At the penultimate event of the “Green Fridays for Youth” initiative, the young participants actively participated in the recycling process of old electronic devices. The event was held to encourage young people to think about sustainable waste management and to introduce them to the possibilities of reusing and recycling parts of end-of-life electrical appliances.
One of the main challenges in today’s world is the accumulation of e-waste, which contains valuable materials but is often thrown away without being effectively recycled. Educating young people about what components can be recovered and reused is therefore a crucial step towards a greener future.
During the event, the youngsters disassembled different appliances to see which parts could be recycled or reused. Here are some of the devices and the results of the recycling done:
– Laptops weighing 2,700 kg: 1,259 kg of material was successfully recycled from it, including metals and plastics that can be reused in the production of new products.
– A keyboard weighing 0.725 kg: of this, 0.273 kg of material was found to be recyclable, mainly plastics and some metal parts.
– A monitor weighing 1,900 kg: as a result of the process, 0,904 kg of material was successfully recycled, including metal components and glass.
– A mobile phone weighing 0.179 kg: despite its small size, the phone contained 95 grams of recyclable material, including precious metals such as gold and copper.
The young people were inspired by the opportunities to reduce e-waste through recycling and gained valuable knowledge about the environmental benefits of these processes. They learnt that many electrical appliances, which are often considered unusable, actually contain valuable resources that can be saved from landfill and given a new life.
Watch selected highlights from our workshop here.
The Green Fridays for Youth project continues to build awareness among young people about environmental protection and sustainable use of resources, and participants are already demonstrating a commitment to greener thinking in their daily lives.
