Designing Everyday Heroes at the Heart of a Market
Designing Everyday Heroes at the Heart of a Market
Creative Innovation Design
Client
City of Bandung, City of Melbourne, Rocket Seeder
Industry
Sustainability
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About Project
The Problem Beneath the Fresh Produce
Every morning in Pasar Kosambi’s bustling traditional market, the rhythm of trade begins before dawn. Crates of fresh vegetables arrive, the scent of spices fills the air, and conversations competes between the bargains and the catchy promotional jargon each vendor shouts.
But underneath this vibrant daily life lies a less visible issue: waste. Not just leftovers or spoiled food — but behavioral waste. Systemic inefficiencies. Opportunities lost in plain sight.
In June 2025, we at Gizalab were honored to be recognized at the Melbourne–Bandung Food Waste Challenge, an international initiative by Rocket Seeder in collaboration with the cities of Melbourne and Bandung. Our solution wasn’t a fancy app or cutting-edge hardware. It was something more. We decided to listen.
Every morning in Pasar Kosambi’s bustling traditional market, the rhythm of trade begins before dawn. Crates of fresh vegetables arrive, the scent of spices fills the air, and conversations competes between the bargains and the catchy promotional jargon each vendor shouts.
But underneath this vibrant daily life lies a less visible issue: waste. Not just leftovers or spoiled food — but behavioral waste. Systemic inefficiencies. Opportunities lost in plain sight.
In June 2025, we at Gizalab were honored to be recognized at the Melbourne–Bandung Food Waste Challenge, an international initiative by Rocket Seeder in collaboration with the cities of Melbourne and Bandung. Our solution wasn’t a fancy app or cutting-edge hardware. It was something more. We decided to listen.
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Challenge
Why Food Waste Isn’t Just a Technical Problem
In many traditional markets, including Pasar Kosambi, food waste is often framed as a logistics problem. Our field research revealed something deeper. While bins, waste officers, and basic awareness already existed, they were poorly aligned with daily market realities. Bins were hard to access and overflowing, vendors lacked motivation, and waste officers had limited influence.
The issue wasn’t the absence of infrastructure, but a mismatch between the solutions provided and the everyday behaviors of the people expected to use them.
In many traditional markets, including Pasar Kosambi, food waste is often framed as a logistics problem. Our field research revealed something deeper. While bins, waste officers, and basic awareness already existed, they were poorly aligned with daily market realities. Bins were hard to access and overflowing, vendors lacked motivation, and waste officers had limited influence.
The issue wasn’t the absence of infrastructure, but a mismatch between the solutions provided and the everyday behaviors of the people expected to use them.
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Our Solution
Asking Better Questions
At Gizalab, we believe that sustainability is not just a technical problem. It’s a design problem — rooted in human behavior, community systems, and social norms.
So instead of asking:
“What technology can we build to reduce food waste?”
We asked:
“How can we get people to sort waste — consistently, together?”
At Gizalab, we believe that sustainability is not just a technical problem. It’s a design problem — rooted in human behavior, community systems, and social norms.
So instead of asking:
“What technology can we build to reduce food waste?”
We asked:
“How can we get people to sort waste — consistently, together?”
Designing for the Daily Reality
We used three lenses to explore the challenge:
Human-Centered Design to uncover the lived experiences, routines, and frictions of vendors and waste officers.
Systems Thinking to map how institutions, policies, and power structures interact in the market environment.
Theory of Change to guide how small shifts can scale into meaningful, sustainable impact.
We used three lenses to explore the challenge:
Human-Centered Design to uncover the lived experiences, routines, and frictions of vendors and waste officers.
Systems Thinking to map how institutions, policies, and power structures interact in the market environment.
Theory of Change to guide how small shifts can scale into meaningful, sustainable impact.
BALAREA: A Platform for Behavioral Shift
BALAREA (Bangun Langkah Ramah Lingkungan, Edukasi Asik) is a behavior-change platform designed for traditional markets like Kosambi. Rather than treating waste as an infrastructure problem, BALAREA focuses on people and everyday habits. Vendors and waste officers are positioned as the main actors of change, ensuring solutions fit naturally into the fast-paced, social environment of the market.
We activated this through three key elements: vendors as visible role models, Kapten BALAREA as a trusted and inspiring presence, and the Gerobak BALAREA, a compact, mobile eduhub inspired by the angkringan cart. The gerobak enables informal learning, social interaction, and rewards through #BalareaPilahManfaatkan, turning waste sorting from a task into a shared ritual where participation builds pride and culture.
BALAREA (Bangun Langkah Ramah Lingkungan, Edukasi Asik) is a behavior-change platform designed for traditional markets like Kosambi. Rather than treating waste as an infrastructure problem, BALAREA focuses on people and everyday habits. Vendors and waste officers are positioned as the main actors of change, ensuring solutions fit naturally into the fast-paced, social environment of the market.
We activated this through three key elements: vendors as visible role models, Kapten BALAREA as a trusted and inspiring presence, and the Gerobak BALAREA, a compact, mobile eduhub inspired by the angkringan cart. The gerobak enables informal learning, social interaction, and rewards through #BalareaPilahManfaatkan, turning waste sorting from a task into a shared ritual where participation builds pride and culture.
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Key Takeaways
Designing Social Change That Lasts
Who it’s for: Market vendors, local waste officers, community members, and local governments, NGOs, and brand sponsors.
What it creates: Cleaner public spaces, pride in waste sorting, and new social norms built on consistency rather than coercion.
How it’s sustained: BALAREA uses a hybrid funding model through CSR-sponsored gerobak units, branded merchandise and game kits, and Kapten BALAREA training programs. All components are modular and adaptable for other markets or community spaces across Indonesia and beyond.
Who it’s for: Market vendors, local waste officers, community members, and local governments, NGOs, and brand sponsors.
What it creates: Cleaner public spaces, pride in waste sorting, and new social norms built on consistency rather than coercion.
How it’s sustained: BALAREA uses a hybrid funding model through CSR-sponsored gerobak units, branded merchandise and game kits, and Kapten BALAREA training programs. All components are modular and adaptable for other markets or community spaces across Indonesia and beyond.
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