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The CRCP is a service and app developed for the University of Sydney to promote sustainable cup reuse across campus.
Campus
Reusable Cup
Program (CRCP)
University campuses generate a high volume of single-use coffee cup waste despite growing awareness of sustainability. Students and staff are willing to use reusable cups, but adoption is limited by inconvenience, hygiene concerns, forgetfulness, and unclear return processes. Existing solutions place responsibility on individuals without adequately supporting habitual behaviour change within a fast-paced campus environment.
Problem Statement
Possible Solution
The Campus Reusable Cup Program introduces a deposit-based reusable cup system integrated into existing campus infrastructure and the USYD student app (USU). Students borrow cups from participating cafés, return them to clearly marked bins, and manage deposits, returns, and rewards seamlessly through the app. By prioritising hygiene reassurance, accessibility, and low-friction interactions, the system embeds sustainable behaviour into everyday student routines rather than positioning it as an extra effort.
Target Audience
-
University students
-
Campus Staff and faculty
-
On-campus café operators
-
University sustainability and facilities teams
The Approach
The Campus Reusable Cup Program adopted a human-centred design approach, combining student and staff research with observational insights to understand behavioural, hygiene, and convenience barriers to reusable cup adoption. Iterative prototyping and testing informed a system that integrates seamlessly into existing campus cafés and digital platforms, making sustainable behaviour easy, accessible, and habitual.
Design Thinking Process
The Campus Reusable Cup Program followed a design thinking process grounded in empathy, beginning with understanding student and staff behaviours around coffee consumption and waste. Insights from research informed iterative prototyping and testing of a reusable cup system that prioritised convenience, hygiene, and seamless integration into campus routines.
Emphatize
Define
Ideate
Design
Test
-
User Research
-
User Interview
-
Entrant Analysis
-
User Persona
-
User Jouney Map
-
Goal Statement
-
Empathy Map
-
Brainstorming
-
Card Sorting
-
User Flow
-
Paper Wireframes
-
Visual Design
-
Prototype
-
CheckUsability
-
Survey Insight
-
Improvements
Project Timeline
1st
Week
2nd
Week
3rd
Week
4th
Week
5th
Week
6th
Week
7th
Week
8th
Week
9th
Week
10th
Week
11th
Week
12th
Week
UX Design
Strategy
(Research)
Paper
Wireframes
Usability
Testing Phase
Visual Design
& Prototyping
Interview, Empathy Map,
User Journey Map
Problem Statement &
Goal Statement
Competitive Analysis &
Information Architecture
UI Design
Define Phase
User Persona
Personas were developed to represent key campus coffee users and their behaviours, motivations, and barriers to using reusable cups. These personas helped ground design decisions in real user needs and daily routines.
Jenny Linh
Personality
Breif Story
Age
Education
Status
Occupation
Location
20
USYD
Single
Uni Student
Sydney
A busy business student balancing classes, a part-time job, and an active social life. Constantly on the go, she prioritizes convenience over sustainability. Though she owns reusable cups and bottles, they often sit unused her rushed routine leaves little time for planning ahead.
Goals
-
Required Zero Extra Effort (e.g., a cup exchange program where she can grab and drop anywhere on campus)
-
Provided Instant Gratification
Frustations
-
Feels mild guilt about waste but not enough to change habits
-
Owns unused reusable bottles, finds them inconvenient for her busy routine
Needs
-
Fast and convenient coffee pickup
-
Clear hygiene reassurance
-
Easy return locations
-
Simple, low-effort system
-
Motivation through incentives
Motivations
-
Convenience over long-term goals
-
Small rewards (discounts, points) work if low effort
-
Influenced by peer norms, follows what’s considered standard
Casper Black
Personality
Breif Story
Age
Education
Status
Occupation
Location
22
USYD
Single
Uni Student
Sydney
A second-year business student at USYD, is trend-driven and active on social media. He cares more about aesthetics than sustainability but is open to eco-friendly habits if they align with his image or social circle. Influenced by peers and trends, he values what looks good and feels relevant.
