Starting to think about this project was not easy, there are so many systems in the world that can use a toolkit to help them. There are also some problems simply too big to tackle. When I was wondering what to do, I started thinking about something relevant to me. Having a close connection to what I’m making will make it more accurate and relevant for me. Then I had the idea to use college as my system. Not so much the actual university, but the students coming into college that need help adjusting; more specifically, college in New York City. I’ve decided to make a College Survival Kit as my tool kit. My first idea for what to put in this toolkit was to make a map of inexpensive places to eat in the city. College is already so expensive, as is being in Manhattan. I think it would be helpful to highlight the good dollar pizza places and cheaper sandwich shops. For that I would do some research on which places have good prices and good quality, then find their locations and fix them on a map. I’d also make a small manual with tips on how to stay organized and manage your time, including making a good “to-do” list. My recommendation is that the to-do list be digital and on a cloud network like google docs so you can have it on you at all times to add and check off things. I also recommend a refillable metro card. Public transportation is much cheaper and better for the environment than calling cabs or Uber’s. If you are taking public transportation very frequently, you can add unlimited rides for a period of days. If you work out your average metro card costs, doing that could be a cheaper option. There are also objects I want to include in my toolkit that would give you a relatively cheaper and ecologically friendly college experience. I’d put in a metal reusable water bottle, a reusable thermos/coffee cup, a wooden toothbrush, and a reusable fabric shopping bag. Using a refillable water bottle reduces the amount of plastic used on a day to day basis. Refilling that bottle at water fountains and water refill stations is also one hundred percent free, as opposed to buying packs of water bottles. However, I also plan to research places you can take your empty water bottles to, to recycle them and get a bit of cash in return. The same goes for bringing around a reusable coffee mug. First of all, making your coffee at home is cheaper. But if you bring a coffee mug with you, some places will give you a discount for not using a single use cup. Eliminating those single use cups is also better for the environment. I am debating including a metal straw in this kit, but am not sure because you can get along just fine not using straws at all. The reusable shopping bag has a similar effect to the water bottle and mug. Plastic shopping bags are typically non-recyclable and pollute our environment so much. Having your own reusable bag can help cut down the amount of plastic bags floating around our oceans and being blown in the wind on our streets. Reusable fabric bags are also bigger, sturdier and some stores will give you a discount for having them. My toolkit sketch also includes a little succulent. I put this in as a fun little aspect. Having a little plant can spruce up a dorm room, and taking care of it can teach a tiny bit of responsibility. My goal for this toolkit is to help students adjusting to college and try to make their experience a little more affordable and economically friendly. I hope it can provide tips and materials to help them out and get them started while they figure out this transition. I’m pretty confident in my ideas for this toolkit, but every project has its challenges. I think it’s going to be challenging to find the cheap but still good places to eat. Everyone probably has a different opinion on what is good and what’s not, and Manhattan has millions of restaurants, it’ll probably be difficult to track down the ones with the best prices. I’m also a bit worried about the making aspect of the toolkit. I think I have a good amount of things to include in it, but I am only going to be making the map and tips and tricks manual. We have to make 3 prototypes of tools, so I need to do a little bit more thinking about that. Other than that, I feel as if my idea is pretty solid.
Updates
After receiving feedback from my classmates and professor, I have decided to update my idea. Initially, I had intended to include everything from metal water bottle to reusable shopping bag, but Juanli suggested instead of gathering all those materials myself, I write about them in a manual of some sort. This was a great idea and revision to my project. It would make the toolkit much, much cheaper. If these toolkits were on sale in a college store, they would probably be fairly expensive considering all that is in them. If all of them were placed in a book, the students could pick up the pamphlets for either free or very cheap, and gather what they can as it becomes convenient for them. The manual that would contain all that information would be merged with my “tips and tricks” book. The book will inform students on these objects that will make their college experience cheaper and more sustainable, while informing them why they should be making these changes and options of where to buy these things. Another update would concern the reusable shopping bag. instead of including a bag made out of a sustainable fabric, I will include a template and small sewing kit to teach readers how to create a bag of their own. They would make it out of any scrap fabric, like an old bedsheet, they have laying around. They already have the material so thats free, and they are keeping that material out of a landfill and giving it a new life. The map of places to eat will remain the same. So my updated toolkit is basically the manual, the map, and the template for the bag with needle and thread.
My references for the places to eat will come from research I am continuing to gather online. The manual is basically information I wish to pass on that I learned my first year, so I’m kind of my own reference. For the pattern for the bag, I will look up some tutorials on youtube, maybe include links to those tutorials on the page.
Updated Sketch
