Taking out the garbage

Long description

(Original Dutch title: ”Zwolle, er is een vuiltje aan de lucht”).

What happens with your waste after you throw it away? After conducting qualitative research in Zwolle, The Netherlands, I can conclude that most people do not know the answer to this question. Citizens of Zwolle ensure that their full bin is emptied at set moments of the week, but when they want to inquire where the contents of their bins are going and how that is processed, it is hard to find out. There seems to be a lack of a clear overview of the system.

This interactive installation allows you to playfully discover the ins- and outs of your waste’s journey. You start with picking a marble that represents a waste stream  and throw it ‘in the trash’ at the top. By following your marble, you will experience how the waste travels and whether or when it will be back in the market as a different product. 

The installation is interesting for all ages starting at 8 and up and is meant to be presented at events, conferences, exhibitions, festivals, or other public places. It is possible to customize the installation for different locations and scales. This one is made for the municipality of Zwolle, and it could be altered for a city like Amsterdam where the installation would have different waste streams, but its function would be the same.

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