Learn to love your phone a little longer
There are now more mobile phones than people in the world. And, every device represents a production process with a huge impact on people and planet.
Your phone roughly consists of a processor, a camera, a screen, a battery, many sensors, and memory. Together, we call this the hardware: all the physical components that are required to make the phone work.
There will be an estimated 18 billion phones in use by 2025, which contain highly sought after minerals including copper, gold, cobalt and other precious earth elements. These resources are often mined under poor working conditions, its violent extraction putting a huge strain on our plant’s ecosystem.
Why is it a problem?
When our phones break or become obsolete they are usually discarded in a drawer somewhere, reaching the end of their use but by no means the end of their life cycle. Companies encourage us to buy new phones rather than repair our own devices and salvage valuable parts. In many aspects we are losing the right to repair our phones. Instead of being forced to buy a new phone every few years you should be able to repair and reuse your phone's material!
Over 5 billion phones were thrown away, while less than 20% of e-waste was recycled
Let's fix it!
On an individual level there are things we can all do to help mitigate these problems and push for change. Conscious consumption is one avenue using your current phone as long as you can, fixing it when it’s broken, or by buying a refurbished model or Fairphone.
Right to repair
New ‘Right to Repair’ laws introduced in 2024 will make it easier for you to repair and reuse your phone. Want to know which measures are taken with these laws? Check out the directive on repair of goods.
Switch apps
When your phone tells you your OS is not supported any longer don’t start shopping for a new device just yet. There are many alternative apps that still support older models - check out our ‘Apps’ book for tips on how to replace common apps.
DIY: Fix your phone!
You can try to repair your own phone. Some models are easier to repair than others. The website IFixIt offers repair guides: You can repurpose, or ‘upcycle’, an old phone, for example by using it as a GPS tracker.
This publication is a part of the Fix Your Phone Shop, which was presented at the Dutch Design Week 2024. You can download the Apps book here (pdf).
