Waste pickers are the victims of harsh economic and social factors that have hurt many<br/>developing countries and billions of people around the world. Due to the rise of industrialization<br/>since the 19th century, waste and disposable resources have been discarded around the world to<br/>provide more resources, products, and services to wealthy countries. This has put developing<br/>countries in a precarious position where people have had very few economic opportunities<br/>besides taking on the role of waste pickers, who not only face physical health consequences due<br/>to the work they do but also face exclusion from society due to the negative views of waste<br/>pickers. Many people view waste pickers as scavengers and people who survive off of doing<br/>dirty work, which creates tensions between waste pickers and others in society. This even leads<br/>to many countries outlawing waste picking and has led to the brutal treatment of waste pickers<br/>throughout the world and has even led to thousands of waste pickers being killed by anti-waste<br/>picker groups and law enforcement organizations in many countries.<br/>Waste pickers are often at the bottom of supply chains as they take resources that have<br/>been used and discarded, and provide them to recyclers, waste management organizations, and<br/>others who are able to turn these resources into usable materials again. Waste pickers do not have<br/>many opportunities to rise above the situation they are in as waste picking has become the only<br/>option for many people who need to provide for themselves and their families. They are not<br/>compensated very well for the work they do, which also contributes to the situation where waste<br/>pickers are forced into a position of severe health risks, backlash from society and governments,<br/>not being able to seek better opportunities due to a lack of earning potential, and not being<br/>connected with end-users. Now is the time to create new business models that solve these large<br/>problems in our global society and create a sustainable way to ensure that waste pickers are<br/>treated properly around the world.

We spent the past two semesters interviewing, surveying, and researching the fitness industry to design an fitness app that would be popular and helpful among our target market. We created an app that businesses will encourage their employees to download under the statistically-backed premise that active individuals display higher levels of cognitive function and lower health care rates on average than their sedentary counterparts. While designing the app we conducted both primary and secondary market research on which features and elements of the app would be most desired.

Throughout the Barrett, the Honors College Thesis process we were tasked with creating our own entrepreneurial startup venture. Our objective was to mock up and develop a holistic fitness application that businesses can use to motivate their employees to adopt healthy habits while increasing productivity. We were able to reach out and connect with local businesses about the prospect of using our application. In addition, we included a reward system that companies can use for health experiences, such as a percentage off rock climbing or a discounted round of golf. This aided us in gaining valuable insights into who our potential clients could be and helped us narrow down our target market. We implemented a ring system in our application where employees would fulfill daily goals of physical health, mental health, sleep, and nutrition. The rings start dark red and gradient towards green as the client accomplishes their goals. The BeFit. app had separate tabs for personal health statistics, leaderboards, rewards, and intramurals that could be played against other companies. Our prototype utilizes all of these features with the goal of companies’ ability to increase their employees’ cognitive function and team morale in the workplace.

The Winner's Circle aims to provide a digital platform for sports fans and betting addicts, in hopes to help centralize various forms of social communication between family, close friends, and strangers alike. As the legalization of sports related gambling activities become more widespread throughout the United States as well as the rest of the world, our platform has to potential to connect millions of like-minded, adrenaline-seeking fans across the globe.

Students for Success is a consulting firm designed to connect undergraduate ASU students with those applying to ASU. Our counselors are well versed in scholarships, housing, programs, clubs, and deadline information. This firm provides flexible work for undergraduate students, while giving applicants a custom experience from a student who truly understands the most recent application process.

We founded an operational startup company and developed a consumable product to sell to ASU students. Our primary objective is the provision of affordable nutritious energy bars to overworked and overwhelmed college students. We aim to support hungry students in efforts to fuel their bodies efficiently and nutritiously; in order to do so, we donate 20% of our profits to charity to support students in debt. Our business won the Business Catalyst Choice Award for having "the most promising business concept".

This business plan is centered around the creation of a digital marketplace that will promote small businesses and sustainable shopping habits throughout the community and beyond. Our business decisions will be guided by our vision which involves encouraging environmentally conscious shopping habits, supporting small artists, and raising money for charity without compromising quality. In addition to our focus on creating a social media-based digital marketplace, we aim to ultimately help local artists grow their businesses and further support the causes they care about.