Target
Designing International Community-Centered ReUse System
Target | Los Angeles, CA
Challenge
From inception to implementation, I was tasked to design and manage a zero-waste (90%+ diversion from the landfill) reuse system for the Target corporation from 2009 to 2012. Having developed zero-waste TV commercial production solutions for brands like Honda, Proctor & Gamble, Levis, and Wieden+Kennedy, my most ambitious project was with Target through EcoSet due to the sheer number of TV commercials they produce quarterly and the amount of waste commercial shoots discard daily.
Main Challenges:
Managing Large-Scale Waste in the Film Industry: These TV commercial shoots were powered by teams of 50-150 people, operating 10 to 50 film trucks across multiple shoot locations. They generated a minimum of .5 ton/1,000 lbs. of waste per day = annual waste generated by one American. I faced a significant challenge in managing the enormous amount of waste generated by national and international television commercials.
Developing Customized Donation Programs: This multi-national client, required tailored programs to donate repurposable materials from production sets to community organizations worldwide. This challenge involved creating a scalable and efficient system to effectively handle and redistribute these materials.
It was an immense undertaking to turn these costly, fast-passed, “build-and-dump” shoots into zero-waste productions.
WORK
Working intimately with the Target corporation, I researched their current process and collaboratively set goals that would exceed their company initiatives. To do so, I created the Reuse & Reclaim Partnership Program by building and nurturing a Rolodex of public schools, local artists, community leaders, and non-profits to repurpose products used in the commercials, along with large set pieces and building materials.
Conducted design research via surveys and interviews to better understand the client’s needs, contractor needs (production teams), and industry standards + outliers.
Ideated, prototyped, tested, and iterated the partnership vetting process and donation program, ensuring repurposed materials would have the longest second life and most significant community impact. This included designing systems for collecting, sorting, and redistributing materials and creating templates for client sustainability reports.
Collected and analyzed data for each production.
Prepared narrative, financial, and statistical impact reports for client and production staff, for each production.
Results
Environmental Impact: My zero-waste initiatives diverted over one million pounds of set materials from the landfill.
Process Efficiency: Pioneered a bespoke plug-and-play zero-waste program that set the industry standard and could be deployed on any film location for this client.
Community Impact: The donation program enriched the lives of numerous people globally. By redistributing valuable materials, my initiatives supported over 250 community organizations and provided supplies to teachers, clothes to teen mothers, and food to the homeless.
Scale and Longevity: The programs I designed and implemented have scaled tenfold over the years. The infrastructure and systems put in place continue to be used, benefiting countless people and organizations.
Client-Specific Success: Orchestrated & implemented zero waste repurposing initiatives for 40+ multi-million dollar Target commercials, diverting 90%+ of waste from the landfill. This initiative not only managed the waste efficiently but also raised awareness about sustainability among Target's production crews and stakeholders.