Piloting a Digital Twin in an immersive CAVE for Plastic Reduction Practices and Behaviours in Kitchen Operations
The hospitality sector and its kitchen operations are a large-scale user of Single Use Plastics (SUPs) which is a worldwide challenge to be solved. Small Hospitality Firms (SHFs) struggle to find solutions due to their limited knowledge, lack of economic and human resources and the time pressure of their operations. SHFs in Friesland, Noord Brabant, and Limburg asked the Centre of Expertise Leisure, Tourism & Hospitality (CELTH) to explore effective interventions to reduce, reuse and recycle SUPs and to nudge their staff towards the required behavior for SUPs reduction.
Goal
The project aims at reducing SUPs via interventions co-created and co-designed in an immersive extended reality environment (XR) where SHFs can reflect on and re-design kitchen operations avoiding disruptions in their kitchen operations and work pace.
Approach
In this project a combination of innovative methodologies and tools are used to meet the objectives. Participant observation will be executed on selected days at the premises of a selected part-ner to monitor and record typical kitchen operations, the use of SUP in key kitchen areas, and the practices connected to this use. This kitchen is projected in an immersive scenario in the XR envi-ronment of the Food Experience Lab at Zuyd University of Applied Sciences to understand and discuss the kitchen operations, the use of SUPs and to facilitate co-creative design sessions. In a co-creative design session, different ideas for ways to come to reduction of plastic use in the kitchen are generated by involved stakeholders based on the 3R (Refuse, Reuse, Recycle) and nudging strategies. Finally, interventions will be designed with the aim of lowering plastic use by (for example) raising awareness of consequences and ascription of responsibility to encourage reuse, reduce, recycle to drive needed change in kitchen operations.
Partners
NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences
Breda University of Applied Sciences
Zuyd University of Applied Sciences
De Pleats Restaurant
Paddy O’Ryan
Stayokay Hostel Terschelling
Brasserie Om de Dobben
Teaching Hotel Chateau Bethlehem
Restaurant Blossem
La Barceloneta Restaurant
Practice Restaurant Sibelicious
Project team
Prof. Elena Cavagnaro
Dr. Lucia Tomassini
Prof. Danny Han
Malu Boerwinkel MSc.
Prof. Rudy Folkersma;
Judith Ogink MSc
Dr. Andrew Mzembe
Ilse van Ipenburg, MSc.
Planning
October 2024 – September 2025
Status
Ongoing
Results
Not yet available