School of Sustainability Graduate Culminating Experiences
Student capstone and applied projects from ASU's School of Sustainability.
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- Creators: Branch, Boyd
Description
The City of Phoenix is interested in bringing a plastic processing facility to the Phoenix metro area. A facility could potentially to increase the diversion rates of recyclables, allow for more efficient use of locally reclaimed material and bring new jobs to the Phoenix metropolitan economy. Contrary to the classic “put it in the bin, we’ll take care of it” attitude presented by large recyclers such as Waste Management and Republic Services, recycling economics are complex; often both a beacon of technological advancement and a lagger with regard to spot-market capabilities. Based on interviews with elite stakeholders and industry research, this mixed method paper will examine the current PET plastic recycling market and the potential for Phoenix to increase its circular manufacturing of plastic. The final analysis will culminate in a proposed set of recommendations that could help Phoenix achieve its long-term waste diversion goals.
ContributorsPunnett, Garr (Author)
Created2018
Description
The composition of this project can be described as half responsive digital media composition and half social experiment. It is built for the seven screen display of the Decision Theater and utilizes a combination of digital media and creative software tools along with sensor technology to create a media environment that responds to real time physical feedback from participants. The experience uses different desired interactions or “levels” to examine the tension between Shalom Schwartz’ three sets of bipolar cultural values represented in his theory on cultural value orientation. Cultural values are significant drivers of human behavior that change throughout time, however rarely does society name and define these dominant forces outright. This project aims to expose people to consider these forces through interactive discovery and game play. The installation’s primary user input is based on movement and physical interaction and includes visual rewards for desired forms of cooperative engagement. Sustainability science and research often cites education and communication initiatives as the next actionable steps towards a sustainable solution. Art and design are two fields that are uniquely suited for completing this next step, because they both regularly examine, critique, create, and comment as a part of shaping culture and encourage reflexive thinking about our norms and values. The design process included interdisciplinary engagement which is detailed alongside project outcomes, theoretical ties to sustainability, symbolic representations, and observations of user experiences. It may be considered a pilot test of the potential for creative and interactive digital art platforms to allow for the exploration of cultural values and connections to sustainability. This ability to reflect and consider the assumptions that may be engrained within cultural value orientation is fundamentally important to the wider recognition of the cultural shifts needed to create a sustainable future.
ContributorsNixon, Brittany (Author) / Cloutier, Scott (Contributor) / Branch, Boyd (Contributor)
Created2017-03-23