Miraikan Uses Behavioral Science to Cut Staff Single-Use Waste

Between March and June 2025, the Tokyo-based Miraikan, or National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation, launched a four-month project to encourage its staff to reduce their reliance on disposable items like cups, bottles, chopsticks, and cutlery. Spearheaded by Serah Hoeks and her sustainability team, they began by researching behavior change and surveying employees about their habits. They discovered that while 84% of staff used reusable bottles or cups, 76% still frequently chose disposable chopsticks and cutlery, largely due to the convenience store culture in Japan. The team set goals to lower disposable chopstick use from 43% to 35% and increase reusable cup and bottle usage from 84% to 90%. Their campaign included posters, lectures, Slack updates, hygiene signs, tea-time events, and a chopsticks competition. Ultimately, they achieved their goal for chopsticks, hitting 35%, while reusable usage reached 85%. Moreover, 67.5% of participants reported adopting at least one strategy to cut down on single-use items. However, the team noted that the post-campaign survey had a smaller and possibly different set of respondents. Hoeks later shared these results at the Green Museums Summit in 2026.