ENCOURAGING HEALTHIER EATING HABITS IN COLLEGE
How might we empower college students to make dietary choices that positively impact their health? By providing students with a platform where they can contribute to community dinners potluck style, they are not only given the opportunity to learn how to cook, but they are also given a community that helps them reinforce leading healthier, conscious lifestyles.
Throughout my collegiate career, I’ve noticed that my diet and the way I take care of myself shifts with the seasons of my life. At times, I wish I had been better equipped to take care of myself and eat healthier.
After completing secondary research and creating a concept map (shown above), I began to work on implementing primary research methods, such as a survey, asking participants to submit food journals, and having a conversation with a peer about their grocery receipt. I gleaned the most data from my survey, which allowed me to see that students have a hard time transitioning between high school and college, especially when it comes to taking care of yourself.
Through ideating and sketching design concepts and outcomes, I wanted to focus on a platform that could allow students to learn how to cook slowly and also give them a community of similar people to help continue to foster these new, healthier habits. To the left, you can see early sketches of what is now Gather, a community dinner platform for students.
The branding all stems from wanting this to be a friendly platform that students feel comfortable using. The word “gather” feels inviting and speaks to the way in which I want this platform to function as a community and build connections. Gastromond felt right for the logotype, not only from a standpoint of form (thick strokes and odd serifs) but also from the narrative opportunities it has in connection to food. It’s all lowercase to, again, speak to that friendly approachability that I’m trying to convey, and the “h” contains icons of utensils to bring that food connection to the forefront. The placement of the icons in the “h” also speaks to the idea of a door and a house, and the way in which doors open up to each other for dinner.
You can set up a profile and are able to learn more about whoever might be attending your dinner or attending a dinner with you.
The dashboard contains all of the available meals for the week and you are able to filter them according to whatever you’re feeling, whether thats by day of the week, dietary restrictions, or who is attending.
You’re able to take a closer look at each dinner and find out a bit more about what needs to be brought, as well as how many people have signed up and who is hosting. The star next to the host’s picture works as a verification system and helps everyone feel a bit more safe about having a dinner with strangers (though you can filter meals by friends).
The app extends outside of the kitchen and helps you find what you need in the grocery store. With location services, you can select your recipe and whenever you enter the grocery store, it recognizes the store and tells you where everything is.