Goals
-
Visually Appealing Incentives (e.g., sleek cup designs or shareable moments).
-
Reward-Based Engagement (actions tied to clear rewards like discounts, points, or exclusive access).
Frustations
-
Finds sustainability efforts boring or irrelevant to his lifestyle
-
Understands their importance but doesn’t see personal connection
Needs
-
Affordable coffee options
-
Clear, simple instructions
-
Flexibility and convenience
-
Digital tracking and reminders
-
Positive reinforcement
Motivations
-
Trends and social media influence
-
Drawn to anything visually appealing or with strong online presence
-
Curious about recycling and sustainability, but not deeply passionate
Empathy Map
Thinks
Says
-
“I want to be more sustainable.”
-
“I forgot my reusable cup again.”
-
“I’m not sure how clean those shared cups are.”
-
“I don’t have time to go out of my way between classes.”
-
“Single-use cups are just easier right now.”
-
“If I knew the cups were definitely clean, I’d use one.”
Feels
Does
-
Buys coffee on campus several times a week
-
Uses single-use cups by default
-
Occasionally brings a reusable cup when she remembers
-
Guilty about contributing to waste
-
Hesitant due to hygiene concerns
-
Motivated when sustainable choices are easy
Task Flow
Current Student Proccess
Finds USYD
Café
Orders
single use cup
Enjoy
drink
Throws non-
recycle cup
in bin
Walks
away
No awards
attained
CRCP User Flow
Entry /
Awareness
App Access
Find a
Participating
Café
Order Coffee
Cup
Check-out
Enjoy Drink
-
See CRCP signage, poster, or social post
-
OR hear about CRCP from a friend / café staff
-
User becomes aware of reusable cup option
-
Open USU / CRCP app
-
If new user → Sign up / log in
-
If returning user → Home screen
-
Tap “Cafés Near You”
-
View map or list of CRCP cafés
-
Select a café
-
Go to café & order drink
-
Select CRCP reusable cup
-
(Optional) Scan USU membership / CRCP QR
-
Receive reusable cup
-
Cup QR code is linked to user
-
Deposit or cup status is activated in app
-
Drink coffee as normal
-
App shows “Cup Active” status
-
Reminder countdown visible
Loop
Rewards
& Feedback
Confirmation
Return Cup
-
User repeats process for next coffee
-
Habit formed → reduced single-use waste
-
View points, rewards, or discounts
-
(Optional) Leave quick feedback
-
(Optional) Share CRCP on social media
-
App confirms cup returned
-
Deposit refunded / no penalty applied
-
Loyalty points or rewards added
-
Go to any CRCP return station
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Scan cup QR code
-
Place cup into return bin
Visual Flow
Information Architecture
Start Page
Mobile
E-mail
USU login
Sign up
No
Have an
account?
Yes
Sign up completed
Login
Mobile
E-mail
USU login
Home
Cafes
Home Page
Search
map
Tracking
Check out cup
Tracking starts
Vouchers
Home
USU vouchers
Browse by
cafe
Scan QR
code
Cafe info
Redeem
awards
See drink options by you
Option for CRCP cup
Select cafe
Scan
Confirmation
History
Scan
membership
Onboard w/
barista
Active cup
status
USU membership linked and ready to use at any cafe
Order online
or in person
Return
cup
Check
vouchers
Return
Confirmation
Tracking
Get CRCP cup
If the cup you
returned is
damaged you
will be
charged
My vouchers
My CRCP
Info about your account
Cup information
-
How CRCP works
-
Hygiene & cleaning process
-
FAQs
Return locations on cafe map
-
Map of return bins
-
Bin availability status
CRCP rules and regulations
-
Penalty information
Visual Design
Explore a campus map showing all CRCP enabled cafés and nearby cup return stations.
