Final Assignment: Reflection – Learning Launch

Challenge    While working as a Project Manager in a rural African village, we were continuously faced  with the issue of improper trash disposal. Since it was something that bothered all of us, I  started an Ecobricking initiative, which is a way of reusing plastic waste (by stuffing PET  bottles with soft plastics) and turning it into building bricks for structures, in this case a  school. Since this was a shared concern and I was working with volunteers and colleagues  who are passionate about addressing global issues (the two projects we ran were for  Education, and Conservation which as my main project) I was sure everyone would be as  excited as me to be part of this amazing solution! Turns out, they were not. While they were  concerned about the trash everywhere, they just weren’t committed to making Ecobricks.  They found the experience tedious, dirty and irrelevant to their cause. A feat too big and  widespread for them to try address. We needed to translate this time-consuming activity  into a unique and exciting experience that would inspire more Ecobrick making.    Our design criteria was that we wanted the Ecobrick making to be an enjoyable experience  that participants looked forward to while connecting their contribution to the problem and  the solution, change the negative reputation of trash into a positive one, and create the  feeling of “instant gratification” seeing that volunteers stayed for two weeks on average. It  also had to be easy, quick and cheap to implement/repeat.    Conservation about the lack on motivation repeated themselves, and as the idea list got  longer, implementation of solutions just seemed either too small or too time consuming. I  decided that I couldn’t just sit round talking about the possibilities anymore.     Selection    Since Learning launch entail quick experiments, I thought it was the ideal way to test out  some of our ideas. It wouldn’t take too much time to put together and would be so easy to  engage with our “customer base” as we all lived on project. At the very least we would be  able to scratch some ideas off the list!    Employing the Learning Launch tool would help us see what really works, and what would  have the biggest impact with the smallest resource commitment.   The reoccurring theme in our ideas revolved around the assumption that a more enjoyable  space would make it a more enjoyable experience, so we decided to test the idea of  changing the space where we would usually Ecobrick into a Trash to Treasure Station.     Application    We decided to focus on visual stimulation and comfort as our main elements. Since we lived  on the beach, we chose a “Beach bar” theme. We spent two days making decorations out of  trash as well as a number of signs saying, “Where all the cool kids are”, “planet approved  party” and “Come turn your trash into treasure”. We hung some pictures of completed

Ecobrick projects to somehow show what we were working towards. We created a  makeshift seating area with a portable speaker and a juice bar.     We hyped it up as the highlight/event of the week and talked about it mysteriously in front  of participants. We even counted down the days.    The dedicated time slot was Friday morning and we left the setup until that morning (having  sent participants out to run some errands) to emphasize the transformation. Our team wore  big straw hats and handed each participant a “garland” make from bottle tops as the  entered the space and also joined in on the Ecobricking to experience participants’ reaction  and ask some probing questions.     Insights    The response was incredible! Participants LOVED the new space and thought the juice bar  and music made all the difference to such a laborious task. Participants wanted more  information about the existing Ecobrick projects and repeatedly asked how many Ecobricks  we’re already made and how long we thought it would take, leading us to build a replica  wall frame where finished Ecobricks could be stored as well as an Ecobrick tracker.    Another great insight was that the process really brought out the competitive side in  participants, launching the reoccurring “My impact is bigger that your impact” weekly  challenge where teams raced to make the most Ecobricks in a week.     Approach    Next time, I would definitely get experimenting quicker! It’s easy to get caught in a “all talk  no action” kind of loop. In the long run it wastes way more time than just actually trying  something! Working on the transformation was so motivating and empowering for my  team, while the actual event served as such a strong foundation to build the experience on.  The weekly highlight evolved organically, and we continuously implemented feedback, to  the point where participants ran these events themselves. I’m happy to report that the  school has since been built!

Thanks for taking the time to review my assignment!

See you on the next course!

Luzia Ribeiro


Final Assignment : Reflection – Learning Launch Challenge While working as a Project Manager in a rural African village , we were continuously faced with the issue of improper trash disposal . Since it was something that bothered all of us , I started an Ecobricking initiative , which is a way of reusing plastic waste ( by stuffing PET bottles with soft plastics ) and turning it into building bricks for structures , in this case a school . Since this was a shared concern and I was working with volunteers and colleagues who are passionate about addressing global issues ( the two projects we ran were for Education , and Conservation which as my main project ) I was sure everyone would be as excited as me to be part of this amazing solution ! Turns out , they were not . While they were concerned about the trash everywhere , they just were n’t committed to making Ecobricks . They found the experience tedious , dirty and irrelevant to their cause . A feat too big and widespread for them to try address . We needed to translate this time - consuming activity into a unique and exciting experience that would inspire more Ecobrick making . Our design criteria was that we wanted the Ecobrick making to be an enjoyable experience that participants looked forward to while connecting their contribution to the problem and the solution , change the negative reputation of trash into a positive one , and create the feeling of “ instant gratification ” seeing that volunteers stayed for two weeks on average . It also had to be easy , quick and cheap to implement / repeat . Conservation about the lack on motivation repeated themselves , and as the idea list got longer , implementation of solutions just seemed either too small or too time consuming . I decided that I could n’t just sit round talking about the possibilities anymore . Selection Since Learning launch entail quick experiments , I thought it was the ideal way to test out some of our ideas . It would n’t take too much time to put together and would be so easy to engage with our “ customer base ” as we all lived on project . At the very least we would be able to scratch some ideas off the list ! Employing the Learning Launch tool would help us see what really works , and what would have the biggest impact with the smallest resource commitment . The reoccurring theme in our ideas revolved around the assumption that a more enjoyable space would make it a more enjoyable experience , so we decided to test the idea of changing the space where we would usually Ecobrick into a Trash to Treasure Station . Application We decided to focus on visual stimulation and comfort as our main elements . Since we lived on the beach , we chose a “ Beach bar ” theme . We spent two days making decorations out of trash as well as a number of signs saying , “ Where all the cool kids are ” , “ planet approved party ” and “ Come turn your trash into treasure ” . We hung some pictures of completed Ecobrick projects to somehow show what we were working towards . We created a makeshift seating area with a portable speaker and a juice bar . We hyped it up as the highlight / event of the week and talked about it mysteriously in front of participants . We even counted down the days . The dedicated time slot was Friday morning and we left the setup until that morning ( having sent participants out to run some errands ) to emphasize the transformation . Our team wore big straw hats and handed each participant a “ garland ” make from bottle tops as the entered the space and also joined in on the Ecobricking to experience participants ’ reaction and ask some probing questions . Insights The response was incredible ! Participants LOVED the new space and thought the juice bar and music made all the difference to such a laborious task . Participants wanted more information about the existing Ecobrick projects and repeatedly asked how many Ecobricks we ’re already made and how long we thought it would take , leading us to build a replica wall frame where finished Ecobricks could be stored as well as an Ecobrick tracker . Another great insight was that the process really brought out the competitive side in participants , launching the reoccurring “ My impact is bigger that your impact ” weekly challenge where teams raced to make the most Ecobricks in a week . Approach Next time , I would definitely get experimenting quicker ! It ’s easy to get caught in a “ all talk no action ” kind of loop . In the long run it wastes way more time than just actually trying something ! Working on the transformation was so motivating and empowering for my team , while the actual event served as such a strong foundation to build the experience on . The weekly highlight evolved organically , and we continuously implemented feedback , to the point where participants ran these events themselves . I ’m happy to report that the school has since been built ! Thanks for taking the time to review my assignment ! See you on the next course ! Luzia Ribeiro