Guest blog from PC donor, Hornsby House School!

Hornsby House have just donated their unwanted ICT to Computer Aid and Alistair Gerry, Assistant Head and Head of ICT at the school, contributed the following to our blog.

“As Head of ICT at Hornsby House School, an independent co-educational prep school for 4-11 year olds in Wandsworth, London, I know how important ICT is to children in the UK. It’s essential for all the pupils at our school to gain a good understanding of ICT and to start learning the skills required in the wider world – and the children here use ICT for everything from researching projects to playing games, reading and art. Having seen the benefits that computer skills can bring to our pupils, we wanted to help ensure children in developing countries also get the chance to learn these skills as IT literacy is essential for children the world over.

 “As part of the school’s five-year plan for expanding our ICT facilities, we replaced and upgraded 36 computers and, instead of sending them to be recycled, we wanted to make sure that they could be used by children in developing countries who also need to learn these essential ICT skills but have far less access to computers than children in the UK.

“We decided to donate the 36 computers to ComputerAid so that they would have a new lease of life. These ex-Hornsby House computers were collected, data wiped and refurbished and are now on their way to a range of projects around the world, including Chilenter, an organisation in Chile, whose aim is to ensure that schools in the poorest and most isolated areas have access to ICT.

“We are very happy that these computers will contribute to the excellent work being done by ComputerAid and their partner organisations in developing countries and hope to be able to make further donations to ComputerAid in the future as we continue to replace our school computers every four years.”

Thanks to Hornsby House and all our other donors for your equipment this year, it’s very much appreciated!

Bringing IT into Education in Papua New Guinea

Our Trusts Partnerships Officer, Sion Jones, has recently returned from Papua New Guinea where he visited a number of projects to report on how IT was being used in schools. Having recently written up a project overview, we thought we’d share some of his insights on ICT use within the country and the schools he visited…

Recently I was able to visit a project that was started a year ago in the Western Highlands province of Papua New Guinea. Deploying 100 refurbished PCs to a primary and secondary school, the project faced a number of challenges in order to establish strong examples of the role IT can play in children’s education.

Papua New Guinea (PNG) is roughly double the size of the UK, but has a population of only 7 million. Mountainous terrain and a lack of infrastructure means travelling between the main towns is largely done by air. The country is incredibly culturally diverse, with over 850 native languages – a fact that almost every Papua New Guinean is proud of and mentions at every opportunity. Around 80% of the population live in rural areas, with subsistence farming their primary activity. Social relationships are built through the ‘wantok’ system whereby individuals build strong social bonds based on family relationship, community ties or perhaps a common language, establishing an obligation to help your fellow ‘wantok’ when in need.

 

Abundant natural gas is becoming a key export, but investment in energy infrastructure is also driving up costs across the economy, making life for ordinary Papua New Guineans increasingly difficult. Prices are also high due to the lack of infrastructure, meaning transporting products and goods into or around the country is very expensive. Food, accommodation and transport costs are comparable to, if not more expensive, than the UK.

Whilst enjoying lifestyles enriched with unparalleled cultural diversity, a variety of fresh fruit and vegetables, strong family units and social relationships, many Papua New Guineans are income poor, with over half of the population living on less than US$2 (Purchasing Power Parity) a day. Families struggle to pay education fees, selling any surplus home-grown produce in the local market to generate income, with the government only contributing around a third of school budgets.

Security is also a concern when travelling and operating in PNG. Tribal violence occasionally flares up, car-jackings and other forms of crime are common. Despite this, the ‘wantok’ system provided a significant level of security, without which it would have been difficult, if not impossible, for me to travel around the country.

Looking at education, there is significant untapped potential amongst students who show a strong eagerness to learn, but often go to schools with poor infrastructure and a lack of resources. School budgets are limited by parents’ ability to contribute fees making donor support for significant improvements to facilities and resources necessary. Most schools don’t have any computers, and the cost of purchasing new machines locally is prohibitively high.

