Hello? Your Conscience Is Calling….For Fairphone!

Mobile phones are useful, but also, pretty much pure evil, thanks to the way they’re made and how they control us. But not Fairphone!

By Arwa Lodhi

We may think that Smartphones are super; they are now objects we simply can’t live without. We dress them up in pretty cases, sleep with them beside the bed, and feel lost without them.

While it’s true that for many under the age of 20 the concept of each person having individual phones is completely normal, not long ago, phones were communal. Yep, just one would serve a whole household, a whole office, or even an entire street, in the case of phone boxes.

Today, not only does every person seem to need their own phone, (which is wasteful enough), but we forget all the resources that go into making it.

What’s more, smartphones are usually deliberately manufactured so they are impossible to repair. This means it’s usually easier for customers (and more profitable for manufacturers) to replace broken ones with new.

Combine that will built-in obsolescence (meaning your Galaxy or iPhone is made to just stop working, all of a sudden) and the introduction of ‘must have’ new models, manufacturers of smartphones have us all by the throat.

In fact, last year alone, 1.7 billion new phones were sold. And that number is set to grow year after year.

The Ethical Problems With Smartphones

Clearly, smartphones come with a lot of baggage. Not only do they harm your eyes, disrupt your sleeping patterns, track you, violate your privacy and cause specific kinds of addictions, but there’s more. Conflict zones like the Democratic Republic of Congo still supply key metals used in manufacturing, and ethical labour practices are rare.

In fact, phones are sometimes assembled by child workers and/or in sweatshops. In addition, most smartphones are not properly recycled. This leads to not only the waste of their valuable components, but to an increasingly large, terribly toxic rubbish heap.

But there is hope for better practice! A team of Dutch designers has dreamed up the Fairphone. This ethical and sustainable phone will start shipping to European consumers beginning this autumn.

Why Fairphone Is Better

Fairphone’s first handset will be made up of minerals that are 100% conflict-free. Later versions plan to use only recycled materials. Fair wages are paid in the factory where they are assembled.

What’s more, Fairphone will allow for easier phone repairs by selling spare parts of all the essential components. No single operating giant will dominate the phones. Owners can also install the operating system of their choice. And when it’s time to recycle the phone, the Fairphone team will help connect consumers with the best programs.

But for now–with the hope that the phones will stay in use longer than usual–Fairphone is helping support recycling of other companies’ phones. Plus, they will donate  €3 from each sale to removing electronic waste in Ghana.

Has your conscience picked up this call?

Learn more about Fairphone here.

Have an old phone you’ve been meaning to recycle?  Take action!