By Sarah Yung
Nature sustains a delicate balance between all living things in a cycle of creation and destruction known as the circle of life. As Mufasa from The Lion King says, “When we die, our bodies become the grass, and the antelope eat the grass. And so we are all connected in the great Circle of Life." Similarly, if we can extract, recycle, and reuse raw materials to add value to new or existing products, then we can transform our manufacturing process into a sustainable and renewable life cycle.
To sustain a circle of life, we need to create a circular economy. The circular economy rests on the idea that waste can be transformed into valuable resources for another purpose. Everything in a circular economy is produced from resources that are repurposed or regenerated from existing materials or components parts when products approach the end of life.
Just like the Circle of Life, a circular economy connects supply chains, markets, vendors, and consumers. Under this business model, all stakeholders contribute to the circular economy by exerting influence to reduce, recycle and reuse natural resources.
From E-Trash to E-Treasure
Electronic waste, also known as e-waste, is a significant issue in today’s world. We generate 50 million tonnes of e-waste annually, expected to double by 2050. However, only 15-20% of this waste is collected and properly recycled. Undocumented waste is sent to be incinerated, traded illegally, or processed with substandard methods. Most e-waste accumulates in landfills, where it not only takes up space but also poses a hazard to others.
Although e-waste accounts for only 2% of landfill trash, it is 70% of all hazardous waste. It’s commonly known that plastic - which accounts for about 20% of e-waste - takes a long time to naturally decompose. But there are also a number of dangers associated with the toxic chemicals that can be found in e-waste. Those who process electronic waste are exposed to noxious fumes which are hazardous to one’s health. Heavy metals like lead, mercury, and cadmium can contaminate land, water, and air. Once chemicals filter into our water supply and the food chain, humans are at risk of consuming dangerous chemicals.
Refurbishing is a promising method to solve the pressing e-waste issue by transforming e-waste into “e-treasure.” In refurbishing, manufacturers strip old products for components still in working condition and reuse these components in new products. Unlike in recycling, working components can be reused almost indefinitely. Refurbishing will significantly lower our carbon footprint by obviating the need to remanufacture components in new tech. Refurbishing is one of the building blocks for a circular economy, and it has both environmental and economic benefits when it comes to manufacturing electronics.
Manufacturers
Transforming from a linear “make, buy, dispose” production model to a circular “reduce, reuse, recycle” economy can create promising future opportunities. Increasingly, investors value companies beyond their short-term profits, also considering their sustainability performance. Manufacturers who are socially responsible will align its social, environmental, governance strategy to optimize its profitability goals. The bottom line: companies will be assessed and rewarded by investors based on how well they manage their profits, planet and people programs to create long-term value for society as a whole.
Since 2014, Dell has used over 21 million pounds of closed-loop plastics in its products, making over 125 different products with the reused components. Dell uses 30% of the plastic it collects for its own devices, then sends the rest to downstream recyclers to be used in other appliances. In 2018, they started using recycled gold, even starting their own jewelry line made of gold from refurbished electronics.
A decade ago, Best Buy launched a parking lot recycle/renew program to take back and recycle 2 billion pounds to-date of used electronics including old PCs, cables, TV and other electronics. A Best Buy/Apple partnership opened up their stores to offer Apple-certified product repair services with the idea of fixing, refurbishing, and reusing the devices, instead of throwing them away.
One obstacle to refurbishing is that modern electronics are not easy to recycle or break down. Because tech companies closely guard their designs, it’s difficult for recycling facilities to know how to best process the devices. There is a push for manufacturers to make their devices more easily recyclable and reparable through a number of new regulations. Regulations include ensuring spare parts are available for a certain number of years, making appliances easy to disassemble, and allowing repair professionals to access technical information.
Manufacturers can also eliminate planned obsolescence. Planned obsolescence is a policy of creating products that rapidly become obsolete, forcing the consumer to continuously purchase newer, upgraded products. In the long run, this practice may lead to increases in e-waste that even refurbishing can’t keep up with. By minimizing the generation of electronic waste, we can minimize the energy needed to maintain a circular economy.
Consumers
As consumers, we must be responsible for our own consumption, limiting our purchases to what is functional. Just as manufacturers can eliminate planned obsolescence, consumers can continue to use their devices for longer, instead of buying new devices as soon as they are released. Holding onto usable products to reduce their consumption making refurbishing a feasible process in the future.
Likewise, consumers can also make a big difference by recycling unusable electronics, instead of holding onto them or trashing them. Currently, while big appliances have a nearly 80% recycle rate, barely 20% of small appliances make it to the recycling center. Big appliances can be picked up by city services, while small appliances are disposed of at a city-designated drop-off site, far more inconvenient for the average person.
In Silicon Valley, environmentally conscious students are making a difference in our treatment of electronics. For example, Los Alto High Green Team hosts an electronic waste drive every year to prevent consumers from improperly disposing of their e-waste. This organization, EqOpTech, engages student volunteers to refurbish old computers so they can be used again, instead of dumped in a landfill.
