This master’s thesis documents the design process behind Microfarm, a small-scale indoor farm designed specifically for restaurants. Facilitator of this project is Priva, which is a company specialized in horticulture and venturing into indoor farming. Indoor farming involves growing edible plants in closed structures using artificial lighting The first phase of the project aims at understanding Priva and the technical principle behind indoor farming as well as determining which competing products exist and which users are interesting to design for. It is concluded by choosing a specific market segment, which are high-end restaurants. Based on this result, an ideal scenario is created and seven restaurants are interviewed and analyzed using techniques from contextmapping. It is concluded with a design vision that serves as input for ideation. Next, multiple aspects of the ideal scenario are ideated upon, such as the Priva Portal which supplies restaurants with their growing supplies, and working out specific details regarding the physical design and technical aspects. Following ideation, three concepts are proposed, with one being chosen through objective criteria. In the first iteration, the concept now known as Microfarm is further worked out and a business model and prototype are developed and validated. In the second iteration, a customer journey is set up for generating new ideas in enhancing the guest’s indoor farming experience, resulting in Nanofarm, and Microfarm’s design is changed to be smaller and compacter as a result of the first iteration. The last phase of the report describes the final designs of Microfarm and Nanofarm as well as Priva Portal and the business model. Recommendations are given and the project is evaluated. The project is concluded by stating that a small indoor farm is feasible and that high end restaurants are a fitting context for such a product, but there is a considerable chance that such a product will ultimately not work regarding the small impact such a product will have compared to the amount of resources a restaurant will have to invest.

Currently, the City of Rotterdam is far from achieving their ambitious 2020 goal of a 40% household waste separation rate. In 2017, their separation rate was only 28,4%. Household waste separation is important to enable the recycling of resources. For high-rise buildings, the challenge is the biggest: high-rise buildings produce an average of 150 kg more residual waste per year compared to low-rise buildings. The City of Rotterdam’s plans to build more high-rise buildings in the coming years makes it urgent to look for a solution. Separation at the source currently is more effective than mechanical post-consumer separation. However, the success of separation at the source depends entirely on the waste separation behaviour of high-rise residents. Therefore the main research question is: How to facilitate for high-rise residents the desired behaviour of waste separation at household level, in high-rise buildings?
From human behaviour theory, behaviour can be explained as a combination of one’s motivation, ability, and opportunity. When one’s motivation is low, a low ability needs to be sufficient to trigger action. A change of environment can support a behaviour change. The many influencing factors for waste separation found in literature show the complexity of the behaviour. The factors are supported and complemented by interviews and generative research.
Understanding high-rise residents’ mindset towards household waste separation, reveals four different groups of people: the Enthusiasts, the Potentials, the Skeptics and the Conservatives. The Potentials are closest to following the Enthusiasts in practising waste separation. However, they currently lack a (physical and mental) system for doing so. When considering starting this behaviour, the required effort for creating a system outweighs their medium level of motivation. The proposed solution is Schone start. Schone start supports high-rise residents with the creation of a waste separation habit in the first month after moving, by providing the means to set-up a system for waste separation. The mail delivery package contains a Waste guide, Waste map, small waste bin, medium waste bag, large waste box, stickers and suggestions for use. All essential information to start waste separation is actively provided and in accordance with the circular ambitions of the City of Rotterdam. Schone start is evaluated with six recently moved high-rise residents in Rotterdam. Generally Schone start is positively evaluated by the test participants regarding helpfulness with household waste separation. The Waste guide and Waste map were highly appreciated. The waste facilities were partially used, but can be optimised. The ease of disposal of the separated waste stays a critical boundary condition.
To implement Schone start, its design should be optimised for appearance and size to maximise the percentage of citizens making use of the product. It is recommended to evaluate the long-term quantitative effect (the household waste separation rate) and qualitative effect (awareness of the household waste separation practice) of Schone start in a large scale pilot over six months. In this way, more insights can be gained regarding the potential impact of Schone start for different target groups and contexts.

