Donate laptops instead of wasting them
At ITpoint, end devices such as laptops are purposefully used for a long time. Nevertheless, until recently, far too many fully functional devices were sent for recycling as electronic waste. We wanted to change that. The most sustainable recycling is meaningful reuse. With "Labdoo", we have found a solution to the dilemma. Find out whether our ideas also make sense for your company.
How long do you keep a laptop, tablet or smartphone in use? And what happens to the decommissioned devices? In an affluent country like Switzerland, we tend to give devices an artificial life cycle. When the end of the cycle is reached, we throw them away. According to the Swico and SENS Technical Report 2022, around 130,000 tons of electrical and electronic appliances end up at collection points every year. Including 460,000 laptops. We all know that most of these laptops are not broken. What can we do?
Most companies have piles of disused laptops that end up with hundreds of thousands of others at disposal sites.
Extend the internal service life
At ITpoint, end devices such as laptops are not replaced according to a fixed cycle. Laptops are purchased with a basic maintenance period of four years and are only replaced if they are defective or no longer meet the user or security requirements. After that, employees can take over the devices for private use at a symbolic price and continue to use them. This works quite well, but is not enough to completely eliminate the pointlessness of early disposal. This is where Labdoo comes into play.
Pass on to Labdoo and enable education
We now hand over decommissioned, fully functional end devices (and network components where appropriate) to Labdoo. It goes without saying that data media are professionally erased beforehand. Labdoo.org is a non-profit organization that aims to enable education for all through sustainable technology. Labdoo is a global network of volunteers that collects and refurbishes used laptops, tablets and other electronic devices and distributes them to schools, orphanages and educational institutions in disadvantaged regions around the world.
What is no longer good enough here enables education possible elsewhere. In an increasingly digitalized world, access to technology and education is crucial. Unfortunately, many children and young people around the world do not have access to the necessary technological resources to improve their educational opportunities.
Labdoo’s process begins with the collection of used devices donated by individuals, businesses or schools. These devices are then checked by volunteers, cleaned, data is erased and equipped with child-friendly learning programs in the local language. This ensures that the devices can be used efficiently and safely.
Once the devices are refurbished, they are sent to schools and educational institutions in countries with limited access to technology. Labdoo.org works closely with local partners to ensure that the devices get to those who need them most. The organization also provides on-site training and support to ensure that the technology is used effectively and that sustainable educational opportunities are created.
Conclusion
Let’s all try to save functional devices from becoming electronic waste for as long as possible. When a device has reached the end of its life cycle for us, it may well continue to support “education through sustainable technology” for several years and make the financially impossible possible thanks to organizations such as Labdoo.org. Try it out!
Study Swico: https://www.swico.ch/de/news/detail/127100-tonnen-elektro-und-elektrogerate-im-jahr-2021-recycelt$
