Sustainable living is a global priority that should be on everyone’s mind, and those committed to sustainability are always looking for ways to integrate it into their daily lifestyles. There are a number of factors that help people live a life that supports sustainability, and two that are crucial to its success are effective waste management and recycling.
Dr Tareq Al-Ansari, Dr Younss Ait Mou and Sarah Namany, all from the College of Science and Engineering (CSE) at Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU), are strong advocates of sustainability, and have used their collective experience and passion to develop a mobile application known as QKONs, which facilitates the waste recycling process through digital trading for a cleaner and more sustainable future.
Reaping rewards by recycling
Aimed primarily at enhancing waste recycling as part of the ‘circular economy’ concept, the digital waste exchange platform allows users to benefit economically from their transactions in the form of ‘rewards’, while reducing environmental impacts.
This means that as well as being an innovative waste management platform, QKONs offer added incentives as it encourages users to dispose of their waste conveniently by visiting tagged bins that will be made available around Education City.
Created through the HBKU Innovation Fund and supported by the Innovation Coupon – an initiative of Qatar Foundation Research, Development, and Innovation – QKONs is currently being tested at Qatar Foundation through a pilot scheme at the 2015 building (QF Headquarters) and the North-nest and South-nest student housing complexes.
As Dr Al-Ansari says of the app, QKONs instils environmental consciousness to solve the issue of waste as a digital waste exchange platform that aims to improve waste recycling habits in Qatar.
If you are a generator of waste, through QKONs, you will be able to dispose of it in the most efficient and sustainable manner. The QKONs app provides people with the location of the closest recycling bin and facilitates rewards for each transaction.
And for waste buyers or recyclers, QKONs allows them to monitor and optimise their waste collection process by providing them access to real-life geospatial tracking, enabling them to spot areas with high waste generation and consequently enhancing their recycling capacity.
Pilot users
While the QKONs rewards scheme is currently being developed, the concept of the app is already encouraging people participating in the pilot scheme to think about sustainability and waste recycling.
QF student Farah El-Assadi said that before using QKONs, she said that she thought waste is not segregated in Qatar and therefore was not bothered with separating it at home. Now that she knows that waste is actually recycled, she said she feels more motivated to take part in protecting the environment and respecting the ecosystem.
Fellow student Fatima-Zahra Lahlou, who also uses the app agrees as having four different bins taking up space in her studio is finally paying off with QKONs.
Current users can support the app by completing a short survey that will help the QKONs team fine-tune their services.
Community rollout
While still in its pilot phase, a rollout of QKONs to the wider community is expected in the near future. Whether you are at home or working in your office, by using QKONs and disposing of your waste in the designated bins, you can become a ‘guardian’ of your community and workplace while enjoying a range of other benefits, according to Namany.
She said that by downloading and using the app, users will be able to bring to life empty water bottles, cans or even scratch papers by giving them to recycling firms in the country.
More information about the app is available on the QKONs website.
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