Stage 1 · Context & Problem Discovery
Targ originated from a class project aimed at addressing inefficiencies in food donation logistics. Through early research and stakeholder mapping, we identified a gap between restaurants that generate surplus food and local nonprofits that often struggle with coordination, timely communication, and delivery support. Our interviews with restaurant owners, servers, and chefs revealed several recurring pain points that shaped the foundation of our direction.
• Lack of real-time coordination between donors, food banks, and volunteer drivers.
• Manual processes that require calls, texts, or spreadsheets to match donations with nearby shelters.
• Limited visibility into the environmental and operational impact of each donation.
These insights shaped our design question:
How might we streamline food donation logistics to reduce waste while empowering communities to act sustainably?
Stage 2 · Research & Ideation
We began by conducting surveys, contextual inquiries, and interviews to understand existing behaviors, operational rhythms, and motivations. Many participants mentioned relying on informal communication tools or ad hoc tracking methods that were inconsistent and often caused delays. Using affinity diagramming and journey mapping, we distilled our research into several opportunity areas.
• Automation: Create a system that coordinates donation timing, matching, and routing with minimal effort.
• Transparency: Help restaurants and nonprofits visualize their collective environmental and community impact.
• Trust and accountability: Establish clear partnerships, confirmed pickups, and reliable feedback loops.
Our team brainstormed over fifty concepts and narrowed them using a feasibility and impact matrix. This process led us toward a centralized platform, Targ, that connects surplus food sources with food banks and volunteer drivers in real time while supporting ingredient tracking and expiry awareness inside the restaurant.
Stage 1 · Context & Problem Discovery
Targ originated from a class project aimed at addressing inefficiencies in food donation logistics. Through early research and stakeholder mapping, we identified a gap between restaurants that generate surplus food and local nonprofits that often struggle with coordination, timely communication, and delivery support. Our interviews with restaurant owners, servers, and chefs revealed several recurring pain points that shaped the foundation of our direction.
• Lack of real-time coordination between donors, food banks, and volunteer drivers.
• Manual processes that require calls, texts, or spreadsheets to match donations with nearby shelters.
• Limited visibility into the environmental and operational impact of each donation.
These insights shaped our design question:
How might we streamline food donation logistics to reduce waste while empowering communities to act sustainably?
Stage 2 · Research & Ideation
We began by conducting surveys, contextual inquiries, and interviews to understand existing behaviors, operational rhythms, and motivations. Many participants mentioned relying on informal communication tools or ad hoc tracking methods that were inconsistent and often caused delays. Using affinity diagramming and journey mapping, we distilled our research into several opportunity areas.
• Automation: Create a system that coordinates donation timing, matching, and routing with minimal effort.
• Transparency: Help restaurants and nonprofits visualize their collective environmental and community impact.
• Trust and accountability: Establish clear partnerships, confirmed pickups, and reliable feedback loops.
Our team brainstormed over fifty concepts and narrowed them using a feasibility and impact matrix. This process led us toward a centralized platform, Targ, that connects surplus food sources with food banks and volunteer drivers in real time while supporting ingredient tracking and expiry awareness inside the restaurant.
Stage 3 · Concept Development
As our direction became clearer, we began shaping Targ into an integrated system that supports both ingredient management inside restaurants and coordinated logistics outside of them. We explored multiple concepts, including a logistics marketplace, a social feed for surplus discovery, and a physical scanner that tracks ingredient freshness. Through sketching, scenario mapping, and early workflow testing, we refined these ideas into a single connected ecosystem.
This ecosystem combines lightweight ingredient tracking, real-time donation listings, and volunteer-supported pickup routing. Restaurants can log surplus items or receive automated expiry reminders. Nonprofits can browse available donations and schedule pickups. Volunteers can view optimal routes and complete deliveries with minimal friction. This stage helped us establish how each part of the system works together to reduce waste while minimizing operational burden for busy restaurant staff.
Stage 4 · User Testing & Iteration
We ran informal usability sessions with six participants. Participants consisted of restaurant owners, managers, servers, and nonprofit volunteers. We aimed to evaluate Targ’s usability and clarity.
• Participants praised the one-tap donation flow for reducing friction.
• They requested clearer confirmation and progress indicators during pickup coordination.
• Nonprofits wanted automatic pickup summaries to log donations for reporting.
Based on this feedback, we refined the layout hierarchy, added a simplified delivery status tracker, and adjusted the visual balance for better readability under bright or outdoor lighting.
Stage 5 · Next Steps & Reflection
Targ is still under development and continues to evolve toward real-world testing with community partners. Our next focus areas include scalability, integration, and outreach.
• API integration with local sustainability and municipal platforms.
• Scalable analytics to measure carbon offset and volunteer participation.
• Partnership outreach with restaurants and food bank networks in Seattle.
This project taught us that impact-driven systems design thrives at the intersection of logistics and empathy. It showed how technology can optimize complex coordination while bringing communities together around sustainability.
Outcome · Reflection & Impact
Targ has evolved from a classroom prototype into a scalable framework for sustainable food redistribution. By creating a connected ecosystem that unites restaurants, nonprofits, and delivery volunteers, it demonstrates how thoughtful design can reduce waste while amplifying community collaboration.
Even at its early stage, Targ has shown strong potential for real-world implementation.
• Efficiency gains. Simulated test routes showed up to 35 percent shorter delivery times compared to traditional manual coordination.
• Adoption interest. Restaurant participants and nonprofit volunteers expressed a strong willingness to pilot Targ in their existing workflows.
• Environmental promise. Each optimized route directly contributes to reduced CO₂ emissions and prevents otherwise discarded food from reaching landfills.
On a personal level, this project deepened my understanding of systems thinking and impact-oriented UX design. Working across research, strategy, and interaction design reinforced how data transparency and automation can drive meaningful behavioral change in sustainability efforts.
Targ ultimately represents more than a digital platform. It is a case study in how design can empower collaboration, transform local food networks, and make sustainability both measurable and actionable.
Outcome · Reflection & Impact
Targ has evolved from a classroom prototype into a scalable framework for sustainable food redistribution. By creating a connected ecosystem that unites restaurants, nonprofits, and delivery volunteers, it demonstrates how thoughtful design can reduce waste while amplifying community collaboration.
Even at its early stage, Targ has shown strong potential for real-world implementation.
• Efficiency gains. Simulated test routes showed up to 35 percent shorter delivery times compared to traditional manual coordination.
• Adoption interest. Restaurant participants and nonprofit volunteers expressed a strong willingness to pilot Targ in their existing workflows.
• Environmental promise. Each optimized route directly contributes to reduced CO₂ emissions and prevents otherwise discarded food from reaching landfills.
On a personal level, this project deepened my understanding of systems thinking and impact-oriented UX design. Working across research, strategy, and interaction design reinforced how data transparency and automation can drive meaningful behavioral change in sustainability efforts.
Targ ultimately represents more than a digital platform. It is a case study in how design can empower collaboration, transform local food networks, and make sustainability both measurable and actionable.
