MUGs and computer recycling (Doug Grinbergs)
MUGs and computer recycling (Doug Grinbergs)
- Subject: MUGs and computer recycling (Doug Grinbergs)
- From: Rick Ortiz <email@hidden>
- Date: Tue, 26 Aug 2003 23:27:33 -1000
Aloha Doug,
Here on Maui, we have a very active recycling / reuse program. Our user
group began a program with some non-profit youth programs to get donated Mac
computers into homes of families who would typically never have a computer.
We focused on a family literacy program. The family was given the computer
with the youth being responsible for it. Part of the deal was the family
participate in a literacy program for 8 weeks. During this time they were
given the computer on a loan basis. At the end of the 8 weeks the computers
was theirs to keep.
Also Maui cannot afford to have computers filling up in its limited space
landfills. So every six months, a non-profit called Community Workday puts
on an event called a CompuSwap. It is an opportunity to collect treasures,
junk, or even iMacs. Some stuff works, and some stuff can be gutted to get
one Mac up and running. Our group is asked to participate in the event to
manage the Macs that come in. We diagnose, repair, refurbish, or recycle
dead Macs. The schools tend to use this as an opportunity to clear out Macs
they cannot get working. There are families who come to this event looking
for a computer. Our group is able to get 20-30 computers up and running and
into homes. The remaining "junk" is placed into a container and shipped to
the mainland to a company that can discard the computer equipment properly.
You bring up a good point about the "producer" of the equipment taking
responsibility in recycling efforts. I agree. After seeing the amount of
computer equipment recycled just on Maui, I am just amazed that this much
exist on an island of about 130,000 people. Maybe with computers equipment
decreasing in size it will help over time, but much of the recycled
computers now are the big, old, non-working equipment.
Rick Ortiz
President- Maui Apple User Society
www.mauimac.org
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