Problem Space

Food insecure people often do not have the means of transportation to access food and resources provided by ACFB.

Existing Programs

Before examining services outside of ACFB, we researched the services that ACFB provides to the Atlanta community to understand the resources that users typically use in order to obtain food from this food bank. ACFB currently supports those who are food insecure by providing food drives, pantries, kitchens, shelters, and collaboration with partners to make food accessible in other locations such as “childcare centers, healthcare facilities, shelters, and senior centers across Atlanta and north Georgia” (“Stories of Hunger”). ACFB has also created a mobile pantry program where a “pop-up” pantry is operated in communities where public transportation is an issue in getting to a food bank.

Analyzing

The information collected from ACFB allowed us to understand the level of accessibility in and around Atlanta and that many food insecure people were able to access food through these food banks, community kitchens, and other locations. However, the services that ACFB currently provides does not thoroughly help those with little to no mobility. In order to find data and other information to better understand accessibility to those with little to no mobility, we conducted qualitative research techniques through interviews and quantitative research techniques through a survey to answer the problem space. 

Research

Survey

We created a questionnaire in which we were able to receive 35 responses. All responses from our questionnaire were completed by proxy users who are all Georgia Tech students who do not have access to a car on campus. We targeted those around us who don’t have access to transportation while being on campus because they would be able to represent those who need access to food but lack access to transportation. 

The fully anonymous survey informed us that 80% of respondents would prefer food delivery as their choice of accessing food and that 50% of respondents walk to get food from their nearest food access point(in this case, grocery stores or restaurants). A larger sample size with more accurate users could have yielded more accurate results for our problem space.

Interviews

ACFB Representative

Luisa Fortin, an ACFB representative, provided many insights on the goals of ACFB, volunteers, and the populations seeking help from the ACFB.

1. The largest demographic facing food insecurity is children, and they face barriers when trying to get access to food, including transportation and resources.

2. Major barriers of obtaining food for rural communities are transportation and internet. According to Fortin, rural areas do not have equal access to the internet, making it a challenge to access information and services as well as the lack of transportation in rural areas compared to urban areas.

Meals on Wheels Volunteer

This interviewee had volunteered for Meals On Wheels Atlanta* multiple sites, both on-site packaging food and as a food delivery driver. As a delivery driver, she was given a route, a list of seniors who had previously signed up to receive services from Meals On Wheels, and a set number of meals to deliver to the locations given to her. This system is very strong for addressing the food insecurity and transportation needs of seniors in the Metro Atlanta area, but does not address the food insecurity and transportation needs of younger members of the community.

*Meals on Wheels is a nonprofit nationwide program providing food to food insecure seniors.

Key Findings

Through our survey and interviews, there is an increasing food access amidst the lack of transportation, so it is important to solve this issue by creating a delivery program through ACFB.

We came up with three design ideas we could implement to promote delivery services.

1. Redesigned Web Application

2. Flyer with Text Service

3. Mobile Application

   To determine which design would promote the best functionality, we constructed an affinity diagram.