During the six-month DaVinci honors project, the ‘Operation Zeus’ team worked on behalf of the university for our stakeholder, the Utrecht University Medical Center (UMCU). Our mission was to create and implement a plan on how to effectively reduce CO2 emissions in commuting, or more precisely, reduce these emissions by creating a campaign that would encourage employees to switch to alternative ways of traveling, such as bicycles or public transport.
We created a prototype for an air quality meter that made poor air quality tangible to people. We personified the air quality meter to a flower called Jopie. He should be placed at the entrance to the hospital, just above the employee parking lot. His mood and his full appearance would change depending on the number of cars parked. In this way, air cleanliness would be clearly communicated to employees on a daily basis, rather than being simply displayed as a vague number. In addition, we created four prototype posters encouraging people to take appropriate steps to contribute to a more sustainable lifestyle in the hospital. We used a positive framing for these posters, keeping in mind the sensitivity of the subject. All of this came together in a final comprehensive campaign, which we called ‘Think of Jopie’, which through the use of a mascot is intended to help employees opt for more sustainable modes of transport.
