Wells Tech Amnesty
After Norway, the UK is the biggest creator of e-waste per capita in the world! Collectively, we are hoarding an estimated 35 million items in our homes, that’s about 20 items in each household.
Fixy, a project designed to keep unwanted electricals and smart tech out of the waste stream across Somerset, was established in 2019 and is a partnership between Somerset Waste Services, Donate IT and managed by Resource Futures.
FIXY and Sustainable Wells will be holding a Tech Amnesty to encourage all who live and work in the city and surrounds to consider mining the e-waste gathering dust rather than the planet, at the same time closing the Digital Divide by donating old tech to those in digital need.
What is a Tech Amnesty?
A pop up event where people are able to bring unwanted Smart Tech for donation to the Fixy van – this could be old phones, laptops, tablets, pcs, cables and chargers etc. which are no longer used. So many people have “drawers of doom” full of old smart tech devices that they just don't know what to do with.
By partnering with DonateIT, we provide the solution to this, whilst at the same time providing much needed tech to people who are digitally excluded.
The model is engagingly simple: Donate IT receives corporate and domestic donations for repurposing back to the community – they collect unwanted IT devices, data wipe, reset, refurb and hand back out to people in some form of digital poverty via agencies, such as Spark Somerset.
To date, Donate IT has collected nearly 10,000 devices and made nearly 1,200 donations to people on the wrong side of the digital divide and in some form of digital poverty.
“We have made device donations to everyone in need from isolated, elderly, displaced people, DV victims, modern slavery and human trafficking survivors, job hunters, homeless, addicts, those in rehab after life changing events and generally people struggling to function and have a good quality of life in an ever-increasingly digital world,” says founder Simon Barfoot.
Donate IT has many benefits, not just helping with digital poverty. The scheme:
Makes social support and care agents more effective in their work
Provides technical jobs in a rural area
Solves a data destruction problem for owners
Saves tons from landfill or incorrect disposal
Feeds the circular economy
Donate IT does not receive grant funding but covers wages and overheads by selling the kit that cannot be donated (eg. Server, network gear) and from the revenues from recycling into the UK circular economy to recover the rare Earth minerals, precious and semi-precious metals and other materials to re-enter the manufacturing chain and offset the mining and importing of virgin material.
If you cannot make the event, we are pleased to report that Wells Library is a permanent Drop Off Point for Donate IT and if you have a large amount of unwanted electronic items to donate please contact Simon Barfoot directly on donateit@blackmoreuk.com
You can see the full list of kit we can accept here: https://www.somerset.gov.uk/bins-recycling-and-waste/fixy/.