Food for Thought app design
This was a human-centred research and design voluntary project run by Ideo and Acumen. This involved spending time in a food bank
I understook research on the current climate of food banks in the UK and the supply and demand of donations, with 90% being gifted by the public. After interviewing food bank users and managers we found several key insights as shown on these inforgraphics.
Through an understanding the challenged faced by food banks, we came up with a solution. Rather than having donation 'drop-off points' where anything can be donated, an app could be used by shoppers while they were at the supermarket queue. It could be linked to a real-time database with the local foodbank so customers would only be able to buy itmes that were needed.
The customer would then select and pay for an item while they are queing, with the donations collated for delivery straight to the foodbank. This would also be a great way to educate others and encourage donations to thosse less fortunate than themselves.