Dust off the cobwebs! Your unwanted computer could be someones lifeline
It's the time of year to throw open the windows, clear out the cobwebs and try to remember why you thought it was worth keeping a stash of dried-up old superglue tubes as you clear out the junk drawer.
RAD's Dunedin-based team member Becks, is embracing her magpie-like instincts and love of diverting unwanted tech from being treated as waste. She is working with local community members, helping them to redirect valuable waste from landfill by donating laptops and tablets to the RAD programme.
Last month on the 24th of September, The Valley Project in Ōtepoti Dunedin hosted a Spring Clean 2022 event to encourage locals to get rid of their junk without sending it to landfill. Locals swapped everything from half-used paint tins to furniture; they up-cycled and reused unwanted household items and deconstructed plenty more for valuable materials.
The day had something for everyone: a clothes swap and community weeding effort, a Repair Cafe, and a Mend and Make Awesome workshop run by Stitch Kitchen. It wouldn't be a community event in Aotearoa without a sausage sizzle too!
E-waste made an expected appearance, with transistor radios, unused cell phones, and vacuum cleaners dropped off. Even an old PC identical to one on display in a Dunedin museum turned up. There were laptops in various conditions - some working perfectly but unwanted, all the way through to one that had taken a dip in the pool! The 15 laptops gifted to Recycle a Device will go through the refurbishment programme and then be passed on to community members, providing them access to education, employment and other essential services.
Why not use the longer days and sunny weather as a chance to do your spring clean? And while you're at it, encourage workmates, friends and family to join you so you can divert even more treasures into a second life!
What can you do with your unwanted items?
Laptops - donate them to RAD (if they are less than 10 years old and with chargers)!
Cell Phones - donate them to re:mobile
Other electronics - donate locally if possible or drop off to TechCollect
Curtains - donate to a local curtain bank
Books - take them to a local Little Free Library or Lilliput Library
Towels, toys and pet related things - call your local animal shelter and ask if they want them
Clothes - drop them in a clothing donation bin or to the local op shop (during opening hours!)