Product Service Systems (PSSs) are considered to be a promising approach towards a sustainable, resource efficient economy (Tukker, A., 2015) (defined as ‘a mix of tangible products and intangible services designed and combined so that they are jointly capable of fulfilling final customer needs’ (Tukker, A. & Tischner, 2006)), because they make the delivery of satisfaction possible through functions and not necessarily through products, fulfilling needs with less resources and consequently with lower impact. This is especially true when they are specifically designed to provide high quality resource efficient products. Bundles is a Dutch company that is intending to do exactly that, making high quality home appliances accessible through a Use oriented PSS (Tukker, 2003) where they lease washing machines and other home appliances, maintaining the ownership over the washing machine and becoming responsible for all maintenance and repair costs. Bundles has as a goal the reduction of waste and environmental impact caused by the use and disposal of low-end non efficient machines. They intend to increase the lifetime of their products, submitting them to several use cycles by recovering the appliance, refurbishing it and installing it in a new home. Supported by IoT technologies they currently monitor the use phase (to calculate the monthly fee based on the number of washing cycles) and are now interested in extending the possibilities of these technologies for refurbishment, reuse, and recycling processes. Additionally, with the advantage of maintaining control over the ownership of a great number of appliances, Bundles opens interesting opportunities for material and part recovery. For all of these reasons Bundles is recognized for having a business model that could benefit the circular economy. In order to fulfill all of the above, Bundles exclusively works with washing machines from German manufacturer Miele due to their high content of recyclable materials, high quality and long lasting characteristics. However, these characteristics of the product represent today, limitations to many of the envisioned processes to achieve having several use cycles. Making processes like refurbishment and part replacement expensive or not possible at all. Because of this it is unclear for Bundles how to deal with the deterioration of the machines after several use cycles and how customers will perceive this deterioration, and although Miele gives their products a life expectancy of approximately 20 years, Bundles only considers the machine to have a life expectancy of approximately 10 years within their business model. Additionally, Bundles offer is bounded to a machine that is also available for customers to purchase, limiting their competitive advantages over product-based business models. A customer with the stability and economic possibilities of purchasing a Miele washing machine will most likely perceive Bundles’ PSS as expensive in the long term. Nowadays Bundles and Miele, design and deliver their services/products independently from each other and for different types of business models. This project focuses on finding opportunities to improve the synergy between Miele's product and Bundle's service to enhance the economic, circular and environmental possibilities of the current PSS. In order to do that, this project initiated with a literature and field research with all primary stakeholders, considering them individually and relationships with one another, that delivered insights regarding the current limitations of the components and delivery of the PSSs and potential opportunities for its improvement, within all phases of its life cycle (Pre-use, Use and Post-use). The insights were then translated into values or Focus Areas to guide the ideation and further development of the PSS: Personalization is identified as a relevant value for the Pre-use phase, to increase the perceived value of the user over the PSS and refurbished products and for the Use phase, as an opportunity for the reduction of the environmental impact. Likewise, communication is identified to be a value that can be used to positively influence the user behaviour to reduce the environmental impact of the Use phase (highest among all phases of the lifecycle of a washing machine (Öko-Institut, 2005)), and improve his/ her involvement in maintenance and caring procedures. Lastly, refurbishment is selected as a focus area for the Post-use phase since the improvement of the product in this aspect could not only reduce costs for Bundles but also increase the life expectancy of the product. These values were used as a guideline throughout the ideation process, which delivered a collection of several concepts that were further evaluated together with all main stakeholders, the sinal result of these process delivered a combination of a new concept washing machine and a personalization platform. The new PSS proposes a washing service that allows users to personalize their washing machines inside and outside. The user can select a color for the front panel of the machine, thanks to the implementation of a replaceable layer and obtains a personalized ‘Washing Package’, which includes: a set of programs, number of washes per month (frequency) and set of tips. All three elements are defined by a system that considers the user’s specific washing needs with information obtained through a digital platform (The Washing Test), and pairs them with identified recommendations for: the reduction of environmental impact of washing, the best care for clothes, and recommendations related to the care and maintenance of the washing machine. The personalization of the Washing Package allows users to take the best care for their clothes without an excessive use of resources (energy and water). The internet module of the washing machine and its sensors allow the monitoring of use and state of the components of the machine. The data collected from the monitoring of use is used by the system to constantly update the Washing Package to adapt it to changes in the user’s needs or identified behaviour that increases the environmental impact. The design of the washing machine, allows it to have several use cycles without losing its aesthetic value, its quality or its resource efficiency. The construction, materials and finishings of the washing machine are proposed for the optimization of refurbishment processes as well as the improvement of access to its components for updates and repairs allowing the machine to increase its life expectancy within the PSS to the originally establishes expectancy of 20 years (defined by Miele). As a final step of this project the new concept was evaluated first, together with the main stakeholders and then submitted to an assessment to identify its improvements in disassembly and ease of access as well as refurbishment processes and the reduction of the environmental impact in comparison with the current PSS. The new concept appears to have the potential of improving the implementation of the PSS throughout all of the phases of its lifecycle and is assessed positively by the stakeholders specifically considering its potential to reduce refurbishment costs, increase the life expectancy of the product, increase the perceived value of the user over refurbished products and PSSs, and the reduction of the environmental impact of the use phase. The results of the validation and assessment allowed the identification of information gaps for further research and further development of the concept. These include for example, the development of test settings and prototypes for further proof of concept, a more refined and accurate Life Cycle Assessment to identify further specific points of improvement, further detailing and analysis of the product structure and construction to reduce its material input, and further study and analysis regarding the recovery of the product and the possibilities of the reintroduction of its materials and components in the manufacturing of new washing machines . To conclude, the new concept proposes product service combination which characteristics enhance each others functions and overall envisioned processes towards the reduction of environmental impact and increase of circularity, whilst considering the involvement of Miele and Bundles in a new collaborative relationship for the achievement of all processes and successful implementation of the PSS.

