partner with Unilever and P & G. These global organizations can acquire the application to validate the receipt of materials in their units and agreed establishments, in order to destine them separately to the city hall or for their own recycling. Also, when they acquire monthly subscription of the application, they can have access to additional information, such as consumption by geolocation, as the database is enlarged by the users (volumetry).

The premium will be used as the initial leverage for app implementation. The use of artificial intelligence in the product will provide the information of better destination of new products by the partner companies, according to region, and will inform to the local city the percentage of consumption X discard, for adoption of strategies of public policy. For a better user experience, the information may be virtual wizards or bots that provide more intuitive information panels for your users.

As an initial leverage of the solution, the award could be destined to one or more citizens who provide more products, registered and validated in the register of the same end user.