MEMO OF TRANSMITTAL

To: Greg Yeo

From: Amara Cairns
Date: March 7, 2016
Subject: Recommendation Report for solutions improving Cal Poly student waste-sorting behavior
Below you will see my recommendation report concerning the impacts of Cal Poly Zero Waste station sign
type on student waste sorting behavior. The purpose of this report is to present necessary information to
form a solution to the problem of improperly sorted waste by students in the campus dining hall, the Avenue.
Recommendations
Two potential strategies were analyzed and compared in the report.
1. Redesign the posters on the Zero Waste stations to include pictures of typical waste items relevant to
the location.
2. Design 3D displays for each type of waste on the Zero Waste stations consisting of physical
examples of these relevant waste items.
Methods
To provide a holistic understanding of the topic, I used a variety of research methods.

Interview
Student survey
Peer-reviewed journal article
Journal article
News story
Undergraduate research

Findings
My findings from these respective methods are located in the Results section of the report organized by
subheadings for each method. Further analysis of my findings in relation to each proposed recommendation
may be found in the Conclusions section.
Final Recommendation
I recommend that Cal Poly Dining design and implement 3D displays over the Zero Waste stations in the
Avenue. Arguments presented in the Conclusions section persuade why this solution will be the most
effective mode of behavior change amongst students in regards to waste sorting at Cal Poly.
Feel free to contact me with any questions, comments, or concerns.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................... 1
METHODS ............................................................................................................................... 3
Interview ......................................................................................................................................................... 3
Student Survey ............................................................................................................................................... 3
Peer-Reviewed Journal Article .................................................................................................................... 3
Journal Article ................................................................................................................................................ 3
News Story ..................................................................................................................................................... 3
Undergraduate Research .............................................................................................................................. 3
RESULTS .................................................................................................................................. 4
Interview ......................................................................................................................................................... 4
Student Survey ............................................................................................................................................... 5
Peer-Reviewed Journal Article .................................................................................................................... 5
Journal Article ................................................................................................................................................ 6
News Story ..................................................................................................................................................... 6
Undergraduate Research .............................................................................................................................. 6
CONCLUSIONS ....................................................................................................................... 7
RECOMMENDATION ........................................................................................................... 8
APPENDIX ............................................................................................................................... 9
REFERENCES ....................................................................................................................... 10
FIGURES CITED ................................................................................................................... 11

TABLE OF FIGURES
Figure 1: Zero Waste station in Cal Polys dining hall, the Avenue. ......................................................... 1
Figure 2: Current Zero Waste station posters and labels. .......................................................................... 2
Figure 3: Student survey results. .................................................................................................................... 5
Figure 4: 3D Waste sorting display at the University of Washington. ..................................................... 6
Figure 5: UBCs 3D prototype display for food waste. .............................................................................. 7
Figure 6: UBCs 3D prototype display for recycling. .................................................................................. 7
Figure 7: 3D waste sorting display prototype at Carnegie Melon University. ......................................... 8

Proposal to Investigate
The Impacts of Cal Poly Zero Waste Station Sign Type
on Student Waste Sorting Behavior

PREPARED BY: Amara Cairns

PREPARED FOR: Greg Yeo
DATE SUBMITTED: March 7, 2016

INTRODUCTION
Background
To reduce the universitys impact on the environment and educate [its] students, faculty and staff
on sustainable practices, California State University (CSU) in 2014 created a mandate for each of its
campuses to reach an 80% waste diversion rate by the year 2020 [1]. Percent waste diversion is the
percent of waste diverted from traditional waste management practices such as landfills or
incineration to be recycled, re-used, re-purposed, or composted [2].
The two most popular waste diversion methods are composting and recycling. Composting is a
method of recycling organic material like food scraps, soiled paper, and yard waste. By occasionally
mixing to incorporate oxygen, the material decomposes in large piles and becomes a finished
compost that can be used for fertilizer on farms or in gardens, landfill cover, landscaping, or other
applications [2].
Recycling is a waste-management
process that converts waste
materials into reusable ones. It is an
important waste management
practice because it reduces the need
for virgin materials in industry,
lowering the environmental impact.
Diverting waste is extremely
important in preserving materials
that would otherwise be wasted.
As part of Cal Poly fulfilling the
CSU Zero Waste mandate by 2020,
Figure 1: Zero Waste station in Cal Polys dining hall, the Avenue.
facilities has piloted Zero Waste
stations at select dining halls, the
library, and the University Union, shown in Figure 1. The stations are comprised of three adjacent
bins: green for compost, blue for recycling and black for landfill.
Problem
Unfortunately, there was little, if any, publication made of these stations prior to installation, and
students unfamiliar with the waste sorting process were caught off guard. The first week the stations
were introduced, I noticed the concrete trash and recycle bins outside of the dining halls and library
were uncharacteristically overflowing. Eating my lunch inside the campus dining hall called the
Avenue, I observed the confusion on students faces when they approached the daunting new
stations. Many would inevitably give up and either improperly sort their waste or walk outside and
throw everything in the trash.
Currently, Cal Polys Campus Dining has piloted six Zero Waste Stations in the Avenue, a campus
dining hall. Careful thought was put into choosing distinct colors between waste streams and
designing simple and not overwhelming signs to educate students on waste sorting [2]. However, the
design falls short in tailoring the content of the signs to the location of the station.
Offering the most food choices in a single dining hall, the Avenue causes confusion in students as to
what goes where. The current signs on the stations include generic pictures, causing ambiguity for
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students. Shown in Figure 2, on the compost sign, there is a picture of a hot coffee cup and a

