Joost de Kluijver calls for circular solutions for e-waste

Joost de Kluijver, Founder at Closing the Loop, answers questions asked during our webinar How to reverse the growing negative trend of e-waste.

When e-waste is properly collected and recycled, there are only benefits: people get paid to do safe and environmentally sound work, they learn about the importance and opportunities of recycling, and, of course, valuable resources are recovered. If electronic waste is handled in the way we currently see across the emerging world, the result will be pollution, negative effects on nature and human health, and increased material scarcity.

We do not. The market does that for us. We pay only a small price for the waste that we collect, (a few euro per kilo). As a result, no-one will sell a usable phone to us, because it will be worth much more than the price we pay. This means we only receive the electronics people really can not use anymore – the waste.

It is very clear that preventing the shipment of re-usable ICT to the emerging markets will not solve any problem. It simply means that more devices will be destroyed in Europe or the US, (where there is less demand for used ICT). And that the supply of low quality, sub-standard, (and often counterfeit), electronics from Asia to Africa will only increase.

These are difficult to calculate. It is known that recycling e-waste reduces global carbon emissions. And that current e-waste management in Africa includes burning, (polluted air), and dumping, (polluted water and land). The latter will affect us all, at some point.

I would say that there is a lack of a business model and a lack of demand for proper e-waste recycling, especially in emerging markets. If more demand could be created, it would prevent dumping and illegal recycling, as people could make money from managing e-waste in the right way. That is why Closing the Loop created a business model that is based on a service we call ‘e-waste compensation’. We ‘compensate’ the electronics that our customers purchase, by collecting the same quantity of end-of-life electronics. This funds proper e-waste collection and turns a global challenge – e-waste – into a global opportunity that benefits mainly emerging markets.

CTL believes that on the short term, only market forces can solve the problem of current e-waste mismanagement. When the market demands circular solutions – because these are offered in appealing and affordable ways – we can all benefit from these solutions. When you buy an electronic device, ask your supplier to ensure the proper collection and recycling of a similar device that has become end-of-life. That way, we close the loop.

Start thinking in possibilities, in opportunities: look for ways to be part of the solution. Be vocal about your wish for a more sustainable, waste-free industry. Start doing something that you think can be an improvement, or ask for proven solutions. We can only change if we act.