Responsible Phone Recycling | <– Date –> <– Thread –> |
From: Scott Jackson (sjackzen46gmail.com) | |
Date: Thu, 20 Feb 2014 18:14:13 -0800 (PST) |
For those who think the answer to the serious economic/environmental justice question raised at the PolyMet hearing (about mining in the developing world where child labor is often used and a moonscape is left behind after the mining company digs out all it can) is a simple, smug "recycle copper" - and for those who know better - here's an excellent link from Ensia. (One reason the response is inadequate is because recycled copper in a perfect world would only meet at most 25% of world demand [far less is actually recycled], and we are the largest driver of that demand in this imperfect world.) The reason why the justice question is less compelling than it would otherwise be is because the PolyMet mining proponents who raise it do so cynically: by and large they are uninterested in economic/environmental justice. The reason why it is more compelling than it would otherwise be is because the First-world, white-led environmental/climate movement has all too often failed to demonstrate a commitment to justice by its actions, even though it may mouth the right words. There's a difference that I hope some people in MUUSJA/CCC recognize. Scott Jackson sjackzen46 [at] gmail.com [image: Post thumbnail] Responsible Recycling More than 1.8 billion phones were sold<http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2623415>around the world in 2013, according to the research firm Gartner -- a 3.4 percent increase over the previous year. Along with all those phones comes an abundance of toxic e-waste that's often shipped to developing countries and ends up harming both people and the environment. Which is why the Basel Action Network's e-Stewards Initiative <http://www.e-stewards.org/about/>might be more important now than ever. An accredited third-party certification program, e-Stewards allows both electronics producers and consumers to identify recyclers that abide by a strict set of guidelines, such as keeping hazardous e-waste out of landfills and restricting the use of child labor or sweatshops. A complete list of companies and recyclers participating in the program can be found on the e-Stewards<http://www.e-stewards.org/>website. Photo by JonJon2k8 <https://www.flickr.com/photos/jonjon_2k8/340305918/sizes/o/>(Creative Commons | Flickr)-- February 19, 2014
- (no other messages in thread)
Results generated by Tiger Technologies Web hosting using MHonArc.