[88 tutors and students from around the globe developed solutions for practicing zero waste in our daily lives]

This year’s IIDC lasted for 2-week period from June 26 to July 10 under the theme of “Zero Waste: Towards Sustainable & Enjoyable Living”. Every year, we select a theme related to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals to provide an opportunity for tutors and students gathered from around the world in the fields of design, technology and engineering to conceive a better future through design and emerging technologies.

Although a major portion of the camp was held online due to the pandemic, 88 tutors and students from 12 companies/institutions and 41 colleges/universities in 17 different countries participated. These participants were divided into 13 teams to develop solutions for important environmental issues such as reducing & recycling waste materials, saving water & energy, and designing sustainable & eco-friendly products. Fresh ideas and outstanding concepts have been developed by these teams, and the camp provided them a great opportunity to collaborate with people from diverse backgrounds and cultures which also enabled them to broaden their perspectives.

Key Results from Participants

1. Zerome (Zero Waste for Mind & Environment)

● Focused on two different forms of waste: environmental & emotional

● Target Group: Millennials and Generation Z

● Mission: Find an effective way to reduce the environmental & emotional waste caused by the pandemic

- (Mind) increasing the self-efficacy of users by allowing them to feel a sense of achievement through daily challenges and to communicate with others experiencing similar situations

- (Environment) Building a habit of zero waste during the 2-week quarantine by learning how to do so and actually putting that knowledge into practice

● Design Solution: Product and Mobile app

- Products or DIY (Do-It-Yourself) kits are provided users, and the app shows you how to practice zero waste with these products.

   * All products and DIY kits are made of environmentally-friendly materials

● Product/DIY kit Examples

1) Water bottle made of organic plastic that can also be used as a dumbbell for weightlifting

2) Making a flower pot from coffee grounds and flour

2. ORA (Order Right Amount)

● 39% of food waste comes from eating out and delivery

● Mission: Find a design solution that users can easily apply to their everyday eating habits

● Design Solution: Mobile app for deliveries

- The app records the amount of food ordered and the amount actually consumed

- Using the accumulated data, the app proposes the right portion of food when users place an order, thus reducing the amount of food wasted

3. The Play-Farm: Creating a Zero-Waste School

● 44% of all waste produced in schools is food waste

● Target Group: 9 – 10 year old elementary school students

● Mission: Educate the target group on the value of cultivating crops, enable them to appreciate the food they consume

● Design Solution: Build an educational playground which also functions as a farm (“Play-Farm”) that allows students to participate in the crop-growing process by using a variety of playground equipment/rides. The crops harvested can later be ingredients for food served from the school cafeteria

● The Play-Farm Equipment/Rides

- Seesaw that pumps water into the plants

- Pinball dispenser that operates when a plastic bottle is put in, instead of a coin. Kids can play pinball to win seeds and fertilizers

- Wheel that waters plants when students spin it around

- Roundabout that helps with ploughing and watering the field

4. DOMA (Meaning cutting board in Korean)

● Mission

- Support the economic growth of local farmers

- Encourage community engagement with local farmers

- Promote sustainable farming, distribution and food consumption

● Design Solution: Online & offline experience providing local specialties to camping sites close to farms

● Online Experience (Mobile app): Select your destination (city) & fresh ingredients → Find a camping site → place orders → ingredients delivered directly to your camping site

* Suggests recipes to try out using the ingredients purchased

● Offline Experience: Purchase local specialties directly from a physical DOMA stand at a camping site using a QR code

* All packaging materials can be used as camping equipment (reusable fabric cloth, etc.)