Figure 2: Current Zero Waste station posters and labels

caption stating that compostable cups may be composted. Many of my peers I have talked to have
become confused because glancing at the sign, they see the image first and think that any coffee cup
can be composted. In actuality, most coffee cups go to recycle or to landfill [2].
Research
Greg Yeo has asked me to investigate current Cal Poly student knowledge of waste sorting practices,
study the design of waste sorting stations at other universities, and present my findings and
recommendations of solutions to increase student waste sorting at one dining hall, the Avenue.
Because of the lack of student participation in waste sorting, Greg Yeo wanted me to determine the
most educationally effective signs for the Zero Waste Stations. I focused my research on three areas.
1. Cal Poly students current waste sorting knowledge.
2. Zero-waste sorting methods of other universities.
3. Effective means of behavior change.
Solutions
I will ultimately recommend one of two solutions for Greg Yeo:
1. Redesign the posters on the Zero Waste stations to include pictures of typical waste
items relevant to the location.
2. Design 3D displays for each type of waste on the Zero Waste stations consisting of
physical examples of these relevant waste items.
2

Organization
In this report, I will discuss my methods, results, conclusion, and recommendation for Greg Yeo.
METHODS
In the following section you will see the sources I used to gather my data for this recommendation.
Primary sources include an interview and a student survey. Secondary sources include a peerreviewed journal article, a journal article, a news story, and an undergraduate research paper.

Interview | Greg Yeo, the operations manager for Campus Dining

I interviewed Greg Yeo on February 25, 2016. Eric Veium, the Energy and Sustainability
Analyst at Cal Poly who works closely with me in Zero Waste Club, referred me to him. The
Zero Waste Mandate is already pushing Greg to determine sustainable solutions at campus
dining. Discussing solutions for improvement in waste diversion would benefit him
professionally.

Student Survey | The Ave: What Goes Where?

I surveyed 100 Cal Poly students and asked them to identify if five common items from the
Ave were destined for compost, landfill, or recycle. Results are displayed in Appendix A.

Peer-Reviewed Journal Article | Linking an Integrative Behavior Model to Elements of

Environmental Campaigns: An Analysis of Face-to-Face Communication and Posters against

Littering by Ralph Hansmann and Nora Steimer (2015)
This article introduced me to effective environmentally oriented poster-making techniques.

Journal Article | Promoting Sustainability: Mental Models Research to Inform the Design of a
Campus Recycling Program by Lauren K Olson

This journal article was helpful for writing survey questions useful for understanding my
target audience.

News Story | New 3D Visuals Simplify Waste Sorting

This article provided me with a success story of 3D visuals used to promote waste sorting at
the University of Washingtons campus.

Undergraduate Research | Optimizing waste sorting practices : development of a 3D display

This research paper provided me with ideas regarding the logistics behind designing and
implementing a 3D display on an existing station.

RESULTS
In the following section you will see the results I obtained from my research:

Interview | Greg Yeo, the operations manager for Campus Dining

I met with Greg Yeo in his office on February 25, 2016. I initially asked him what
Campus Dining was doing currently to achieve the 2020 Mandate. He gave me a brief sustainability
history.
Campus Dining has been composting their pre-consumer waste from meal prep, and post-consumer
waste from the buffet style dining hall, Metro, for 15 years. 95% of their pre-consumer waste is
composted. In total, Campus Dining composts 230 tons of pre and post-consumer waste every year
[2]. Campus Dining has a good relationship with Engel & Gray, the waste facility company that
handles their compost and recycling.
With the expansion of composting to students post-consumer waste, Campus Dining has begun to
hear complaints from Engel & Gray. The contamination of non-compostable items in the compost
bags is too high for it to be processed. It is important for Campus Dining to promote proper sorting
for the health of the facility and the continuation and growth of composting on campus.
Greg told me that he finds most of the waste in dining halls to be packaging. In order to effectively
cut down on packaging sent to landfill, Greg and his co-workers determined the highest single
product in the waste stream, Coke cups, and converted dining to entirely compostable ecotainer
brand cups, lids, and straws in 2015.
Greg sees the issue to be that students are many times not aware of what goes where. Even before I
shared either of my proposals, he shared with me his ideas that mirrored mine. We agreed that the
signs on Zero Waste stations need to be location specific. I shared with him one of my sources, the
UBC research about 3D displays, and he loved the idea so much that he asked for the link and
shared it with his boss. Overall, Greg was excited to see what conclusions I could draw about the
best solution.

