Inventor Lina Fenequito with the Swap-O-Matic
How many times have you heard someone lament "We live in a
throw-away society"? Certainly, the world would no doubt be a better
place if people threw less items in the garbage, and reused products
more. Well, that's what Brooklyn designer Lina Fenequito is trying to
encourage with her Swap-O-Matic vending machine. Instead of dispensing
mass-produced snacks with wrappers that end up in
landfills, it plunks
out second-hand belongings that need a new owner.
The one-off machine has several compartments containing whatever its
users have placed inside, and a touchscreen interface. Instead of money,
however, users get items using credits. Everyone starts out with three
free credits, then earn one more each time they donate something to the
machine. In order to receive something, they must spend one credit. They
also have the option of simply swapping an item of their own for one
already in the machine, in which case no credits are spent or given.
Although the system could quite obviously be misused by unscrupulous
types, there is at least one safeguard - users must enter their email to
access their account, and will be flagged for wrongdoings. Practical
considerations aside, however, the machine is more about making a
statement than anything else.
"Initially, the Swap-O-Matic is intended to inspire all of us to
rethink our consumption habits, and consider more sustainable methods
such as trading and reusing goods," Fenequito told us. "On a much larger
scale, the ultimate goal is for the Swap-O-Matic to inspire a movement,
affecting change for large numbers of people and communities."
The one and only Swap-O-Matic
has been stationed at various locations around New York City, and
continues to roam the five boroughs. Lina plans on making more machines,
which she would like to see placed across the U.S. and possibly even
throughout the world.
Source: Springwise
0 comments:
Post a Comment