Others are also making improvements in how they deal with electronic waste: directing e-waste to recycling centres instead of the landfill and developing processes to handle different types of e-waste. Around the world, the London-based social enterprise Restart Project empowers people to “fix our relationship with electronics.” People with broken consumer electronic equipment can come to events organized by Restart Project, and volunteers will mend their electronics for free.
To live a sustainable life, we all need to change our mindset to recycle and reuse, instead of just throw away.
Internet of Things & Cloud Computing
Harnessing the potential of technology innovation not only helps us live a sustainable life but also benefits the planet. The era of cloud computing and the Internet of Things (IoT) gives us more power than ever to optimize and extend the life of resources. Cloud computing enables companies to share software and network resources via the cloud. Pay-as-you-go subscriptions allow companies to scale based on their infrastructure needs, minimizing initial investment, operating, and maintenance costs. Cloud computing focuses on pooling resources, to “share and rent” rather than to “own” - maintaining our resources by scaling up and down, instead of building and discarding resources.
The sustainable and flexible nature of cloud computing is complementary to an IoT circular model where smart, wireless sensors can collect data on equipment and report when it needs to be serviced - a process known as predictive maintenance. Rather than replacing specific parts at scheduled intervals (preventive maintenance), predictive maintenance allows us to use functional parts for longer, and saves us the hassle of waiting for repairs when a part breaks earlier than expected. When a part is replaced, it is feasible to salvage useful materials that can be reused in the regular supply chain. From manufacturing processes to energy and city infrastructure, billions of global smart IoT devices continue to extend product lifespan and optimize profitability. For example, Barcelona uses smart meters to monitor and optimize the use of electricity. Their system of rain and humidity sensors regulates irrigation of public parks, yielding cost savings of 25%.
Another promising technological development in our transition to a circular economy is image recognition via artificial intelligence. In order to properly reuse and recycle different types of materials, they must be properly sorted. For example, biowaste can be used to produce energy or fertilizers, plastics can be repurposed for the construction of roads, and waste can be burned (in proper conditions) to generate energy. Electronic components, as we’ve been discussing in this article, can also be reused in new devices. Using a combination of image recognition and wireless sensors, we can improve upon smart recycling and waste management. Printing RFID tags on common waste allows sensors to sort and send waste to appropriate methods of disposal. Image recognition can supplement this process through a quick visual assessment of incoming waste.
Government
The government has much incentive to enact legislation to forward a circular economy. A circular economy will create more jobs and retain value in the electronics industry. Refurbishing will also be necessary to meet the rising consumer demand for affordable electronic devices - it reduces the cost of materials and could help protect companies against the volatility of global markets.
Our government must take responsibility for electronic waste. The U.S., one of the world’s biggest producers of e-waste, still hasn’t ratified the Basel Convention - a multilateral environmental agreement which would restrict exports of e-waste, particularly harmful to developing countries. Aside from the Basel Convention, the U.S. also has no national law for managing e-waste, leaving it up to the states. On the other hand, the EU has some of the toughest enforcement in the world, and a higher recycling rate for electronic waste, showing how governments can impact our attitude towards e-waste.
The government plays a crucial role in switching from a waste management hierarchy to a circular economy hierarchy. Rather than managing waste (by containing it in a landfill), the government should maximize the utilization of our resources (by extending product lifespan and recovering valuable materials). Our government can promote a circular economy via updating climate plans and reforming recycling regulations. They can also provide incentives to companies that extend their products’ lives or use recovered materials by reducing taxes or subsidizing production.
Life Cycle Sustainability = Healthy Profit, People & Planet
A circular economy has great economic and environmental benefits, reshaping our economy will require a massive paradigm shift, tearing down existing infrastructure and adding a new dimension to production.
It is every stakeholder’s responsibility to create and live a circular economy for a self-sustained life. The consumer’s mindset and behavior drives demand, which prompts producers to change their manufacturing processes and products. Innovation, government regulations, and recycling pathways will all help drive initiatives towards circularity. The road to a circular economy is not easy, but has the potential to foster a lifetime of opportunity and prosperity. It is up to the circle of stakeholders to remake our economy into that interconnecting and sustainable world.
We need everyone to join the circular economy to enable the circle of life. EqOpTech is one of many organizations working towards this great cause - helping with the notion of “reduce, reuse, and recycle” by refurbishing old tech. You can make a difference! The computers we refurbish go to underprivileged students in our community, so they can access valuable online educational enrichment resources. Check us out at www.eqoptech.org and join us in this effort!
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EqOpTech Inc., located in Los Altos, CA, is a 501(c)(3) IRS-designated tax exempt nonprofit organization that promotes and enables equal opportunity free access to technology for computer learning and STEM education in under-served communities. Visit EqOpTech at www.EqOpTech.org
The Equal Opportunity Technology program is made possible thanks to the Los Altos Community Foundation community grant award. Visit here for more information.