Find the closest CRCP cafés based on your location and walking distance.
View café details including opening hours, drink specials, and CRCP participation status.
Café Maps
Cafés Near You
Café Description
Quickly access Home, Scan Cup, Cafés, Rewards, and your Profile from anywhere in the app.
Connect your USU membership to unlock CRCP rewards, deposits, and exclusive campus offers.
Get personalised coffee recommendations based on your preferences and previous orders.
Your CRCP profile tracks your reusable cup usage, returns, deposits, and rewards in one place.
Browse participating campus cafés, tracking, vouchers and more.
Navigation Bar
Navigation Bar
USU Membership
Coffee Recommendations
Profile
Menu
Closing Section
The Campus Reusable Cup Program demonstrates how thoughtful, user-centred design can remove friction from sustainable behaviour. By prioritising convenience, hygiene, and clarity, CRCP turns reuse into a simple, repeatable choice showing how small design decisions can create meaningful environmental impact at scale.
Designing sustainability into everyday habits
This project strengthened my ability to translate research insights into a service system that balances user experience, operational feasibility, and sustainability outcomes within a real-world campus context.
Reflection
CRCP applies design thinking to reframe reuse as a seamless, everyday experience. Grounded in user research and iteration, the system balances user needs, operational feasibility, and sustainability goals. The project demonstrates how thoughtful service design can embed sustainable behaviour into daily campus life.
Conclusion
My Role
Design Strategy
Empathy Mapping
Prototyping
Problem Solution
Wireframes
Visual Design
Competitive Analysis
User Flow
Information Architecture
User Research
User Persona
Usability Testing
Emphatize Phase
Qualitative Research
Qualitative research was conducted through interviews and informal discussions with students and staff to understand attitudes toward reusable cups, hygiene concerns, and everyday coffee habits. Insights revealed that convenience and clarity of return processes were key barriers to adoption.
Interview Questions
-
Can you walk me through your typical coffee routine on campus?
-
How often do you buy coffee on campus in a week?
-
Do you currently use a reusable cup? Why or why not?
-
How do you feel about the cleanliness of shared reusable cups?
-
What would make you feel confident that a reusable cup is hygienic?
-
What would motivate you to choose a reusable cup over a single-use one?
-
How do incentives like deposits, rewards, or discounts influence your behaviour?
-
What would an ideal reusable cup system look like for your daily routine?
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Convenience outweighs sustainability intent
-
Forgetting a reusable cup is the most common barrier
-
Hygiene perception strongly influences trust
-
Integrated systems encourage habit formation
Key Insight Derived
Quantitative Research
Percentage diagrams visualise key research findings, highlighting dominant user behaviours, barriers, and motivations identified through surveys.
Do you buy coffee on campus at
least 1–2 times per week?
Yes
No
74%
26%
13%
97%
Do you currently use a reusable
cup for campus coffee?
Yes
No
Are you concerned about the
cleanliness of shared reusable cups?
Yes
No
82%
18%
76%
24%
Would you feel confident using a shared
reusable cup if hygiene was clearly assured
Yes
No
62%
38%
While most campus users buy coffee regularly, reusable cup use remains low due to hygiene concerns and convenience barriers; however, clear hygiene assurance and simple incentives significantly increase willingness to participate.
Key Insight Derived
Would incentives (deposit return, rewards, discounts)
make you more likely to choose a reusable cup?
Yes
No
High-Fidelity Wireframes
Typography & Colors
Font Used
Inter
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
Inter Bold
Inter Regular
1234567890
Inter Medium
Inter Light
Inter font is a elegant and modern sans serif font. It is very neat and clean. It have more readability and variety of options. That’s why I used this font.
Color Used
Espresso Brown
Oat Milk Cream
Matcha Green
Caramel Latte
Charcoal Roast
#4A2C2A
#F3EDE4
#6B8E4E
#C08A5A
#2E2E2E
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