• 

  Logo 3

• 

  Logo 1

• 

  Logo 2

Inspiration

As students at Everett Community College and Washington State University - Everett, we have seen just how much trash is abandoned across our alma mater city. Sidewalks in downtown Everett, parks overlooking the harbor, and neighborhoods scattered across the city are littered with discarded packaging and used food containers.

We wanted to create a way to incentivize members of our community, like ourselves, to go out, help beautify our city, and be rewarded for their efforts.

In addition, this app provides a great way to track litter and disposal bin location data, which could provide city officials with important insights that can help them get disposal bins where they’re needed most.

What It Does

Our app centers around a alien that users help fix his rocket ship after he crashes on earth. They help him fix it by collecting and disposing of garbage they find on the street.

It:

• Extracts information from photos of litter to determine information on garbage type
• Rewards users with coins for properly disposing of waste
• Records latitude and longitude of all garbage findings and bin disposals.

How We Built It

We utilized:

• Python with Flask as the backend engine
• React with JavaScript for the frontend
• MongoDB as the database
• JAN API for categorizing waste into "trash" or "not trash"
• Krita for digital character art

Challenges We Ran Into

• Learning MongoDB and Flask was a steep learning curve for our Python programmer, but our full-stack developer provided invaluable support.
• The front-end developer collaborated closely with the full-stack developer on React and other front-end elements.
• Integrating Mapbox API proved challenging; some ideas were postponed to allow us to meet our project deadlines.
• Using Krita for digital art was initially tricky; GoodNotes was used to bridge designs into Krita.

Accomplishments We're Proud Of

• Implemented simple animations for our caterpillar character and loading screen icon.
• Every teammate learned new skills and knowledge to take forward into our education and careers.

What We Learned

• Building a robust app is both more accessible and more difficult than we initially thought.
• Features like shading, street view integration, and adapting our project for a mobile environment presented unexpected challenges.
• Team diversity is a huge strength! Our project success required collaboration between:
  • Programmers
  • Database managers
  • UI/front-end developers
  • Graphic designers
• Working as a team enabled us to accomplish far more than working individually.

What's Next for UWB Hackathon 2025

Here’s what's on our roadmap:

• [ ] Enhance security: Harden data storage/transfer, encrypt user data, introduce rate limiting, improve token authorization, and move to HTTPS.
• [ ] Goal-setting feature: Let users set daily tasks like "drink water" or "walk 1 mile" and earn rewards.
• [ ] Shift framework: Transition our framework from React to React Native to support a mobile app environment for our users.
• [ ] Expand animations: Make our character and customization options more dynamic.
• [ ] Seasonal content: Launch limited-time, in-game cosmetic items in a storefront.
• [ ] Public receptacle requests: Allow users to submit requests for more bins in areas needing them.
• [ ] Add map overlays: Show locations of trash bins, recycling bins, public water fountains.
• [ ] Street view integration: Help users better visualize their location relative to pinned locations.
• [ ] Finetune waste detection: Improve trash/not-trash classification (e.g., biodegradable vs. plastic forks).
• [ ] Feedback and bug reports: Build a direct channel for users to report issues and suggest new features.

Built With

• css
• flask
• github
• goodnotes
• html
• jan.api
• javascript
• krita
• mapbox.api
• mongodb
• pycharm
• python
• react
• tablet
• vscode