Other

Tech Symbiosis – Upcycling tech for the implementation of training and digital competences-oriented activities

Objectives

Reduce tech-waste through networking
Strengthen the network/cooperation among local companies/organisations
Save costs for tech equipment dedicated either to office work or digital education activities

Green Value indicator

CO2 saving/Eco Footprint/ Environmentally Weighted Material Consumption:
The following case/tip can be applied to purchasing of tech to implement digital education activities and/or to equip participants of training activities with devices to join online training activities. This practice addresses tech waste reduction, therefore is aimed at extending technology life span.

Explanation

In 2019 53.6 million metric tons of tech were dumped, +20 million metric tons from 2010. The exponential growth of e-waste is due to the increase in the sales of electronic goods, their rapid obsolescence and the decrease of tech cost.
Together with the “European right to repair” initiative , organisations, companies and individuals could act to increase the lifespan of tech items by creating local networks to upcycle/repair or maintain devices. These could be used for local training activities (especially the one on digital competences), workshops, re distributed to foster the access to the internet among people with fewer opportunities or to be reused within an organisation in order to have more assets for workers or volunteers. Reducing tech-waste prevents soil contamination, heavy metals (mercury, lithium, lead and barium). Those heavy metals can leak through soil to reach groundwater. In fact, when the tech-waste is dispersed into the environment or in not suitable waste storage sites heavy metals could reach groundwater and eventually make their way into ponds, streams, rivers, and lakes.

Concretely organisations and companies can foresee additional insurance or maintenance contracts in order to keep a regular maintenance and extend the life of technology used by them. What is more, organisations could affiliate to the repair café network (www.repaircafe.org ) supporting a repair café start-up or setting up a partnership with a local repair café already working in the village/town/city. Repair cafés could give the chance to organisations to develop activities to raise awareness on tech waste or extend their training offer.
Companies could donate and network with local repair cafés or join charity programs for tech repairing and redistribution to people in need (e.g. Hardware for future in Leipzig, Primo Contatto or Device4All in Italy, etc..).

PROS/CONS of the action

Pros:

Preventing tech-waste while raising awareness among volunteers, workers and participants to training and learning activities on the importance of recycling and reusing tech by extending their lifespan
Saving money on equipment to be used for digital competences-based training or tech equipment to support project activities or everyday work
Strengthening the local cooperation with businesses/entities dumping tech

Cons:

It needs allocated staff to check and repair incoming items
It needs storage and a space dedicated to the maintenance / reconditioning of tech
The organisation implementing the following initiative needs to come to an agreement with a waste managing authority to collect and process the non-salvageable tech received

Certified

Not Certified

Link to useful sources

Tech Waste Recycling www.techwasterecycling.com

Electronic waste generated worldwide from 2010 to 2019 (in million metric tons) www.statista.com