Green Computing Puts Old Computers to Work for Northeast Ohio Schools
When businesses and organizations upgrade their information technology (IT) systems, thousands of computers, monitors, printers, fax machines and other obsolete electronic equipment—known as “e-waste”—become disposal liabilities. The U.S. generates more than 2 million tons of e-waste annually, and nearly 90 percent of that ends up in landfills or incinerators. To make matters worse, many of these materials could be refurbished and redeployed to offset the significant shortage of technology tools in classrooms. Green Computing is Northeast Ohio’s exciting new program that tackles both the issue of e-waste and lack of computers in classrooms.
Green Computing is reducing the number of unwanted computers and other technology resources going into landfills by refurbishing them for use in classrooms across Northeast Ohio. Developed by OneCommunity, a Cleveland-based nonprofit dedicated to improving communities by utilizing broadband and other world-class technology resources, Green Computing helps to close the digital gap in the region’s schools while offering an environmentally friendly, cost-effective solution for technology disposal. Green Computing handles the entire process, from picking up donations and responsibly recycling them to providing detailed information about where donated assets end up. Instead of paying a disposal company to dump unwanted hardware in landfills or ship it overseas, businesses and organizations can take advantage of Green Computing’s appealing features:
• Low or no-cost pickup for computers, monitors and a broad range of other technology equipment;
• State-of-the-art data destruction and removal of all asset tags and hard drives from discarded equipment;
• Eligibility for tax deductions;
• 100 percent no landfill guarantee
Schools enjoy significant benefits too. They do not have to spend as much on technology purchases—even outdated devices can be repurposed for classroom use thanks to advances in centralized computing. By giving students access to the digital tools and training necessary for a quality 21st century education, the Northeast Ohio community can help students thrive and foster the development of an intelligent workforce for Northeast Ohio.
So how does Green Computing work? OneCommunity has partnered with RET3 Job Corp, a local nonprofit providing environmentally responsible recycling of electronic equipment and e-waste. Equipment donated to the Green Computing initiative is collected and inspected to determine whether it can be refurbished. Usable machines will be remanufactured to the specifications of participating schools and repurposed to create 21st century learning environments for students. Unusable equipment will be completely demanufactured, with the raw materials entering the recycling stream to be manufactured into new products. Proceeds from the sale of raw materials are used to support Green Computing and the operating expenses of the recycling and remanufacturing processes. All equipment is processed in full compliance with Environmental Protection Agency standards, and organizations can have peace of mind knowing that donations are guaranteed not to end up in a landfill. And no need to worry about the sensitive information on hard drives—RET3 Job Corp performs Department of Defense-certified wipes to destroy data before repurposing or recycling equipment.
Green Computing is poised for success thanks to OneCommunity’s extensive network of community partners and participating school district IT departments. With generous support from The George Gund Foundation and other community partners, OneCommunity has set an ambitious goal of collecting 50,000 computers over the next five years.
For more information, visit www.onecommunity.org/greencomputing or contact RET3 at 216.361.9991 or info@ret3.org to coordinate a donation.