Technology Reuse: New life for old computers

Many of us have been environmentally conscious for years. We faithfully sort through our trash to unearth newspapers, glass, aluminum cans, and plastic bottles. We take old clothes to Goodwill Industries, buy organic and tend a compost pile in the backyard. But when it comes to that old computer sitting in the hall closet and those ancient monitors gathering dust in the attic, it is difficult to know what to do.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, “In 2007, discarded TVs, computers, peripherals (including printers, scanners, faxes), mice, keyboards and cell phones totaled about 2.5 million tons” of waste. When this electronic waste, or e-waste as it’s commonly known, is disposed of improperly, substances like lead, mercury, cadmium and brominated flame retardants can end up in landfills. Fortunately, there are environmentally-responsible disposal alternatives that can benefit our communities.

First, open your phone book and call a nonprofit – as there are scores of them nationwide that collect donated, second-hand computer equipment. This equipment is often refurbished and offered free or at a low cost to organizations and individuals. This helps to bridge the digital divide in a major way. San Francisco’s City Youth Now has also found that donated laptops can positively influence the lives of some teenagers and young adults who have become involved with gangs and illegal drug activity. Here in North Carolina, the e-NC Authority is exploring how refurbished computers can be used to help economically-disadvantaged citizens gain access to the Internet.

If you are looking to donate or acquire a refurbished or used computer, these organizations could be of assistance.

Earth911.com: Web site offering a searchable database of over 100,000 reuse/recycling centers nationwide.

EPA: The EPA’s Do the PC Thing offers helpful information about clearing data from your computer before making an equipment donation.

Goodwill Industries: Contact your local Goodwill to find out if the location accepts computer donations.

National Cristina Foundation: Accepts donations of used computer equipment from individuals and corporations, and then matches that equipment to non-profit organizations, schools, and public agencies that serve the disabled, at-risk students, and the economically disadvantaged.

Plug-In To eCycling: A partnership program between the EPA and electronic manufacturers, retailers, and service providers, which is designed to provide consumers with options for donating and recycling used electronic equipment.

Kramden Institute: Durham, N.C.-based nonprofit that refurbishes donated computers and awards them to economically-disadvantaged K-12 students in the Triangle area.

Purple Elephant Computer Factory for KIDS!: Raleigh, N.C.-based nonprofit that provides refurbished, operational, Internet-capable computers to individuals and organizations.

Recycles.org: Web site serving as a national and regional exchange network that connects prospective computer equipment donors with nonprofit participants.

TechSoup: Offers discounted and donated technology products to nonprofits. Web site also features a blog, Webinars, articles, discussion forums, and information about upcoming technology events.

Planning Broadband for the “New Normal”

In his recent conversation-starter essay, The New Normal, Ian Davis poses the question of “What comes next?” in terms of our current economic turbulence. Davis’ basic premise is that the current downturn is fundamentally different from recessions of the past, and that we are about to face a restructuring of known economic order. He states that the “new normal” will be shaped by a confluence of powerful forces – some arising directly from the financial crisis and some that were at work long before this all began. One-time factors such as the entry of women into the labor force and loads of new college graduates conveniently coincided with peak spending years of the baby boom generation – all helping to boost consumption-driven growth since the 1980s. It is clear that these forces will not predominate in whatever emerges. Rather, Davis says that the factors shaping the world economy of the near future are less leverage and more government.

We already see evidence of the effect these factors are having on efforts to stabilize the financial crisis and revitalize growth in the banking and financial services sector. In the arena where the e-NC Authority is most directly concerned (broadband deployment), decreased leverage is sparking a new wave of mergers and acquisitions, delays in equipment upgrades and new deployments and reduced investment in product R&D. Countering these negative trends is another that makes us cautiously optimistic: increased interest in broadband at the highest levels of federal government through targeted investment of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

On Feb. 17, 2010, at long last, a national broadband plan will be delivered to Congress by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). As its primary goal, this plan will espouse ubiquitous and affordable broadband access. On May 22, 2009, acting FCC chairman Michael, J. Copps made an important down-payment toward the national plan with the release of the report Bringing Broadband to Rural America. This report fulfills a requirement of the June 2008 Farm Bill that the USDA and the FCC submit a rural broadband strategy to Congress. Other critical federal broadband legislation includes the ARRA that will provide funds to map the current broadband footprint and help fund network deployment to unserved and under-served communities, and the October 2008 Broadband Data Improvement Act that requires the FCC to deliver an annual status report to Congress that benchmarks progress toward ubiquitous broadband access.

Highlighted recommendations contained in the Rural Broadband Plan include:

• Improve coordination among federal agencies and with stakeholders to better harmonize broadband agendas and working definitions – leverage broadband dollars across federal agencies and improve communication via an improved Web site
  
• Assess and address broadband needs thorough accurate mapping, education and training to stimulate demand – and provide subsidies to increase penetration while decreasing the cost of deployment
  
• Overcome challenges through consideration of universal services reform, network openness, spectrum access, middle mile and speed access reforms, inter-carrier compensation, access to poles and rights-of-way and tower studies
  
• Monitor and adjust the plan through annual status reports to Congress

In support of a national vision for broadband, acting FCC Chairman Copps harkens back to other instances where leadership and vision were successfully employed in the face of considerable opposition – and those adventures ended up delivering critical infrastructure that catalyzed and sustained economic growth. Think about it – he’s right. U.S. Postal Service. Transcontinental Railroad. Interstate Highway System. Rural Electrification and its spin-of, the Rural Telephone Cooperatives. All then of course, the Internet itself. All of these initiatives represent transformative public investments whose development depended on a strong and coordinated national vision. We agree with Copps’ statement that it is time for the United States to meet the challenges of the 21st century with universal broadband deployment. Whatever our collective “New Normal” turns out to be, we will be better prepared to meet it if we are all connected.