NAIROBI, Kenya — U.N. agencies have warned that waste from electronics is piling up worldwide while recycling rates remain low and are likely to fall even further. The agencies were referring to “e-waste,” which is defined as discarded devices with a plug or battery, including cellphones, electronic toys, TVs, microwave ovens, e-cigarettes, laptop computers and … Read more
The phone or computer you’re reading this on may not be long for this world. Maybe you’ll drop it in water, or your dog will make a chew toy of it, or it’ll reach obsolescence. If you can’t repair it and have to discard it, the device will become e-waste, joining an alarmingly large mountain … Read more
Europe is slowly catching up, both in terms of battery production and recycling, with car manufacturers leading the charge to reclaim the valuable materials.The IEA forecasts that recycling could meet up to 12 percent of the EV industry’s demand for lithium, nickel, copper and cobalt by 2040. The Volkswagen Group—which includes Audi, Porsche and other … Read more
The future of recycling is here, and of course, it involves robots and artificial intelligence. Rebecca Hu, the co-founder of the robotics company Glacier, creates robots that help recycling plants separate and, well, recycle material. Before, sorting recyclable materials was a manual job that took hours for someone to do. Today, Glacier has been using … Read more
The Green Ticker certainly pleases environmentally-minded folks who use it by making them feel good that they are keeping plastic out of landfills. But they aren’t the target market. Usually, the interior design firm or whoever runs facilities choose things like this. I wanted to know their motivation behind choosing one of these machines and … Read more
WIRED’s gear team has tested dozens of bags meant to ease commutes and withstand wear and weather. Here, our favorite eco-friendly bags are as capable and durable, but made using recycled materials like plastic water bottles, old nylon, and even fishing nets retrieved from the ocean. It’s important to find ways to reuse what would … Read more
While it is an absolute privilege to lay hands on the latest tech, my home as a gadget reviewer often resembles a warehouse. Piled high with cardboard boxes and cables trailing everywhere, just getting to my desk is a battle on some days. Every surface is littered with chargers, security cameras, routers, and phones. To … Read more
That strategy tapped into deep currents in consumer culture that can drive huge sales—but also overconsumption. “We see all the time that [a customer] wants her Quencher to match her fit, her nail polish, her car, her mood, her kitchen,” Reilly told CNBC in December. “We’re serving her where she wants the product.” Stanley has … Read more
Americans tossed 292.4 million tons of trash into landfills in 2018, or about 5 pounds of garbage per person per day. Once in a landfill, much of that trash undergoes some wild chemistry, often polluting the surrounding area. But amid all the stinking refuse is potentially valuable material, and some environmentalists and engineers see landfills … Read more
NAIROBI, Kenya — Efforts to create a landmark treaty to end global plastic pollution are advancing Monday in Nairobi as most of the world’s nations, plus petrochemical companies, environmentalists and others affected by the pollution gather to discuss draft language for the first time. It’s the third gathering in a compressed five-meeting schedule intended to … Read more