DormShare: Campus Food Waste Reduction App

An app connecting students to share leftover dorm food, reducing waste and saving money with quick, safe on-campus pickups.

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DormShare — Ideathon Story

Inspiration

Each night, trays of perfectly edible dorm-hall food head for the trash while classmates still buy pricey late-night snacks or even skip meals. Seeing this mismatch sparked the idea for DormShare—a campus-only way to match surplus food with hungry students.

On a campus of (3{,}000) students, even ½ kg of waste per person per week adds up to
[ 3{,}000 \times 0.5\,\text{kg} = 1{,}500\,\text{kg} ] of food headed to landfill every week.

What It Does

DormShare is a proposed web app where students can

  • Post leftover food in under 30 seconds (photo, portion size, pickup window).
  • Browse & Claim nearby listings via a real-time map or list.
  • Coordinate a quick hand-off, sending food from plate to peer in minutes.

Result: less waste, lower food costs, and a stronger campus community.

How I Shaped the Idea

  1. Sketched user flows and mobile mock-ups in Canva
  2. Drafted a tech blueprint
    • React — responsive UI
    • Firebase — realtime database & auth
    • Maps API — geolocated listings
  3. Mapped data relationships and basic cost estimates
    [ \text{Monthly hosting} \approx \$25,\; \text{Storage per image} \approx 200\,\text{kB} ]

These artifacts prove feasibility without a single line of code—ideal for ideathon stage.

Challenges Considered

  • Instant usability — one-tap photo upload, auto-fill pickup window
  • Food safety & allergens — mandatory “best-by” timer and allergen tags
  • Poster motivation — badges and “waste-saved” stats to keep supply flowing

Accomplishments So Far

  • Condensed the business model, user journey, and tech sketch into a one-page plan
  • Produced eye-catching mock-ups that convey the concept in seconds
  • Rehearsed a concise 3-minute pitch video

Key Takeaways

  • A clear social-impact vision resonates when paired with a tangible workflow
  • Rapid mock-ups expose UX snags early
  • Planning scale and moderation up front prevents later roadblocks

What’s Next for DormShare

  1. MVP build — post, browse, claim, safety tags
  2. Dorm-level pilot — measure uptake, iterate UI
  3. Feature rollout — scheduled pickups, allergen filters, poster reputation
  4. Campus expansion — partner with dining services; replicate at other universities

DormShare starts as a simple idea, but its potential impact on food waste, student budgets, and campus culture is enormous.

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