Office of Estate and Development, Office of Environmental Sustainability

Using Human Psychology to influence recycling and green habits

June 2010 Marcus Tay Guan Hock

Office of Estate and Development, Office of Environmental Sustainability

Contents

• Part 1 : Proven to work public recycling bins techniques

• Part 2: Uncharted waters – applying human social psychology to mass emails

• Part 3: Discussion – My personal thoughts on what I want to focus on as an environmentalist

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Let’s Imagine

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IMAGINE:

You are done with a fruit juice plastic cup:

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And you see the following recycling bins:

What would you do?

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Did you recycle correctly?

National Environment Agency (NEA) spokesman : throwing waste such as leftover food and drinks into the bins contaminates the recyclable materials and renders them non-recyclable.

RECYCLING CONTAMINATION

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Did you recycle correctly?

NEA URL on Brochure for recyclables: http://app2.nea.gov.sg/data/cmsresource/20100120281853527479.pdf

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How serious is contamination of recycling bins?

• NEA: About one-fifth of all waste deposited in recycling bins could not be recycled.

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KK Hospital Recycling bins in June 2009 – Plastic containers only

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What do you think is the solution?

Singaporeans just don’t have the culture…. • Look at Japan, Germany….• Users just need to be educated …

Straits Times Discussion Board Replies to the article:

“Maybe a public campaign should be launched to educate the public on how to use the recyclable bins.….”

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EDUCATION!EDUCATION!!EDUCATION!!!

BUT HOW TO EDUCATE?

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Singapore national recycling vs. contamination?

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Recycling well labelled?

“Recycling bins are clearly labelled with the materials that can be placed in them.” Singapore Environment Coucil reply to the article

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Not really…

Another Straits Times Discussion Board Reply:“… I for one, was surprised to read from the papers that cardboards that hold food cannot be recycled, cos now I am guilty of throwing my pizza box into the recycle bin.”

Need to move beyond just labeling paper, plastic into labeling types of paper and plastic accepted.

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NUS Recycling Story.

Our success and techniques

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Contamination in NUS (Before Nov 2008)

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Results in Jan/Feb 09

Level of contamination dropped drastically. Not perfect

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Vital Behaviours in tackling recycling contamination

1. At the point of throwing, help people to decide if it can be recycled

2. Give people an option to not throw into the recycling bin if it cannot be recycled.

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VB1:Recyclable at the point of throwing ?

Common recycling bins in Singapore only label “Paper, plastic, cans”

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Recyclable at the point of throwing ?

Need to move beyond just labeling paper, plastic into labeling types of paper and plastic that are accepted.

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Recyclable at the point of throwing ?

Email circularPresentations during lectures

Poster on Noticeboards

V.S

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Recyclable at the point of throwing ?

Instructions right at the point of throwing

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Recyclable at the point of throwing ?• Expect Error from User = Specific about what

to throw– Reference:“Nudge – Improving Decisions about

Health, wealth and Happiness”• For prompts to be effective, they need to be

presented as close in time and space as possible to the targeted behaviour…– Reference: McKenzie-Mohr, D., & Smith, W. (1999).

Fostering sustainable behavior: An introduction to community-based social marketing (2nd ed.)

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Jurong Bird Park doing so as well – May 2010

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VB2: Option not throw into the recycling bin if it cannot be recycled.

• Expect less from good human behaviour– Partner trash bins with recycling bins

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Other measures

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Engage the Housekeepers

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Education Campaigns

1. Email circular2. Message of the Day (MOTD)3. Presentations during lectures

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Which is the key measure?

Black Label on Bins

Round Stickers at disposal hole

Pairing Recycling bins with Trash bin

Recycling Bins all face front and neatly arranged

Engaging the Housekeepers

Recycling Video Lecture Talk by SAVE

Mass Mails

Efforts of Oct 2008 to Feb 2009

No complaints yet from Veolia since Aug 2009?

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Caveat

• Measures were already halfway through implementation by the time I join.

• Gave it a psychological basis or reason.• Isolate measures to “measure” effectiveness. • Applied psychological tendencies for future

measures.

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Other lessons in bin design

Poka Yoke (Mistake Proofing) is the way to go

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Colour scheme of Trash bins

Green Trash Bin vs Green Bottles Recycling Bins– These 2 bins should not be placed side by side

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Solution: Different colour for trash bins• Colour scheme of Trash bins – Grey Bins

– Gradually replace current green trash bins with bluish grey ones over time

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Take the human error out of recycling bins display• Square recycling bins

– No need to remind housekeepers to have round recycling bins all facing front

V.S

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Black labels to make up for vertical wordings

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Proposed new bins

• Horizontal words – ( move higher)

• Straight sides prevent turning

• Instructive description: – “Non recyclables” vs

“Others” or “Trash”– “Empty cans, Clean

Paper”

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Posters to align bins for housekeepers

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Bins Design Tips Summary

– Expect Error from users/staff• Be specific about what can be recycled• Make the housekeepers job easier with prompts/poka

yoke

– Timing of education• Educate at the point of recycling

– Expect less from good human behavior• Partner trash bins with recycling bins

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Summary/Questions

• NEA is pushing for Comingled recycling in future contracts

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Summary/Questions

• More recycling bins in IKEA /malls, any data to support that the recyclables are collected?

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Section 2:

Social psychology in mass emails

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Background

• Rights to mass email the entire school• Measured website traffic through Google

Analytics– Measurement period: Jan to 4th May 2010

• “What you don’t measure , you can’t improve.” Jack Welch( Ex CEO of General Electric)

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Which of the following 3 has the highest traffic?1. Joint Advisory on Double – sided print for

student submission - Feb 24th 20102. IARU Fellowship/ Sustainability Navigator/

OMG campaign - March 29th 2010– Fellowship = internship– OMG campaign = freebies– Sustainability Navigator = survey for

environmentally concerned individuals

3. I am part of NUS community, Are U? – 23rd April ( Exam Period)

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Which of the following 3 has the highest traffic? GUESS!1. Joint Advisory on Double – sided print for

student submission - Feb 24th 20102. IARU Fellowship/ Sustainability Navigator/

OMG campaign - March 29th 2010– Fellowship = internship– OMG campaign = freebies– Sustainability Navigator = survey for

environmentally concerned individuals

3. I am part of NUS community, Are U? – 23rd April ( Exam Period)

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For the period of Feb 8 to May 8

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Page Views

1. Joint Advisory on Double – sided print for student submission - 864

2. IARU Fellowship/ Sustainability Navigator/ OMG campaign -1225

– Fellowship = internship - 560– OMG campaign = freebies - 415– Sustainability Navigator = survey for

environmentally concerned individuals - 250

3. I am part of NUS community, Are U? – 1068

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Almost blatant copying

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People like to do what others do

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Still pathetic numbers

• Number of people on mailing list about 50,000

• About 4000 people have unsubscribed after offering .

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Part 3 – Encouraging environmental friendly behaviour My personal thoughts from experience as volunteer, NGO and sadly no corporate

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They are just not educated/aware

• Point to the common people for not being educated.

• Try to convert everyone to a greenie.• Main tool: Information campaign.

– Sometimes for further education for the converts– Sometimes preaching to the converts.

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The world will be a boring place if everyone is greenieMy personal way to work:• Measure!• Use human and social psychology to facilitate

influence of human behaviours.

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Main Inspirations

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The END

Questions?