Hubbub’s bincyclopedia
Part art, part science, for 10 years Hubbub has been (b)innovating on how to get the most bang for your bin.
Through creating messaging and design, incorporating the behaviour change principles of nudging people to do the right thing, to making binning fun we’ve learnt some useful lessons along the way.
Our top tips:
Be bold with your bins
In order for people to notice the bins on streets, it helps for them to stand out. Pre-campaign surveys from throughout our trials show that one of the key reasons for littering or not recycling was that there wasn’t a bin nearby (even though, in many cases, there was).
Keep it simple
People spend less than 2 seconds at a bin. Don’t overload the bin with messaging. Keep it to a sentence or two max. If drafting a design, see where your eye is naturally drawn to.
Think about your aperture
When collecting plastic bottles and cans, use a circular aperture. In Edinburgh, we saw a 20% drop in contamination just from adding apertures onto the bins. Make sure your general waste aperture is large enough to fit everything else.
Will they handle it?
We’ve tried bins both with open apertures, as well as those with foot pedals and handles. People will often opt for the bin that is easiest to use, so we’d recommend not placing an open recycling bin next to a bin that needs to touched to be opened. If you have a bin with a handle, it’s important that this is cleaned regularly and, if there is a foot pedal, it is well labelled. If your bins are sited in a particularly windy or seagull-prone area, then some kind of sealed aperture, lids or flaps may help prevent items escaping from the bins.
Bins need buddies
Choice architecture is a fancy term to describe the design of different ways in which choices can be presented. We’ve found that recycling bins should always be paired with a general waste bin or use a dual bin to reduce the contamination. Remember, people are wired to take the path of least resistance and this will mean they will often not sort their waste at one bin, then walk to another.
Size matters
Large wheelie bins (1100 litres) can be handy for events, due to their volume, but people often will not want to lift the lid or may be more used to seeing these used for business waste, rather than for personal use.
Our Top Bins
⚽ Goal Bins: This great shot is at Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club's Amex Stadium. Actors dressed as referees exhorted fans to give recycling their best shot! This was later rolled out across community football grounds nationwide.
🚬 Ballot Bin: our voting ashtray that cuts cigarette butt litter by up to a whopping 73%. You can find these in 43 countries 🌍. Dogs are extra.
⚖️ PickYourSide Big Ballot Bin: we teamed up with KFC UK & Ireland for this beauty. Inspired by the original Ballot Bin, it's solar-powered and has been sparking debate on the streets of Manchester and Southampton.
🫧 Gordon Binnit: this whimsical creation became a local sensation by blowing bubbles and burping.
🎶 The Disco Bin: Ellipsis Earth data showed people were littering on Boscombe beach at night, so we made this. It's like a normal bin, but with more ABBA. Result? A 42% litter reduction in the area.
🟡 In The Loop bins: Hubbub’s solution to recycling on-the-go. Over 11 towns and cities around the UK and Ireland use them - and they work!
