METRO VANCOUVER

Transcription

1 Best Practices Website METRO VANCOUVER SUBMISSION FOR UBCM Community Excellence Awards 2009

2 UBCM Community Awards Best Practices Website metrovancouverrecycles.org METRO VANCOUVER Project Summary In Spring 2009, Metro Vancouver unveiled a new online tool called that helps people reuse and recycle more things. The online database shows residents and businesses where they can take unwanted materials and products instead of turning them into garbage. Introduction Natural beauty, access to resources and markets and a diverse civil society have converged in Metropolitan Vancouver to create one of the world s most livable regions. However, privileged position also requires responsibility for the immediate and long-term impacts of our actions both locally and globally. That is why in 2002 Metro Vancouver incorporated the Sustainable Region Initiative in its framework for decision-making and as a guide for translating sustainability principles into its practices and activities. Metro Vancouver is made up of 24 local authorities operating under provincial legislation as a regional district and greater boards. Its three primary roles are: Providing municipalities with drinking water, sewerage & drainage, and solid waste management, which are its core services Providing regional parks and affordable housing directly to the public Serving as the main political forum for discussion of community issues at the regional level A key component of Metro Vancouver s sustainability framework envisages a zero waste region no waste, only resources. [ Submission for UBCM Community Excellence Awards 2009 Metro Vancouver ] 2

3 DISPOSED DIVERTED WASTE TO ENERGY 8% 39% LAND FILL 45% 4% COMPOSTING PRODUCT STEWARDSHIP 4% RECYCLING Disposed and diverted waste within the region. Metro Vancouver s Zero Waste Challenge Currently, residents and business recycle just over half of the 3.5 million tonnes of garbage, or solid waste, created in the region each year. Metro Vancouver s Board of Directors adopted the Zero Waste Challenge as its priority a bold commitment to reduce solid waste in the region to the absolute minimum, and to extract the maximum practical benefits from discarded material. In keeping with that, commitment to change social norms around waste generation and management was unveiled in the Spring of This tool is an online directory of reuse and recycling services designed to help the user answer the question Where do I take this? It contains 1,886 categories and over 940 locations within the region to donate, recycle or appropriately dispose of items no longer wanted. Its genesis came from the publication 101 Uses for Your Old Shoes n Other Stuff. The project team extracted information from this booklet and added additional data by mining information from member municipality websites, waste and recycling web pages and independent research. One of the tool s dynamic features is a well-recognized Google map that shows the user exact locations of depots, the distance and arrival time from the user s residence or place of employment to the selected depot. The key to any social marketing program is to identify barriers and then develop tactics to overcome those barriers. Research dating back to the mid-90s consistently shows that people would divert more of their solid waste if they knew how. To make it more convenient to donate or recycle, people need to be able to find out quickly and easily where to recycle or donate materials at a convenient location. Metro Vancouver Recycles provides those services and can be found through: Typing the domain name (a screen shot of a sample search is attached for your reference) On the homepage, in the Quick Links box under Residents or Online Services Searching the domain name [ Submission for UBCM Community Excellence Awards 2009 Metro Vancouver ] 3

4 reuse EVOLUTION OF A. Community Benefits This online tool answers the question how while also addressing the convenience barrier by generating a map showing reuse/recycling service locations in relation to the user s residence or business. Additionally, it emphasizes reuse options, often overlooked when people are disposing of items that could be of use to others. B. The User Experience Design, Layout and Functionality When developing the project team did so with the focus on the user s wants and needs. It was imperative that the tool be user-focused. In designing the website, the following key factors were considered and subsequently implemented: 1. Page load speed It is widely accepted that fast-loading pages improves user experience. The project team reduced the size of the web pages by limiting the number of images and using Cascading Style Sheet (CSS) for the design and layout. 2. Accessibility To improve site accessibility for users who are visually impaired, description tags were added to all images. This tool is also designed for easy keyboard navigation through the drop down menus and website links. 3. Simple navigation The simple design and use of light colors: blue and green, which are associated with reuse and recycle and are Metro Vancouver s brand identity colors, and a white background are known to improve the user experience. The design also makes extensive use of visuals including recognizable icons and the map. (See attachment). [ Submission for UBCM Community Excellence Awards 2009 Metro Vancouver ] 4

5 donate EVOLUTION OF (CONTINUED) 4. User friendliness The users experience is paramount and the tool is designed so that the user can search, obtain information required, sort, read, print info or map, SMS it to a mobile device and exit satisfied in a few minutes. The extensive use of colour icons such as thoses pertaining to: recycle, , cell phone etc. was a strategic design decision to provide the user with fast comprehension of information and readability. C. Maintenance and Feedback Maintenance of the database consists of self-reporting, where the user can to let project staff know if information requires direct follow-up. The information is updated regularly in order to remain current. D. Going Live and Promotion Created by Metro Vancouver s Corporate Relations Web team, with a budget of $40,000, went live on March 25, The publicity campaign involved: An extensive earned media campaign resulted in good media coverage An awareness and education campaign to Metro Vancouver s municipalities, including face-to-face presentations, and a short announcement to individual communications departments and waste coordinators with a request to post the link on their website and for inclusion in outreach materials A lunch and learn campaign for Metro Vancouver s internal staff to demonstrate the tool EPIC 2009 May (8-10) Metro Vancouver showcased with live demonstrations by staff who set up laptops at their booth Ongoing reminder campaigns to municipalities and internal staff bookmarks are also given out at public events and to member municipalities [ Submission for UBCM Community Excellence Awards 2009 Metro Vancouver ] 5

6 recycle Continuous Improvement for Best Practice Success Since going live receives over 3,000 visits a month. Community users have provided feedback ranging from kudos to sharing information about additional recycle and reuse options for inclusion to the online database. As Metro Vancouver continues to improve and expand the users experience with this community tool, the next step in its evolution will be to add the temporary shopping cart functionality. For users this means they will have the ability to add to their shopping cart multiple reuse and recycling depots, based on their search criteria. Then, if users choose to print the Google map, it will list all the locations and driving directions from their starting address to a single destination or all destinations. In addition, applicable user feedback, benchmarking and trend analysis will also be considered in future expansion of The project team will also continue to use innovative promotions and dialogue-based forms of engagement to create additional buzz around this tool. Creating a sustainable region remains a fundamental strategic objective for Metro Vancouver and with this tool it has built additional common ground that reflects the views of the public, who also desire a sustainable future for themselves, their children and their children s children. [ Submission for UBCM Community Excellence Awards 2009 Metro Vancouver ] 6