Working with Local Partners

In this project, we worked with the Melanesia Education Development Foundation (MEDF). Established in 2000, MEDF work to improve education in PNG by providing, among other things, a scholarship and sponsorship program to support students from low income families in primary, secondary and tertiary education as well as providing textbooks and library books, school uniforms, computers and other resources to schools. They also operate Peace Training Programs which work at a community level to address and overcome social issues and tribal tensions within PNG.

MEDF’s capacity to reach remote communities at an appropriate level is illustrative of their experience and expertise within the country. They draw heavily on voluntary support and good will, having established a network of associates and supporters in key positions of community influence across the country in order to facilitate the delivery and implementation of their numerous projects. This less formal network structure can present challenges but is also vital to being able to operate effectively within PNG.

Kudjip Primary School

The first school I visited was Kudjip Primary School, located in a rural area in the Western Highlands. Surrounded by a population of 40,000, many parents earn a modest income from the local tea plantation. Many of the students’ parents sold excess produce in the small market outside the school. The school had received 50 refurbished computers at the start of the year, but it had taken a few months to prepare the classroom and hire a teacher. There are now 2 IT teachers at the school, however there is a shortage in the country as a whole.

On completion of their studies, students receive a certificate in IT which only one other school in the region provides. With 900 students, the school also receives children from a number of feeder schools in surrounding communities who come to study grades 7 and 8.

The time I spent with the teachers was inspiring. Clearly dedicated to the education of their students, the teachers emphasised the value and significance of having the ability to introduce their children to IT, and the impact it will have on their lives in the future. Ms Tukne, a teacher of 19 years at Kudjip, spoke of how the school was living a dream, having hoped for so long they could have a computer lab for their children. She explained that seeing their students leaving the school with a certificate in IT was a massive achievement for their school. Such sentiments were echoed by other teachers and students.

Mt Hagen Secondary School

The second school I visited was Mt. Hagen Secondary School, located near the centre of the small town of Mt Hagen. 75% of the students families were local subsistence farmers and were unable to pay all of the students fees on time, and so the school worked with a challenging budget. With a student population of 1,370, the school was very happy to receive 50 refurbished PCs in addition to the existing computer lab which contained computers donated by AusAID in 1998. The new computers funded by BFSS meant the school would now be able to extend IT education to grades 9 and 10. The school currently had 2 IT teachers and were planning on hiring another shortly.

One of the key resources available at Mt Hagen Secondary School is IT teacher, Mr Dave Ogles. An expatriate from the UK, Mr Ogles has been teaching in PNG for over 20 years and taught both mathematics and ICT at the school. His insights and honesty regarding the role of ICT in education in PNG were invaluable.

The school was conducting in-service training sessions for teachers, with most being very enthusiastic and moving towards using IT in a number of different subject lessons. Mathematics was a key subject where the school was already using IT in teaching and saw strong potential thanks to a wealth of online resources and the value of displaying graphs and other illustrations on screen. Similarly to observations recently made in Kenya, the presence of a projector was seen as vital in being able to communicate ideas and concepts effectively to the class, as well as helping the teacher to manage and control the students.

Mt Hagen Secondary School displayed significant commitment and innovation in expanding the use of IT in terms of both teaching computer skills and delivering other lessons. There is a lot of potential for the school to become a centre of excellence for such teaching, delivering improvements to education that would be at the forefront of IT use in Papua New Guinea.

Conclusion

The introduction of IT into education is in its very early stages in PNG and the project will act as an example to local schools, politicians and key stake-holders regarding the potential of using computers to teach. Mt Hagen Secondary School is particularly committed and well placed to establish itself as a centre of excellence for IT supported education. The school’s focus on training teachers as well as students, along with its objective of eventually teaching all classes using IT and digital whiteboards makes it an innovative role model for other schools and IT in education initiatives.

There is no doubt that IT can play a significant role in strengthening the provision of education in PNG, and this project is successfully playing a part in that process. Continued support to expand IT in education in PNG will release the potential of students to develop their IT skills and of teachers to innovate in the teaching of all subjects.

