Vol.11 | Environment, Co-design
SPOT 04: Cigarette Butt Nudge Design Experiment
강남구 담배꽁초 실험
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DESIS Thematic Area
DESIS Thematic Area
Design for Social Innovation and Cities
Design for Social Innovation and Cities
Period
Period
2024
2024
Location
Location
Gangnam Station to Sinnonhyeon Station & Teheran-ro, Seoul, South Korea
Gangnam Station to Sinnonhyeon Station & Teheran-ro, Seoul, South Korea
KEY VALUES
KEY VALUES
Nudge Effect · Voluntary Change · Fun-Driven · Clean Streets
■ CONTEXT
■ CONTEXT
Approximately 15,000 cigarette butts are collected daily around Gangnam Station despite 100,000 KRW fines. Sanitation workers report that cleaning in the morning yields full accumulation by noon. Punitive measures alone have proven ineffective.
ⓒDESIS@HONGIK
■ DESIGN APPROACH
■ DESIGN APPROACH
Nudge design replacing punishment with participation—voting ashtrays with daily fun questions, glow-in-the-dark footprint guidance trails, and real-time counters displaying responsible disposal counts. CCTV behavioral analysis and 200 in-depth smoker surveys complemented the design interventions.
■ SOCIAL INNOVATION
■ SOCIAL INNOVATION
Redefining cigarette butts from “waste to discard” to “votes to cast” transforms the disposal act from annoyance to amusement. Social proof visualization (“You’re not the only one disposing properly”) activates virtuous cycles where clean environments self-reinforce.
■ GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE
■ GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE
Gangnam-gu Office Urban Design Division (Commissioning) × SEDG (Nudge design & fabrication) × Hongik University (Behavioral analysis) × Sanitation workers & Teheran-ro Merchants’ Association (Monitoring)
■ EVIDENCE & IMPACT
■ EVIDENCE & IMPACT
67% reduction in ground disposal (4-week measurement). 3.2× increase in ashtray usage. 78% responded “I used it because it was fun.” Merchant satisfaction 4.5/5.0. 40% reduction in sanitation worker workload.
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