Student Survey | The Ave: What Goes Where?

Figure 3: Student survey results: where 100 Cal Poly students would sort Chic-fil-A boxes and Coca Cola cups, lids
and straws.
I surveyed 100 Cal Poly students to see if they knew where Chic-fil-A boxes, Coca Cola cups, lids,
and straws, condiment packets, empty cans and bottles, and napkins went. As seen in Appendix A,
the latter three were sorted correctly by a large majority. Figure 3 shows Chic-fil-A boxes and Coca
Cola cups, lids, and straws were most commonly believed to be recyclable. Chic-fil-A boxes belong
in the landfill and the Coca Cola cups, lids, and straws at Cal Poly are actually 100% compostable
[2]. This survey gave me a good idea of the current knowledge of students. The two items students
had the most trouble with should be stressed the most in the design of a new sign.

Peer-Reviewed Journal Article | Linking an Integrative Behavior Model to Elements of

Environmental Campaigns: An Analysis of Face-to-Face Communication and Posters against

Littering by Ralph Hansmann and Nora Steimer (2015)
As part of their study on environmental campaigns, Ralph Hansmann and Nora Steimer compared
the effectiveness of witty versus authoritarian posters. They found that witty and environmentallyoriented posters have about the same effect on subjects. The difference in audience acceptance is
with authoritarian slogans. Their research concluded that witty and creative posters focusing on
benefits for the environment are more effective and better accepted than authoritarian, commanding
ones [3]. This should be kept in mind while designing new posters. A witty or catchy slogan could
better influence waste sorting habits.

Journal Article | Promoting Sustainability:

Mental Models Research to Inform the Design

of a Campus Recycling Program by Lauren K
Olson
Lauren Olson wrote her journal article on
outreach programs for Michigan State
Universitys recycling program. In her article,
she discusses the importance of making
environmental behavior change relevant to the
client. It is important to understand the base
understanding of your audience so that an
Figure 4: 3D Waste sorting display at the University of
educational outreach program does not
Washington.
become redundant in information [4].
Outreach programs cost time and money, and the fewer resources required to reach out to people
the better.

News Story | Promoting Sustainability: Mental Models Research to Inform the Design of a
Campus Recycling Program by Lauren K Olson

The University of Washington Sustainability in partnership with the UW Garbology Project, UW

Housing and Food Services, and UW Recycling, created 3D visual displays of ideal waste sorting on
campus, shown in Figure 4. These displays are garbage bins cut in half to display larger than life 3D
versions of typical waste found on campus. The response was strong and they are already getting
requests to create more of these displays. The 3D visuals draw more attention and give a realistic
view of what types of waste should go in which bins, said Elise Glassman, Project Manager for UW
Sustainability [5].

Undergraduate Research | Optimizing waste sorting practices : development of a 3D display

Undergraduate research at the University of British Columbia created similar educational waste
sorting solutions based off of the University of Washington and Carnegie Melons successes with
3D waste sorting displays. At UBC, they created a prototype display case that could attach on top of
existing waste sorting stations, shown in Figures 5 and 6. These cases were highly inexpensive,
consisting of a plastic storage tub and command hooks [6]. After their Zero Waste Coordinator
determined the most commonly misplaced items in their cafeteria of interest, undergraduate
researchers made a point to display those in their display case.

Figure 5: UBCs 3D prototype display for food waste.

Figure 6: UBCs 3D prototype display for recycling.