Thanks to British Airways for providing the flights to enable this trip to take place!

Top ideas for a fantastic festive fundraiser: how to get your office involved this Christmas

Dig out your baking trays and put on your Santa hats- it’s Christmas and there’s no better time for fancy dress, fun and frolicks!

Christmas is the perfect time to get the whole team together whether its a quick office whip-around, mince pies (and mulled wine?) on a Friday or your Christmas party! And whether you can fundraise for £10 or £10,000 your support will help us combat poverty through practical ICT solutions this Christmas.

We’re raising funds this Christmas to help even more people access the tools they need for development. Getting your office involved in fundraising is a great way to support us- and it’s also great team fun!

Here’s some Christmas fundraising ideas to get your office in the mood this Christmas

A Computer Aid Christmas Party!

Hold a raffle or talent auction to add a bit of excitement to the office party or charge a small entrance fee to come along.

Give it a fancy dress theme, provide some traditional Christmas games, mince pies and mulled wine to make it a party to remember!

Christmas challenge

Get competitive this Christmas! Pitch marketing against sales in some festive games and charge those who enter. Get adventurous with mince pie eating and christmas tree assembling competitions and you could even charge the audience!

Friday treats

Add a bit of sparkle to your Friday with mulled wine and mince pies. Ask everyone for a small donation to join in the festivities at the end of the week.

Be a Christmas Elf

Wrap Christmas presents, peel potatoes or write Christmas cards for your colleagues and donate your earnings to Computer Aid!

Donate your cards

Ditch the cards this Christmas and send merry Christmas emails instead- get everyone involved and you won’t end up with piles of Christmas cards and the money you would have spent will help us combat poverty- far better than yet another Rudolph card!

Bag packing

Help someone pack their potatoes and bag up their bacon for a few hours and take donations for charity! Just ask your local supermarket or shop

Collecting change

A quick office-whip round or a moan jar in the office could see your office making a real difference to the lives of people around the world.

Carol singing

Get a group together, lay down your cap and sing a tune for Computer Aid- Jingle Bells might go down better than Silent Night if you’re not the favourite at Karaoke Night!

Dress up day

Charge everyone £1 to come in fancy dress- and £2 not to!

Nominate Computer Aid for 2012!

Keep the team motivated with engaging fundraising projects all year- we can work together to achieve tangible goals with global reach- get in touch for more info!

What’s it all for?

Computer Aid works to reduce poverty through practical ICT solutions. We work with schools, hospitals and charities in over 100 countries to give people the tools they need to improve their employment, health and development prospects.

We have big plans this Christmas to help even more people access the tools they need for development- please help us achieve our goals this Christmas- a little goes a long way.

Get in touch!

We’re here to help with ideas, tips and advice whether you want to donate £5 or embark on a fundraising project for £5,000 so please do get in touch!

 Whatever you do- enjoy it!

Christmas fundraising should be funs so whatever you get up to this festive season make sure it puts a smile on people’s faces!

Merry Christmas!

ICT and Environment – Waste Side Story, Skopje, Macedonia

I’ve just got back from two days in Skopje, where I attended and presented at the ICT and Environment – Waste Side Story conference. The conference was organised by the Balkan e-Waste Management Advocacy Network (BEWMAN). Computer Aid has been working alongside BEWMAN for the past 18 months to tackle the e-waste problem in the West Balkans, through improved policy and practice across the region. The network is funded by the European Union.

The conference was the final part of the two year funded project and it brought together experts in sustainable IT and e-waste from countries across the Balkans and Europe.

Lovely Autumn view of the Vardar River from outside the conference centre in Skopje

I found the conference very interesting, there were some very good and insightful presentations.

There was a presentation from the Danish media and research organisation, DanWatch, who launched their latest findings on the harmful effects of e-waste, and examined  the exploitation of child labour in Ghana. According to their research (which they took a year and half to complete), children shockingly constitute around 40 percent of the scrap workers working on the toxic e-waste dump sites in Ghana. DanWatch were looking at equipment leaving Denmark that goes to Africa, they found that a lot of the equipment currently being sent out of the country deemed for reuse, has only about half a year’s life left in it. Click here for the full presentation.

