Starbucks Betacup
It comes as some kind of eco-irony that when Starbucks put out an open brief to “reduce the number of non-recyclable cups that are thrown away every year by creating a more convenient alternative to the reusable coffee cup”, that the winning result is not actually a cup at all, but (essentially) a blackboard. The Karma Cup has arrived.
What is actually most impressive about it is that the designers have considered what most would neglect, and approached the problem from the point of the view of the user, rather than Starbucks’ sole approach of looking to reduce waste. Fortunately by encouraging the user to change their behaviour this solution offers both and will (probably) successfully achieve the latter too.
