If you’ve ever had to dispose of an old electronic, you know it’s not a simple chuck-and-duck. Phones, computers, TVs, and other gadgets are full of metals and other materials that would be dangerous to dump in a landfill. Finding a responsible avenue for recycling them isn’t always easy, either.
Enter Tech Dump, a nonprofit run by Amanda LaGrange, a recent honoree of our annual Grist 50 list. Her org employs formerly incarcerated people, who are trained in the business of recycling and repurposing millions of pounds of electronics each year. And with its retail arm, Tech Discounts, that old tech can find a new life.
This year’s Grist 50 features five short documentaries on innovators like LaGrange: emerging leaders — we call them Fixers — who are tackling climate and justice from every imaginable angle. Check out this video to see LaGrange and her tech-recycling team in action.
[Previous video: The scientist bringing lizards to Instagram]
Discover more Grist 50 honorees working toward a more sustainable, equitable world:
- Social media gurus who will uplift your feed
- Innovators changing the way we think about food
- Artists producing provocative, justice-centering work
- Explore the full 2021 Grist 50 list to discover more Fixers making a better future happen today