David Rochat, from the Swiss Environmental consultancy SOFIES gave a useful presentation on how to implement an efficient e-waste management system. He spoke about the many business opportunities that there are to deal with e-waste. David has experience of setting up e-waste management systems, both in Europe and in developing countries.

Federico Magalini from the UN’s StEP Initiative gave a presentation on the work they are doing in trying to find sustainable solutions to the e-waste problem. StEP is an initiative that the UN set up to facilitate environmentally, economically & socially sound approaches to reduce e-waste flows and handle them in a sustainable way. StEP works closely with NGO’s, OEMs and Recyclers.

At the conference I bought some lovely earrings made from e-waste

There were presentations on the Macedonian and the Bulgarian experiences of e-waste. Bulgaria is in the EU, however Macedonia is not, so they don’t have e-waste legislation in place like we do in the UK, as they don’t have the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (WEEE) in place. Macedonia are currently implementing their own legislation similar to the WEEE legislation.

My presentation looked at solutions to dealing with the problem of e-waste.

All the presentations are available and can be downloaded here.

Anja ffrench, Director of Marketing and Communications, Computer Aid International

Computer Aid launches Best Practice Guide to IT Decommissioning

Computer Aid has been working with independent research company Vanson Bourne to establish current IT decommissioning practices in the UK’s largest companies and we found that:

• 39 per cent of UK’s largest companies do not data wipe all their unwanted PCs

• One-third have decommissioned computers containing data which are unaccounted for

• 1 in 5 senior IT decision makers in the UK are “not confident” that zero per cent of their company’s unwanted IT goes to landfill

• Only 14 per cent follow best practice IT disposal and send their working IT for reuse

These statistics are shocking, particularly when one thinks of the scale of this problem. Each of the 100 companies surveyed are among the largest in the UK with half of the respondents employed in organisations with over 1,000 staff and the other half with over 3,000. Moreover, each company decommissions just under 550 PCs each per year.

With so much IT unaccounted for, sent to landfill or still containing data – it is clear that significant improvements in IT decommissioning has to occur not only to meet basic regulatory and security requirements but also to minimize the damaging impacts e-waste can have on the environment. An estimated 75 per cent of e-waste generated in the EU, equivalent to eight million tonnes a year, is unaccounted for – either sent to landfill, substandard treatment facilities or illegally exported. The toxins in PCs (lead, mercury and arsenic to name just a few) can be damaging to health and the environment and we cannot allow companies in the UK to continue contributing to this damage.

To help IT managers improve their decommissioning procedures, Computer Aid have today launched a Best Practice Guide to IT Disposal – click here to download a free copy. We hope that this information will help companies meet current regulatory requirements around e-waste and improve the environmental and reputational impact of their IT disposal strategies.

Computer Aid launches an advocacy guide on e-waste

Computer Aid recently launched a guide on how to conduct e-waste advocacy at the UN’s Internet Governance Forum in Nairobi, Kenya. The guide is intended for NGOs and civil society groups anywhere in the world to help them campaign for improvement to current systems in their countries and put an end to the harmful social and environmental impacts of electronics.

The problem

The statistics are scary, the United Nations Environment Programme estimates that globally we generate around 50 million tonnes of e-waste per year and, with current trends in electronics design and manufacture driving rapid replacement cycles, this only seems like it will continue to get worse.

Why is Computer Aid concerned?

Of particular concern to Computer Aid is the impact that e-waste has on communities and the environment in developing countries, where we predominantly work. Computer Aid exists to reduce poverty through practical ICT solutions and we work in some of the poorest and most marginalised communities in the world, providing ICT for use in educations, health and agriculture. However, as well as providing essential IT to these communities, we want there to be safe and environmentally friendly facilities for them to get their electronic waste recycled, once it has reached its end of life.

