Everything started with a “what if we opt for reuse rather than premature recycling”. In 2014 the Government of Catalonia planned to discard 30,000 computer devices per year until 2019. 92% of the devices were functional and 87% of them were potentially reusable locally by social entities, schools and people digitally excluded. The government wanted to involve all the active reuse centers to do all the work of refurbishing, channeling and tracking these devices. This was the request they made to a research group at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya. A few months later Ereuse.org was launched.
Electronic Reuse Federation
Ereuse.org is a cluster of organisations dedicated to the transition to collaborative and circular consumption of electronics. We motivate and promote the emergence of local autonomous open platforms to reuse electronics that ensure final recycling and verifiable assessment of reuse impact. The eReuse federated members are mainly social economy organizations that refurbish, recycle and distribute second-hand devices such as mobiles, laptops or desktop computers. Our partners are organizations that promote zero waste, circular and social economy, fair electronics, the right to repair and the reduction of the digital divide. In cities, federated members and city councils collaborate and coordinate in reuse circuits with great effect in creating inclusive jobs, starting or accelerating efficiency and scaling up of local exchange/market of second hand devices. Ereuse.org was launched in 2015, we are a project under Pangea.org, a private, independent non-profit organization founded in 1993 to promote the strategic and environmental use of ICT.