“Where do I take my garbage?”
Solid waste disposal was a big topic in both regions. In Porto Alegre, participants talked about illegal dumping clogging aqueducts and causing flooding. In Belo Horizonte, participants wanted to do the right thing, but without curbside pickup or clearly defined outlets, illegal dumping was a common reality.
And the winner is…
BYBUS received the most votes and was particularly supported by libraries outside of the center of Belo Horizonte and outside of Porto Alegre.
Descartaê
Everyone is a winner
Both of these apps received many votes, and features were merged into one app.
Developing a Mashup
While searching for a Brazilian organization to develop the app, Caravan Studios found a mobile application called LimPOA. LimPOA provided information about trash disposal sites throughout the city of Porto Alegre, and contained many of the features and functions from both prototypes.
Caravan Studios entered into an agreement with the company to expand LimPOA to include features from the prototypes, and to cover the entire country of Brazil. Caravan Studios agreed to promote LimPOA across Brazil.
The new web app was renamed Descartaê.
Descartaê was powered by official government data and community-sourced data so that community members could add sites like small recycling businesses, community-managed recycling centers in neighborhoods far away from the city center, or cooperatives of informal recycling and garbage collectors. It is heartening to see the community-centered features in Descartae, as the original community designers focused much of their energy and detail on this theme in their prototypes.
The Result
If you live in Brazil, you can
use Descartae in your region. Here’s how:
1. Email feitonabiblioteca@caravanstudios.org to request an account. You will receive an email with your account credentials.
2. Log in at https://webportal.descartae.com/
to enter local trash and recycling information. Once information is entered, it will appear in the Descartae app. Find out more here: https://descartae.com
Putting ideas
into action
Two teams designed mobile apps to provide information on where to dispose of trash responsibly.
In Porto Alegre, a team created Lixo no Lixo, which shows residents how to dispose of trash correctly and a mechanism to report illegal dumping.
In Belo Horizone, a team designed Lixo Legal, which also included information about how to get rid of solid waste in an ecologically friendly way by listing recycling centers.
