Good To-Go

From February to April 2014, I was one of the 18 aspiring social entrepreneurs from 16 countries brought together to solve the Sustainable Cup Challenge.

The goal of the Sustainable Cup Challenge was for the Fellows to create an innovative and sustainable to-go cup for New York City, as well as a related infrastructure and campaign. During the first ten weeks, my co-fellows and I worked to identify and understand our target groups and stakeholders, and conducted research into available best-practices regarding packaging materials and design. Finally, we developed the Good To Go Cupcycle concept.

This cup-sharing system consists of reusable, washable plastic cups that are recollected and reused by coffee shops and their customers. Its pilot in April 2014 at the premise of Brooklyn Roasting Company in Dumbo, New York garnered numerous press coverage including the Wall Street Journal, Inc. Magazine and The New York Observer amongst others.

The Challenge was given by the DO School in collaboration with New York City's Office of Long Term Planning and Sustainability, and managed by Scott Francisco, founder of Pilot Projects Design Collective, with the support of a group of dedicated professionals. These included Ron Gonen, New York City's deputy commissioner of sanitation, recycling, and sustainability, Roya Kazemi of GreeNYC, Michele Grossman of Waste Management Sustainability Services, and Charles Best, Founder of Donorschoose.org.