A practical toolkit for designing circular products and systems.
Why it’s useful: It offers actionable methods for rethinking products and services to reduce waste and extend material life cycles.

Service Design helps us deeply understand users and the bigger system to create meaningful, lasting solutions. Happy to chat and share more anytime! 😊

The 100 Dollar Startup is an insightful book on how a brilliant idea can be merged with passion and innovation. Watch the video above for insights.

Why: An intriguing archaeological perspective on waste, illustrating how waste tells stories about society, habits, and culture.

1989 book by Stephen R. Covey

Book by Rick Warren

The highlight of this book is the ability to adjust to changing circumstances is vital for finding “cheese” or success. You must remain open to new possibilities and learn new skills.

The lesson learnt is how the power of innovation can impact the community

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oCca1i3_dVY

A trusted resource that lists proven climate and sustainability solutions with clear data on impact. It shows what has been tested globally and what could be adapted locally. https://drawdown.org/solutions

• About innovative business ideas.

this film shows how we need each other and the importance of starting something and not giving up.

Guide: IDEO’s Design Kit – Interviewing – step-by-step method sheets and tips for human-centered interviews.

Template: User Interview Script Template (Notion/Google Docs) – ready-to-fill question guide.

Tool: Otter.ai or [Zoom Recording + Transcripts] – record and auto-transcribe

This book brilliantly explains the two systems that drive our thinking: fast, intuitive thought, and slow, deliberate reasoning. It's incredibly useful for understanding cognitive biases that can affect both how we ask questions as researchers and how our users answer them. It complements "The Mom Test" perfectly by explaining the why behind the biases we need to avoid.

Book by Ben Horowitz

Why I recommend it: This book helps you understand the importance of having a growth mindset and accepting your own limitations as a starting point for development.

Resource 1 – “The Creative Habit” by Twyla Tharp (Book)
Why useful: Offers practical exercises to build creativity daily and structure creative projects—perfect for ideation in Evolvers United.

Resource 2 – TED Talk: “The Power of Believing You Can Improve” by Carol Dweck
Why useful: Explains growth mindset and how embracing challenges can turn limitations into opportunities.

this film narrates human activities has shaped our planet and how best can we protect it.

this book highlights realistic ways to save the biodiversity of our planet

i love this one because it shows how space data can actually protect life on the ground. super visual and easy to connect with projects like fire sentinel :)

Exygy is leading this training for the White House's Opportunity Project, which puts data and digital tools in the hands of of families, communities, and local leaders. Human centered design process, and focus on needs finding and user testing.

mermaid js is also another good prototyping tool

It was shared by one of the hosts in the expert live sessions.

https://www.apitchdeck.com/blog/from-trl-1-to-9-an-entrepreneurs-roadmap-to-technology-maturity-and-funding-success

How to use these on the board

• Pin one resource per card with a 1‑line “Why I recommend” and a suggested action (e.g., Read chapter 3 this week; run a 1‑hour guerrilla test).

• Tag by use case: Research, Tools, Testing, Mindset so Fellows can filter quickly.

Risks and limitations to call out

• Over‑reliance on templates can hide the real question you need to test always map templates back to your riskiest assumption.

• Reading vs doing: books and articles build context but don’t replace running micro‑experiments; pair learning with a 1‑day test.

Why it’s useful: Practical, step‑by‑step guidance on choosing fidelity, writing hypotheses, and running fast user tests. How to use: Pull one checklist item from the article into your next sprint plan (e.g., recruit 10 real users for a 7‑day test).

Read “MVP Playbook: Types and When to Use Them”

Why it’s useful: Clear comparisons of Concierge, Wizard of Oz, Landing Page, and Piecemeal MVPs with real examples. How to use: Pick the MVP type that best tests your riskiest assumption and sketch a 1‑week experiment.

Watch “Delta 4 Theory: Building Desirability” (talk)

Why it’s useful: Short talk that reframes prioritization around desirability, not just features or efficiency. How to use: Run a 10‑minute team exercise scoring three candidate refinements by Delta 4 lenses.

Watch “3 Classic MVP Case Studies”

Why it’s useful: Concrete, low‑cost examples (Buffer, Dropbox, Zappos) that show how simple experiments validate demand. How to use: Use one case as a template to design a landing‑page or concierge test for your project.

Listen “Product Thinking” (podcast episodes on discovery & MVPs)

Why it’s useful: Short, tactical episodes focused on hypothesis design, metrics, and recruitment. How to use: Assign one episode as pre‑work before your planning session and discuss three takeaways.

Tool Simple A/B Test Template (spreadsheet)

Why it’s useful: Ready columns for variant, sample size, metric, duration, and decision rule reduces setup friction. How to use: Copy into your analytics folder and use it to run the onboarding animation A/B test.

Community — Local Sustainability Design Slack

Why it’s useful: Peer feedback, material sourcing tips, and potential pilot partners focused on circular design. How to use: Post a 2‑line ask (what you need, what you offer) to recruit a pilot partner or get material advice.

Read “Circular Design Quick Guide”

Why it’s useful: Practical checklist for designing for reuse, repair, and low‑waste prototyping decisions. How to use: Add the checklist to your refinement plan and mark any change that improves reuse or reduces waste.

Pinning format (copy‑paste)

Use this short card format when you pin any resource to the board:

Title one‑line description. Why useful: one sentence. How to use: one action to try this week.