Project Background
We all know that waste is a problem. Each of us in Canada was responsible for an average of 694 kg of solid waste in 20181, and we generate among the most garbage of any country in the world2. Most of us want to do better, but it isn’t easy in a world where so much is disposable, packaging is ubiquitous, and recycling isn’t as easy as it should be.
Many of the barriers to better waste diversion are not related to awareness and education. For example, when there is no organic waste bin available, or when the recycling bin is out of the way while the garbage bins are conveniently at hand, or when recycling is always overflowing. A community-based social marketing approach starts by identifying the specific and indivisible behaviour to target, such as diverting recyclables in residence buildings to recycling bins3. Through research, observations and engaging with target populations, this approach aims to identify the barriers and the benefits to the desired behaviours. Strategies that specifically address those barriers and reinforce the benefits can then be tested, evaluated and if appropriate, expanded.
In 2017, the University of Waterloo committed to diverting 60% of its waste by 2025 and 90% of its waste by 2035, thereby achieving a zero-waste designation.
This goal also furthers the University’s work on UN Sustainable Development Goal 12: responsible consumption and production. The Shift Zero action plan outlines the need for major shifts in campus operations and user behaviour if we are to achieve this objective. Yet despite updated and enhanced waste sorting receptacles, reuse programs, and engagement campaigns, the diversion rate in 2021 was only half of where we aim to be in less than 5 years.
In residences where students manage their own garbage, staff have observed that there is almost no sorting of waste. The University of Waterloo is therefore looking for a study of the student barriers to waste diversion through sorting in its residences.
Project Examples
- Conducting a literature review on the barriers to waste diversion in multi-unit residential buildings.
- Engaging with Campus Housing staff to identify a target building and understand the challenges and constraints for the collection of different waste streams.
- Using a community-based social marketing-based approach to identify barriers to sorting waste in University of Waterloo student campus housing.
- Recommending and/or implement strategies for identifying barriers to waste sorting in student campus housing.
- Developing recommendations for addressing barriers that are unrelated to awareness.
- Making recommendations for how to measure the impact of waste diversion measures.
- Making other recommendations for how to increase waste sorting based on best practices in other multi-unit residential buildings.
1 https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/environmental-indicators/solid-wastediversion-disposal.html
2 https://www.statista.com/statistics/689809/per-capital-msw-generation-by-country-worldwide/
3 https://sustainability.upenn.edu/sites/default/files/Guide%20to%20CommunityBased%20Social%20Marketing.pdf