In Europe we have authorised recyclers we can go to, which we take for granted. We also have a law, the WEEE Directive which means that companies within the EU have a legal obligation to ensure their equipment is either reused or recycled. Many countries don’t have these laws and, highly disturbingly, our laws seems to have exacerbated the flow of Europe’s e-waste to countries such as Nigeria, Ghana and China, as it’s so much cheaper to recycle it there. However without proper e-waste laws, the equipment is often recycled in a manner that is extremely harmful to the health of the people working on and living near the recycling sites as well as to the environment.

We want to see systems in place in all countries in the world that ensure the safe and responsible management of e-waste – which is why we’ve published this guide.

Why do we need e-waste advocacy guide?

Computer Aid believes that campaigning and advocacy in this area can make a real difference to policy as well as to awareness among decision makers and the general public.

We, along with other civil society groups and NGO’s in the UK, have been campaigning on e-waste and green IT issues for several years and have seen these changes happen in the UK and in Europe. We’ve learnt a lot from our experiences and wanted to share this knowledge with other organisations who are looking to bring about change in e-waste management in their own countries. We hope that this toolkit will enable other civil society actors to push for changes in their countries and bring about the essential first steps in building the capacity to minimise the environmental, health and social impacts of electronics and e-waste.

The guide takes into account the whole lifecycle of electronics from their manufacture through to their end of life and their disposal. It was written by Computer Aid’s former Environmental Advocacy Officer, Haley Bowcock, in conjunction with our partners in the Balkans the Balkans E-Waste Management Advocacy Network (BEWMAN). The whole project was financed thanks to a grant from the European Union.

Click here to down load the guide

Anja ffrench

Director of Marketing and Communications at Computer Aid International

Why the European Parliament should hold firm on reuse

Significant changes around the reuse of WEEE could be on the cards as MEPs will be voting on the WEEE directive later in the year (see our blog explaining the EU legislative process).  The European Parliament’s (EP) draft report was recently published and the final version is due to be adopted by the EP’s Environment Committee by 4th October 2011.

The EP’s draft report is very welcome as it calls for the establishment of reuse targets. Although the current WEEE Directive does recognise the superior environmental benefits of reuse over recycling, as it contains language that prioritises reuse, there are no specific targets which means that, unfortunately, recycling often becomes the practical reality. The EP has proposed that the new directive would contain separate reuse and recycling targets, and, although some of their suggested reuse targets are far too small (at just 5%), it constitutes an important first step to prioritising reuse over recycling.

We strongly believe there should be targets for reuse, for a number of reasons. The WEEE legislation is based on the waste hierarchy which encourages the prevention of waste, followed by the reuse and refurbishment of goods, then value recovery through recycling and energy recovery being the final option. Mandating reuse targets would help ensure that reuse actually occurred and that disposal of e-waste reflected the priorities in the waste hierarchy.

In the ICT domain, there are many good reasons to prioritise reuse over recycling and we’ve included a few of them below:

First, ICTs are often replaced long before the end of their productive lives. Our recent research conducted by Vanson Bourne found that typically, UK companies replace their base units every 3.7 years. Considering that the average lifespan of a PC is closer to 10 years, these PCs are not even half way through their life when discarded. In addition the energy intensity used in the production of computers rather than in their use phase (80 and 20 percent, respectively) means that any activity that extends their life-such as reuse, is by far the most environmentally superior option.

Finally, reusing PCs can be of huge social benefit to the millions of people who cannot currently afford access to new computers – for example, at Computer Aid we have seen time and again the difference which refurbished PCs can have in developing countries – for some examples see here.

These are just a few of the reasons but for more information on why reuse is better than recycling please take a look at our special report on the subject.

The reuse target is clearly a good thing, however it is far from certain that it will be adopted. Although the EP support a reuse target, both the EP and the Council (made up of the EU member states) have to agree to changes in the WEEE Directive for changes to be made. Because of this, we really hope that the EP will hold firm on the need to have separate reuse targets in the revised WEEE Directive and we would urge the EU member states to consider altering their position on this extremely important issue.