How Kids Can Help Solve The E-Waste Problem

Electronic devices are found in plenty in our households. Laptops, mobile phones, iPads, and the list goes on, from kid to grandparents, all own a number of electronic items. What happens when these items grow old, or we move on to something new? We term such items as e-waste. Most often these items end up in the trash and contribute towards polluting our mother nature.

What can we do?

There are several options available.

1. Reuse- You could pass it on to someone else, maybe to a member of your family or a friend. The option of selling it is also available, but you should do so with parental approval and guidance. You could also donate it to charity, so that someone else can benefit from it too.

2. Recycling – if the option of re-using is not practical or possible, there is another way. You could send it for recycling.

Where can we go?

Just as we recycle newspapers and bottles, e-waste can also be recycled. For this we should take our electronics to a recycler. The electronics are taken apart and separated so that the glass, plastic, metals can be reused in other products.

There are a number of companies that accept e-waste. It is advisable to choose a recycler who follows proper standards and methods to recycle our electronics, such companies are known as e-stewards. You can find the nearest e-steward through this map.

What else can we do?

Give yourselves a creative break; use these old items to make something new. Or you could learn to fix them up yourself. There are many tools to guide you to learn how to fix things.

A recycling drive is a good fund raiser as well.

As everything becomes virtual these days, virtual learning, business transactions all happen online and mother nature needs to be saved from the e-waste menace. With the many destructive processes happening to our earth, it is time even children take the initiative. It’s time for all to pitch in.