Category: Stewardship

Faithful Living: E-Waste

10/25/2021

Every year a significant proportion of electronic waste (E-waste) is exported from high-income countries like Canada to lower-income countries. There, e-waste is dismantled, recycled and refurbished in environments where infrastructure, training and environmental and health safeguards may be non-existent. (Source: WHO)

The eye-opening video documentary: Welcome to Sodom - shows how children and adolescents in Agbogbloshie, a waste site in Ghana, dismantle recycled electronics in toxic smoke. Here, a child eating just one local chicken egg will absorb 220 times of the daily limit for intake of chlorinated dioxins.

But there is hope. And it can start with us. This infographic tells the story of E-Waste, from the invention of the telephone, to the story of the first electronics recycling program in Alberta, and to what it will take for a circular future.

Consider these for faithful living

Use the gadget you already have for as long as possible.
Purchase used or refurbished electronics before purchasing new. More importantly, ask yourself: Do you really need that extra gadget? Do you really need to upgrade?
Sell or swap unwanted electronics before recycling.
Know where to recycle electronics in your community or to donate used electronics to social programs.

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Faithful Living | Waste Hierarchy

10/23/2021

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How we purchase, use and throw out used items make a big environmental impact that affect others and the world around us. The waste hierarchy above ranks the preferred approaches to waste reduction and management, so that we can be better steward to others, and to the resources entrusted to us.

Consider these for faithful living

Make buying a conscious decision and avoid buying on auto-pilot. Avoid shopping as a way to make ourselves feel better.
Repairing instead of throwing away or buying; used or refurbished items instead of always getting the latest gadget.
When possible, purchasing products that are able to be recycled, or manufactured using recycled content. This helps provide a market for recyclable materials.
Learn how to recycle or dispose of specific items or wastes in your local community

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For more information, visit "Reducing municipal solid waste" resources here

Image (above) rendered from: Govt. of Canada website

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Faithful Living: E-Waste

Faithful Living | Waste Hierarchy

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