Explore
A few of our favorite sources for learning about where our stuff comes from and what happens after we’re done with it.
General
Industrial Design
Books
US Organizations
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Patagonia
Patagonia is working toward sustainable design and offers repair manuals for much of the clothing they sell.
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Earth 911
Use this guide to find a reputable electronics recycler near you.
- Dell / Goodwill Reconnect Dell and Goodwill refurbish, repair, and resell millions of used electronics every year.
- Reuse Alliance This network of reuse centers and secondhand retailers are on the front lines of the fight against waste.
- repair.org: The Repair Association This organization is fighting for your right to repair everything you own.
- Hennepin County Fixit Clinic These Minnesota Twin Cities folks hold monthly Fix-It Clinics to help people learn how to fix their broken stuff."
- BAN The Basel Action Network supports legal reform to reduce e-waste.
- Fixers Collective These New Yorkers get together once a month to fix some stuff.
- Electronics Take-Back Coalition These folks fight for retailers to take back the products they sell at the end of life.
- Fixit Clinic These Bay Area folks help you open up your broken stuff, learn how it works, and repair it.
EU Organizations
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Repair Café
Europe-wide movement of grassroots repair meetups. Go to a meeting or start a repair community near you.
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Fairphone
Makers of the ethical cell phone, Fairphone is working to change the way our electronics are manufactured.
- RReuse A European network of repairers that supports reuse, repair, and recycling efforts.
- Phonebloks Phonebloks is building a phone that will last forever.
- Free ICT Europe European alliance that defends the freedom to support, repair, and resell vital technologies.
- Reuse Verein An enthusiastic group of German repair and reuse companies working on defending your right to repair.
- Restart Project A London-based social enterprise that empowers people to use their electronics longer, by learning repair skills.
- Ellen MacArthur Foundation Ellen MacArthur is helping build an economy without waste.
Consumer Guides
Reports
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Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Circular Economy Reports
In a world of finite resources, we can’t consume infinitely.
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The Great Recovery
An investigation by the RSA into the role of design in the circular economy.
- EPA e-waste report This report has data about exactly how much e-waste we make and what we’re doing about it.
- Gaia Foundation, “Short Circuit: The Lifecycle of Our Gadgets and the True Cost to Earth” The Gaia Foundation has dug deep into the electronics supply chain.
- US International Trade Commission Used Electronic Exports Report The International Trade Commission called a bunch of industry experts to speak about e-waste.
- Basel Convention’s E-Waste Africa Project Electronics adoption rates in Africa are probably higher than you think.
- WRAP, “Switched onto Value” Market researchers in the UK discovered that most people really do care about product longevity.
- United Nations Environment Program Metal Recycling Report This report explores just how much material really is recovered when we recycle metals.