Waste management is a major concern for environmentalists and policymakers across the globe. The issue comes with multifaceted aspects and diverse intervention needs at various levels and contexts, especially in a developing nation like India. Building upon the design methodologies as the foundation, this study is an endeavor to tap into comprehensive mapping of issues faced by varied stakeholders in an Indian higher education academic campus setting, taking the case of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee, a prestigious engineering institute in Uttarakhand state of India. The study is aimed at empathizing with the end users, supported by thorough interviews and surveys. The affinity mapping highlighted ‘lack of awareness about waste segregation’ as one of the primary reasons of poor waste management in such settings. For the same, an ‘Awareness Test’, verified by experts, is proposed and conducted in the study, data of which can be analyzed to check for the level of awareness among students, staff and other actors. At the end, design related recommendations are given which can be taken into consideration to resolve the issue at local level for such contexts.