Project criteria performance impact (1)
- 1. Project Criteria Performance Impact Introduction Team C.A.R.E. believes that we have achieved greater success than the project criteria asked of us. The specific goal for our team was to inform New Bedford residents on the new recycling policy that accepts cartons in their recycling carts. We overcame challenges to initiate an outreach campaign to relay this message to the residents about recycling aseptic and paperboard cartons. Approaching this task with determination and dedication allowed our team to effectively complete the goal. Our efforts spread recycling awareness, education and behavior with the addition of the community showing their appreciation through involvement and participation. Service to the community Our team was partnered with an organized and intelligent woman, Marissa Perez- Dormitzer, from the New Bedford Regional Management Refuse District. We also worked with Stop & Shop, AHA! Night and Dream Out Loud, and Halloran Design We wanted to make sure we had options for partners in order to make our mission a success in preparation for a community event. Marissa provided us with some contacts that we could communicate with in order to organize an event and she also gave us some materials such as pencils, stickers and a New Bedford recycling cart to give to the public. We were given a $25 gift certificate by Stop & Shop to attract residents during our event. Team C.A.R.E. created signs, flyers, and various other creative art projects reflecting carton recycling for our campaign in hopes to spread awareness.
- 2. ARD Event After speaking with potential partners for AHA! Night, C.A.R.E. knew that AHA! Night wasn’t the best venue for our goals so we chose to work with Stop & Shop on November 15th, America Recycles Day. It was a chilly and windy day, but Team C.A.R.E. bundled up from 10 am- 3pm in attempts to inform residents of the community about carton recycling. We set up a table and placed a few signs and a plethora of different cartons that are accepted for recycling in New Bedford’s recycling carts. We made sure the residents saw the recycling cart because not every community in New Bedford has these carts for their recycling process and some communities don’t even offer recycling. For the kids, we created large stand up milk and cereal characters with face holes so they could take pictures and interact through some form of fun activity. While the kids were distracted, we could go into more detail about the carton recycling policy to the adults and converse more about how New Bedford recycles. Community Involvement The community got involved with us through multiple ways. At Stop & Shop we had a sign telling people if they were residents of New Bedford, they could come and pledge to recycle cartons for a raffle to win the $25 gift certificate to Stop & Shop. Our plan was to have at least 50 residents pledge and speak to at least 25% of the people who walked by our table. Those goals were specific to the event. Our other goals that involved the community were to visit 35 homes and distribute flyers to each one and to inform the public on social media via the media team. Below is the statistical data that coincides with our event at Stop & Shop. We discovered that our goals were effectively met and exceeded our desired outcome for community involvement.
- 3. Recycling, awareness, education, and behavior at the event During our event at Stop & Shop we used our time to our advantage. We wanted to make sure the residents of New Bedford not only understood that cartons are recyclable, but that each carton is composed of different materials and have different construction processes. There are two main types of cartons that most people didn’t quite realize. There is the paperboard carton, that most milks and refrigerated products are sold in and the aseptic carton that most non-refrigerated products are sold in. After people would pledge we would tell them about the different types of cartons and specifically point them out within their shopping carts. On the flyers that we distributed, we made the words now, how, and wow were bolded and large to attract the attention of the residents. Sometimes people just throw flyers and advertisements away because of their boring and inattentive labeling. People told us they were going to go home and spread the word about carton recycling and recycling in general because they cared about the environment as much as we do. We can believe that if people stay true to their word, the level of carton recycling awareness will increase beyond our expectations. In hopes to
- 4. capture the interest of the kids our stickers and pencils allow them to learn about recycling in a positive and fun way. Each kid that walked by was given a pencil and sticker and we even asked if they wanted to take a picture as the milk carton or the cereal box characters. This should have a lasting impact on them and hopefully they will brag to their friends that they received cool stuff while learning about recycling. Having the event of America Recycles Day was an added benefit for us because some people actually knew about the day’s importance. By looking at the graph above, it is clear to see that mos t people claimed they recycle, about 84% of the people who we spoke with in fact. Also the people who pledged took the time to help us relay our message to other people as they walked by so the impact we had on those people allowed us to gain assistance during our mission. We wanted 50 pledgers, and ended up getting 63 people showing that recycling behavior occurs more often than we assumed in New Bedford. While knocking on doors in the neighborhoods around St. Luke’s Hospital we found that more than enough people were enticed by our mission and were glad to participate and talk with us. We hoped to have at least 30-35 homes participate in our campaign and we got about 40 homes and owners to read our flyer and talk to us about how they recycled their cartons and other recyclables. Some people who don’t own a recycling bin told us they always give their recyclables to friends of family so they can help preserve the earth as much as they can. Hearing this made team C.A.R.E. proud of New Bedford and excited to present the self-less nature of the residents to the class. Sustainability Every project plan needs to make an adamant effort to stay sustainable. C.A.R.E. made sure that each material we used in efforts to complete our mission was 100% sustainable. The paper we used for our flyers and the paperboard collected for our posters and signs were made out of recyclable paper. We made sure to use paints that were washable and eco-friendly when painting our stand up characters. The pencils and stickers were also made out of recyclable materials so we made sure to tell the kids to recycle them too. Each one of our mini projects was disposed and recycled properly and without having to trash anything.
- 5. Creativity Throughout our project, Team C.A.R.E. designed many mini projects. Some of these projects include, our team logo, posters, flyers, photo collection, paperboard trash bin with carton examples, stickers, and stand up cardboard characters. Most of these projects had development plans of their own and required material acquisitions and assessments. We collaborated as a team on most of these mini projects and each one had a prototype before we finalized the design. Although none of our team members are art students, we were given feedback by fellow art student friends in order to create these mini projects with precision and skill. Team C.A.R.E. faced many challenges that tested our ability to complete our goals. We might have had to change paths a few times, but we made sure that once a decision was made we stuck to the plan and executed our plan with rigorous determination. From the birth of the project to the coordination of which venue we would use, to the designing process of each mini project, Team C.A.R.E. used teamwork, integrity and ambition to make our plans come true. The residents of New Bedford accepted us as Carton Champions and we received positive feedback from most of the people we spoke with. Recycling will always be a tough challenge for everyone on Earth, but working on a project that helps promote the cause gave Team C.A.R.E. the knowledge and experience to carry on this initiative even after we completed our goals.