eCycle: Your Virtual Junkyard!

Launch Page
Browse Page
My Items Page
Upload Items Page
My Account Page
Resources Page
AppWrite Database Dashboard
Prototype Design
Database Entries

Inspiration

Many people throw out their old phones and outdated hardware when they no longer see a use for them. This leads to huge amounts of e-waste. When e-waste is not properly disposed of, these practices can lead to toxic chemicals being released into the environment and causes unsafe work environments for workers tasked with cleaning up dumps of e-waste. Since properly recycling electronics may be a hassle for many individuals, many just opt for the most convenient option, which isn't the most sustainable. Therefore, we were inspired to find a way for people to creatively recycle old electronics within their community.

What it does

There are two main user groups. The first is users who have excess, old electronics at home, where they are planning to get rid of them. The second is users who looking for old electronics, potentially for parts for their own needs. These users would likely be engineers wanting free electronic parts for their projects, people interested in antique electronics, and even companies/organizations looking for old electronics for business use or to aid in recycling them.

eCycle allows users to upload a photo and short description of the item they'd like to get rid of. Users can also browse the app for listings from other users. If they are interested in any of the listings, they can request the item, which will put them in contact with the user who listed it.

Our resources page directs education resources/articles for users who want to learn more about the environmental impact of e-waste. We hope that this page will educate users and encourage sustainable practices when it comes to the disposal of electronics.

How we built it

First, we came up with the features we wanted our app to have, and then prioritized them. Then, we designed the prototype using Figma. We set up our IDE (VS Code) with our React.js app and created a repository on Github. Using VSCode Live Share, we simultaneously worked on the front end of the app in Javascript. Then, we created a backend database using AppWrite, and then connected it to the React.js app.

Challenges we ran into

Initially, we had trouble figuring out what our priorities were for app functionality, app scope, and also idea scope. We were also having issues using the data that was retrieved from the database. Specifically, dealing with asynchronous function calls. Also, coming up with a project was feasible to complete within the 30 hours.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are very proud of the fact that we were able to connect all of the web pages with one another with routers. Furthermore, we communicated very well with each other, especially when coming up with the project idea in a short interval of time. We are also proud of our use of Figma! We had so much fun with the design phase while we were planning out our app. Finally, 2 of the 3 members had never participated in a hackathon and 1 had never written in Javascript until today.

What we learned

We learned a lot about using the AppWrite backend and using JavaScript/HTML/CSS for the front end. We also learned how to collaborate with VS Code Live Share. The use of these technologies made it possible to work together and have our ideas come to life.

What's next for eCycle: Your Virtual Junkyard!

In the future, we hope to expand eCycle and attract users to join our app. One feature we are planning for is to potentially catalog the environmental impact of a device a user posts by informing the user of the estimated carbon emissions that were saved for a device similar to the one they posted on eCycle. This will encourage users to continue listing their other electronics they have no use for when they see tangible evidence proving that recycling e-waste has a positive impact on the environment.