Cell Phone Recycling Guide
Amazing Article
I have been working in the wireless department of a major retailer for about 2 years now, and people always ask me what they can do with old phones. they usually want to trade in the phones and get a store credit, but we do not offer that. What i always tell them to do is to donate it directly to a battered women's shelter. The idea is just brilliant. It definately helps out the customer b/c it means they don't have old phones sitting in their basement, collecting dust; and it helps women who are in a situation in which they need help. As a friend to a woman who has been in that situation, I know that it is tough. In fact, when i found out she did not have a cell phone, I found an old phone in my basement that had not been activated in...
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There is an even deadlier reason why it is critical that old phones don't get tossed away- people are literally dying for them. The legacy of "blood diamonds" is well known, however the fact that a similar arrangement exists to mine coltan (Columbium Tantalum) is lesser known. Tantalum is a superconductor, one of the best on Earth. It is used to coat capacitors to help them create more power from less energy so that your cell phone no longer needs a battery larger than the phone itself. In war torn central Africa, people are forced into modern day slavery to mine this rare element, which is then sold to fund the wars in this region.
HOLY COW!!! Why is this not front page news? And why are the networks not screaming this? And why are show...
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HOLY COW!!! Why is this not front page news? And why are the networks not screaming this? And why are show...
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If you want to read more about it (a lot more) here is a very in-depth article from 2001:
http://www.globalissues.org/Geopolitics/Africa/Artic ... »
The major phone makers have also issued statements about it:
http://www.nokia.com/nokia/0,8764,49933,00.html »
http://www.motorola.com/content/0,,1668-3288-5397,00 ... »
...to sum up, they try their best to avoid using "blood capacitors", but they can never be 100% sure, since the coltan from the Congo is mostly smuggled and its origins kept secret.
http://www.globalissues.org/Geopolitics/Africa/Artic ... »
The major phone makers have also issued statements about it:
http://www.nokia.com/nokia/0,8764,49933,00.html »
http://www.motorola.com/content/0,,1668-3288-5397,00 ... »
...to sum up, they try their best to avoid using "blood capacitors", but they can never be 100% sure, since the coltan from the Congo is mostly smuggled and its origins kept secret.
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Thank you so much. I work at a call center and I'm sharing this with friends. I had no idea this was going on.
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