CONCLUSIONS
To effectively market waste sorting and evoke behavioral change amongst Cal Poly students, Greg
Yeo could choose one of two sign types: 2D or 3D.
One solution is to redesign the current station signs to include pictures of each type of packaging
found at the Avenue. Having location specific pictures on the signs would clearly direct students to
the correct bin. The two most commonly misplaced items according to my personal survey, Coca
Cola cups and Chic-fil-A containers, would be stressed on the signs. The more relevant and the least
redundant the information presented, the more effective, according to Lauren Olson [4]. Since
students spend a matter of seconds at a station, they would be able to simply match what is in the
picture to what is in their hand. It must be kept in mind, in order for a 2D sign like this to be
successful, it must have text that is witty and creative because Hansmann and Steimer found that
they are more effective than signs with authoritarian language [3].
Unfortunately, a 2D sign is not the most attention grabbing. Some students are distracted by friends
or their phone when approaching Zero Waste stations. It is possible that many students would not
notice a new poster to begin with. A study from Carnegie Mellon University found that instead of a
sign people tend to look more towards what is already in a bin for guidance [6]. In my survey, I
found that out 100 Cal Poly students, only 18 correctly sorted Chic-fil-A boxes to landfill and only
24 correctly sorted Coca Cola cups, lids, and straws to compost [Appendix A]. With already less than
a quarter of these popular items properly sorted, following the common example may not induce
any real change.
The second solution is to design and implement 3D displays for compost, recycle, and landfill
overtop each of the three Zero Waste station signs, similar to Carnegie Melon Universitys display
shown in Figure 7. Actual clean examples of each type of packaging in the Avenue would be sorted
between compost, recycle, and landfill and displayed in a visually appealing way. Obtaining these
items would be of no extra cost to the university. The greatest challenge would be displaying large
amounts of information in an effective manner.
A 3D sign like this would ideally include every item a student might need help sorting. However,
with almost a hundred different types of waste, more research may be needed in order to narrow
down what items students have the most trouble sorting. Lauren Olson made it clear in her
dissertation to avoid redundancy in environmental education [3]. After analyzing my survey data, for
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example, I found that 97% of the sample knew

to recycle cans and bottles [Appendix A]. If a
3D display of recycling got too crowded, it may
be advisable not to include as many cans or
bottles to make way for more commonly
improperly sorted recyclables.
There is a lot of room for creativity with the
option of a 3D display. For example, if thin
sheet metal is clamped onto the backboard of a
Zero Waste station, 3D waste items could have
Figure 7: 3D waste sorting display prototype at Carnegie
magnetic strips. Or if on a foam board, 3D
Melon University.
items could be adhered with Velcro. This
would make signs like these easily adaptable to
new types of packaging that Cal Poly could in the future phase in.
Overall, a 3D display is more attention-grabbing. A University of Washington study showed that 3D
displays are the most effective [5]. Being able to match up the item in hand to the same item
displayed would help greatly improve the diversion rate at the Avenue. However, matching a
physical object is more tangible and therefore more impactful than a picture on the lasting behavior
change in students.
RECOMMENDATION
I recommend that Cal Poly Dining design and implement 3D displays over the Zero Waste stations
in the Avenue. Each display should include compost, recycle, and landfill waste examples specific to
the Avenue, including Chic-fil-A packaging and Coca Cola cups. 3D displays would capture
students attention and increase waste diversion.

APPENDIX A: SURVEY RESULTS

5
Answer Key:
1. Landfill
2. Compost
3. Landfill
4. Recycle
5. Compost

REFERENCES
[1] "California State University Sustainability Policy Proposal, Action", in JOINT MEETING OF
THE COMMITTEES ON EDUCATIONAL POLICY AND CAMPUS PLANNING,
BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS, Glenn S. Dumke Auditorium, 2016.
[2] G. Yeo, "Campus Dining Sustainability Interview", California Polytechnic State University, San
Luis Obispo, 2016.
[3] R. Hansmann and N. Steimer, "Linking an Integrative Behavior Model to Elements of
Environmental Campaigns: An Analysis of Face-to-Face Communication and Posters against
Littering", Sustainability, vol. 7, no. 6, pp. 6937-6956, 2015.
[4] L. Olson, "Mental models research to inform community outreach for a campus recycling
program: International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education: Vol 12, No 4",
International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, vol. 12, no. 4, 2016.
[5] "New 3D Visuals Simplify Waste Sorting", Green.uw.edu, 2016. [Online]. Available:
http://green.uw.edu/news/new-3d-visuals-simplify-waste-sorting. [Accessed: 25- Feb- 2016].
[6] E. Aimienwanu, M. Alamoudi and P. Chintalapati, "Optimizing waste sorting practices :
development of a 3D display", Open.library.ubc.ca, 2015. [Online]. Available:
https://open.library.ubc.ca/cIRcle/collections/undergraduateresearch/18861/items/1.010887
1. [Accessed: 25- Feb- 2016].

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FIGURES CITED
Figure 1: Zero Waste station in Cal Polys dining hall, the Avenue. 2016.
Figure 2: Current Zero Waste Station Posters and Labels. 2016.
Figure 3: Survey Results: The Ave: What Goes Where?. 2016.
Figure 4: UW Sustainability, 3D waste sorting display at the University of Washington. 2016.
Figure 5: UBCs 3D prototype display for food waste. 2016.
Figure 6: UBCs 3D prototype display for recycling. 2016.
Figure 7: 3D waste sorting display prototype at Carnegie Melon University. 2016.

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