Overview

Prepared by (Name of the experimenter)

Betty Chemier

On date (Day/Month/Year)

14/02/2024

What portfolio does this activity correspond to? If any

Initiativa Mercado Basura Cero / Zero Waste Market Initiative

What is the frontier challenge does this activity responds to?

Solid Waste Management

What is the learning question(from your action learning plan) is this activity related to?

What messages promote the correct separation and disposal of waste in public spaces?

Please list the names of partners mentioned in the previous question:

Municipio de Panama (MUPA) - Direccion de Gestion Ambiental Mercado San Felipe Neri Recicla Pro Tu Futuro ANCON

Design

What is the specific learning intent of the activity?

Understand what messages promote the correct separation and disposal of waste in public spaces.

What is your hypothesis? IF... THEN....

If the infrastructure and strategy are created from behavioral sciences for separating waste at its source then sellers and customers will separate the waste at its source and then it will reduce the volume of waste in final disposal (dump/landfill).

Describe which actions will you take to test your hypothesis:

Installation of two clean points (oil; plastic, cardboard, white paper and newspaper, cans, TetraPak). Containers that allow the separation of waste in places strategic areas of the market. Signs and messages based on behavioral science to indicate the final disposition of waste for market tenants and clients. A process was developed in three phases. (i) awareness raising, (ii) rehabilitation and installation of clean point, (iii) collection of materials separated by the Environmental Management Direction of the Municipality of Panama. The first phase consisted of raising awareness about separation of plastic, cardboard and cans through a clean point. The capacitation was directed to the administrative and operational team of the market, in addition to some tenants, Recicla Pro tu Futuro, in alliance with the Environmental Management Direction, facilitated capacitation. The Markets Department supported staff with training of the market on separation of materials and the use of the clean point. For the second phase. the Environmental Management Direction provided support in the rehabilitation of a clean point for separating plastic, paper, cardboard, magazines, aluminum and TetraPak. The clean point was given an identity more linked to the market and 7 signs in 5 strategic points were put in place to guide people and facilitate the proper disposal of materials. Finally, the incorporation of the clean point as part of the recyclable collection route of Santa Ana by the Environmental Management Direction of the Municipality of Panama. On the day of the No Waste Fest, the clean point was inaugurated, and digital communication materials were created that were disseminated through the social networks of the market and the municipality of Panama to announce the existence of the clean point and promote its use by the tenants of the market and visitors. 

What is the unit of analysis of this experimental activity?

Volume and composition of waste, perception of customers and sellers.

Please describe the data collection technique proposed

Characterization after 6 months of implementation of the experiment; monitoring of allies; observed behavior.

What is the timeline of the experimental activity? (Months/Days)

6 months

Please upload any supporting images or visuals for this experiment.

Please upload any supporting links

What are the estimated non- monetary resources required for this experiment? (time allocation from team, external resources, etc) If any.

The original clean point infrastructure was given to the project by Recicla por tu Futuro

Results

Was the original hypothesis (If.. then) proven or disproven?

Proven

Do you have observations about the methodology chosen for the experiment? What would you change?

From design to results, how long did this activity take? (Time in months)

6 months

What were the actual monetary resources invested in this activity? (Amount in USD)

$5000

Does this activity have a follow up or a next stage? Please explain

1. It was proposed to give new strength to the use of videos created with tenants about their life stories and the clean point, displaying them in the screens in the market lobby. 2. Hold a second awareness day about the clean point and its use directed to the market team and the promoters or 'champions' of the market that could encourage that more people make use of it. 3. Keep the point clean to avoid risks to public health, starting by laying a new foundation on the one where the jumbo bags can rest, since they have direct contact with the floor and getting wet could damage the material and attract insects and vermin. 4. Consider expanding the materials you are received at the clean point, starting with glass and cooking oil.

Is this experiment planned to scale? How? With whom?

Not at the moment.

Please add any supporting links that describe the planning, implementation, results of learning of this activity? For example a tweet, a blog, or a report. 

Learning

What do you know now about the action plan learning question that you did not know before? What were your main learnings during this experiment?

1. Collaboration between the Direction of Markets and Environmental Direction has been consolidated and maintains the clean point beyond the pilot. Three months after the inauguration of the clean point, it remains well and maintains a regular collection three days a week, recovering about 250 pounds per week of average recyclables taken to recycling companies, according to data of the Environmental Direction  2. Visitors are promoters of the use of the clean point. The market team and collection of recyclables observed that the people who most take their waste to the clean point in the market are visitors and very few tenants. It was identified that people around the market carry material, but beyond of the observations no more data was generated to add detail about this behavior.  3. Gradually expand to other materials. The market team and the environmental department received comments from people who separate waste regarding the need of including glass and cooking oil among the recyclable options. The environmental team is considering alternatives to separate this material, but needs to better understand the demand first. 4. Although the training was carried out and documented for the team of the market and tenants, awareness must be continuous and it must reach visitors as well, spreading the videos created on the market screens and collaborating more closely with the market stalls to publicize and encourage the use of the clean point with posters that they can post in their stalls or orally with their clients that they visit. However, it is necessary to understand what incentives that the market tenants would have to do so. 5. The perception of the market team is that the signage has not been effective and does not seem to guide people towards the clean point nor does it achieve explain how to dispose of waste. Although there is a mechanism for collecting recyclables that works, it is considers that signage should be more intuitive (indications on the floor, for example in the shape of footprints, and messages that guide towards the point, for example). Creating posters that can distributed at stops, stores and multifamily entrances around the market are thought as other good strategies.

What were the main obstacles and challenges you encountered during this activity?

Coordination and timely implementation of signage strategy by the implementing partner. At first it was also hard to obtain data for the team collecting the material because they were not weighting it.

Who at UNDP might benefit from the results of this experimental activity? Why?

Teams working on public alliances and implementation of recycling solutions. 

Who outside UNDP might benefit from the results of this experiment? and why?

Municipalities working on strategies to promote recycling of communities and their communication teams.

Did this experiment require iterations? If so, how many and what did you change/adjust along the way? and why?

No

What advice would you give someone wanting to replicate this experimental activity?

Start with few materials and expand gradually as you understand the demands.

Can this experiment be replicated in another thematic area or other SDGs? If yes, what would need to be considered, if no, why not?

How much the "sense" and "explore" phases of the learning cycle influenced/shaped this experiment? In hindsight, what would you have done differently with your fellow Solution Mapper and Explorer?

This experiment is part a the Zero Waste Market Initiative, along with 3 other expriments that are derivated from a year long process of sensing and exploring the Solid Waste Management ecosystem in Panama.

What surprised you?