This design project investigates how commoning can support the practice of urban foraging, resulting in a framework that describes the social characteristics of commoning and the abilities and opportunities for urban foraging. The framework led to a design showcase, called Get To Gather, which is an interactive board in public space to let citizens experience the practice of urban foraging, as an entrance to the foraging community.

Commoning is a verb of “commons” that describes the social process to manage the commons. The goal of the commons movement is to reclaim commonwealth, and transform the focus on privatization into collective use of resources while preventing them from being commercialized. Commoning is a social process that relies on active collaboration and cooperation.

The practice of urban foraging describes going from place to place searching for things to eat or use, in an urban context. Foraged food is also described as “zero-footprint food” since it is entirely outside the profit-making food production system we know today, which provides people to live self-sufficient and supports a resilient food production system in the city. Foraging goes beyond the consumption of wild edible plants because it is a social activity, in which people pass on knowledge, culture, and traditions from generation to generation. This project focuses on foraging as a leisure activity in the Netherlands.

Foraging is getting more popular, which resulted in the concern of external authorities about the safety of people and the environment. Also, beginner foragers experience fear of eating poisonous or dirty plants in the city. In combination with the social motivations of urban foraging, this resulted in an inspiring and robust network, a community that wants to make sure that everyone forages safely and with care for the environment. Therefore, the community expresses a need to involve beginner foragers into their network.
Urban foraging is an act that transforms unused urban nature into a place with social interactions. In the city, there are fragmented municipal plots that do not fulfill a specific function. In this report, these areas are man’s lands. The final design is an entrance to the foraging community at these locations, to create awareness about the community, and involve beginner foragers to teach them how to treat the environment correctly and perform the practice safely. The design is ‘do it yourself,’ so people can make the design by themselves without waiting for external authorities. Get To Gather transforms unused urban green spaces into places for social access.

