Inspiration
We were inspired to create this project because of our initiative called the GreenWaySquad. This organization helps raise awareness about sustainability and restore the earth globally. With this project, we are helping others learn about where their trash goes when they throw it out. This cautions them to be mindful of their trash for the future by displaying how much time it takes for each material to decompose in their specialized recycling center as well as carbon dioxide emissions of each mode of transportation for the trash to get to the recycling center.
What it does
This program tracks different types of trash to the centers where they are recycled and decomposed. The user inputs which type of trash they want to track and then they enter their zip code for the app to figure out where the closest recycle center is to them. This happens by finding out the exact latitude and longitude coordinates of the user inputted zip code. It also determines which type of transportation it uses to go to each recycling center location and calculates the emissions of each transportation type.
How we built it
We built this project using python, html, and css. We used modules like geopy to identify coordinates and zip codes and APIs to get the data for each of the recycling centers and connect it to the user based on material and zip code. We used flask for the backend code in python. We used leaflet.js to show the map connecting the user's zip code to the recycling center respective to their item.
Challenges we ran into
We ran into a few challenges when writing this program such as displaying the map towards the bottom of the results page. However, we were able to overcome it using debugging tools like Stack Overflow and peer review. We also had some trouble with the JSON conversion but we were able to figure it out using previous knowledge from other classes and workshops.
Accomplishments that we're proud of
At first we were struggling with the map and animation portion, but later we figured it out using geopy. Additionally, we were able to use actual data and recycling centers in our website to make it authentic and accurate.
What we learned
We learned the hidden journey of where something goes once it has been thrown out. Whenever something is thrown out, it actually has to travel to the nearest specialized recycling center. We also learned how to use geopy to figure out what the latitude and longitude is from the zip code, as well as the distance of the nearest recycling center from where the user out.
What's next for WasteWay
We aspire to build this website into an app to make more people fully aware of what truly happens behind the scenes of throwing something out, and to think twice before throwing something that isn’t environmentally friendly.
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