The design shows how commoning can support the practice of urban foraging, by making the foraging community, and nature in the city equitable accessible for people outside the community. It frames urban foraging as a practice with social benefits, by showing the community, in which foragers have strong social ties with fellow foragers.

Food waste is a global issue that causes various but significant global impacts, wasting millions of hectares of arable land, 0.75 to 1.25 trillion of cubic meter of water per year, and about 1.5% of the global energy production. In developed nations, food waste occurs mainly at the retail and consumer stage. By 2050, 80% of the global food consumption will take place within cities. Cities are also a key nexus of energy, water, and food flows. Amsterdam offers an interesting case study as the city does not have any comprehensive strategy to tackle the food waste produced within its boundaries. Yet, the city has shown ambitions in transforming itself into a sustainable metropolis with strong renewable energy and circular strategies. This study uses the Food-Energy-Water (FEW) Nexus approach, particularly suited to understand the interactions and interconnections between Amsterdam’s food flows and the energy and water systems. This study performs a Material Flow Analysis to quantify the different food waste (FW) flows and their origins. It finds that households are the main producers of food waste compared to FW-producing businesses in Amsterdam. Bread, dairy, vegetables, and fruits are the largest avoidable FW, while vegetable peels, fruits peels, coffee grounds, and potatoes peels constitute the bulk of unavoidable food waste. It then quantifies the embedded energy and water present within these food flows. Using the latest developments in the field of bio-based economy regarding food waste valorization, it provides an inventory of the potential technologies available to valorize Amsterdam’s FW. The study then quantifies the energy and water inputs of 12 of these food waste-valorizing technologies. This step confirms the large knowledge gap regarding the water and energy intensities of the latest bio-based technologies. The type and amount of recovered resources through these technologies are also quantified. In addition, this study provides a review of the current social and commercial initiatives based in Amsterdam tackling this issue of food waste. It offers a six-category qualitative framework to assess their food waste rescue potential. Then, a new food waste management and valorization framework is proposed, based on the Value Pyramid model from the bio-based economy, the Food Waste Management Hierarchy framework, and the FEW nexus insights developed in this study. This new framework enables to outline strategies for both Amsterdam’s avoidable and unavoidable food waste flows. It suggests anaerobic digestion, Black Soldier Fly bioconversion, and composting as potential FEW-efficient solutions for Amsterdam’s unavoidable FW. Last, Amsterdam’s FW stakeholders are analyzed through their importance, interests, and potential roles in a future FW scheme. It suggests that the municipality and AEB, Amsterdam’s Waste-to-Energy plant should be at the center of a future FW valorization scheme. Overall, this study combines the FEW nexus perspective and the bio-based economy approach to identify the best options to manage and valorize Amsterdam’s food waste.

Sustainability is becoming more important in numerous industries, including healthcare. Action to achieve sustainability is undertaken by various means, such as the Green Deal Healthcare. Several tools exist that can assess the environmental impact of a certain industry or company, but no tools exist that aid in actively lowering this environmental impact. Therefore, the HSMEA (Healthcare Sustainability Mode and Effect Analysis) tool was developed. This method is based on the Lean philosophy and HFMEA (Healthcare Failure Mode and Effect Analysis) tool and consists of six steps that aid in making a healthcare process more sustainable, in terms of waste production, energy use, or water use. With this tool, processes that contribute to these factors are identified in a highly structured and systematic way, and practical solutions are created and executed for these situations by a multidisciplinary team. This tool was validated in the academic hospital in Leiden, the Netherlands (Leids Universitair Medisch Centrum). Next, it was applied to two clinical case studies, assessing two processes that are currently present in the operating rooms of the LUMC. The HSMEA tool showed that with the implementation of four solutions, great improvements can be achieved in terms of waste and CO₂-equivalents production and recycling rate. These four interventions are currently being implemented in the LUMC. This novel sustainability tool has therefore proved its usefulness and clinical applicability in a healthcare setting. By implementing this tool throughout the hospital, it will support the hospital reaching its sustainability goals.