The e-Stewards Newsletter
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The Circular is a bi-monthly newsletter produced by e-Stewards, containing program news, resources, and perspectives -- all relevant information on the world of electronics recycling. The Circular aims to connect the e-Stewards community of recyclers, refurbishers, enterprises, and individuals, with all who share the goal of ensuring an ethical circular economy for electronics. It is a publication open to all.
To join or sign up new members to the Circular, click here.
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e-Stewards Receives Record Support for E-Scrap
Samsung and Greenchip lead with Platinum e-Stewards E-Scrap sponsorships, URT and Ingram are Gold
e-Stewards Processors and Enterprises demonstrated great support for e-Stewards by helping underwrite our presence at the upcoming E-Scrap Conference in New Orleans. Sixteen companies in total sponsored (see below). Samsung Electronics America and Greenchip E-waste & ITAD Solutions generously provided Platinum Level sponsorships, and Universal Recycling Technologies and Ingram Micro Services provided Gold Level sponsorships. e-Stewards wants to thank the generosity of all the companies below for their show of support. We look forward to seeing them in person at E-Scrap Conference next week!
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Platinum Level:
Greenchip E-waste & ITAD Solutions
Samsung Electronics America
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Gold Level:
Ingram Micro Services
Universal Recycling Technologies
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Silver Level:
ARCOA Group
Friendly Earth International, Inc.
Kuusakoski US
Regency Technologies
Bronze Level:
AnythingIT
CompuCycle
Dynamic Lifecycle Innovations
eLoop
Electronic Responsible Recyclers (ER2)
Liquid Technology
Orion Registrar
RIOS
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e-Stewards to Attend E-Scrap Conference 2022
Jim Puckett, Prema George, and Daniel Puckett of e-Stewards will be attending next week's E-Scrap Conference in New Orleans, September 19 – 21. We want to let you know about the many different opportunities to meet our team and learn more about the e-Stewards Standard, certification, and programs throughout the conference.
Look out for e-Stewards at three events:
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e-Stewards: A Primer on Principled and Practical Certification for Electronics Recyclers and Refurbishers: e-Stewards will be hosting a workshop on Certification on Monday at 1 pm for those interested in learning more about our Standard and what it means to become e-Stewards certified.
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Sustainability and Social Good, Part 2: Innovative Models: Sam Morris of Blue Star, an e-Stewards recycler, will be speaking on Wednesday at 9:45 am about the ADVANCE+ program for workforce inclusion, featuring a short film.
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The Latest on Global Trade Regulations: Jim will be speaking on Wednesday at 11:45 am on how new international trade rules affect the electronics recycling and reuse industry.
In addition to these events, please visit us at the e-Stewards booth, complete with ample seating to offer a relaxed atmosphere amidst the busy conference. Stop by any time to say hello, ask questions, and discuss becoming certified!
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October Face-to-Face Leadership Council Meeting
The long-awaited in-person post-pandemic 25th Leadership Council meeting is scheduled for October 13 – 14 in Seattle. We look forward to a productive meeting with a chance to introduce several new members. The Leadership Council has recently gained three new members: Mary Hemmersbach, McKenna Morrigan, and Patrick O’Hara, with a few more to come. Each of these is replacing a former representative from their respective organizations. We welcome their attendance and unique perspectives joining our illustrious group.
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Mary Hemmersbach (Director of Corporate Compliance, Dynamic Lifecycle Innovations) oversees legal and certification compliance and environmental health & safety programs while supporting Dynamic’s strategic initiatives. She believes that her technical knowledge and expertise in occupational health & safety, environmental stewardship, sustainability initiatives, and corporate compliance will offer a unique perspective to the Leadership Council as we work to influence competitive advantages for e-Stewards certified recyclers.
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McKenna Morrigan (Strategic Advisor, Waste Prevention and Product Stewardship, City of Seattle) has worked on product stewardship and responsible recycling of electronics. McKenna is a strong advocate of certification systems and transparency to achieve responsible reuse and recycling. McKenna, along with Seattle Public Utilities, remains committed to promoting the use of e-Stewards certified recyclers for public and private electronics recycling in Washington through their representation on the Leadership Council.
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Patrick O’Hara (President / CEO, Kuusakoski US) has been working closely with electronics recyclers for more than 15 years. His passion lies in responsibly diverting material from the waste stream and working on recyclers doing the right thing while operating above board with the highest standards. He believes that with his vision and experience he would be a valuable participant in the Leadership Council.
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e-Stewards’ New Business and Communications Managers |
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The e-Stewards team has grown, adding two new positions to its ranks. Daniel Puckett will be joining the team as e-Stewards Business Manager. In this role, he will ensure the efficiency of the e-Stewards business operations, organizing and conducting recruitment of e-Stewards Processors and Enterprises, as well as developing and maintaining those relationships while implementing the program's strategic goals. Daniel attended his first electronics recycling conference at the age of ten. After studying at California State Polytechnic University, Daniel left school to pursue his passion for entrepreneurship. He soon launched his first business, Boom Foods. While together, Daniel and Jim would brainstorm about business and sustainability. When the opportunity to assist with e-Stewards arose he jumped at the chance. When not working on Boom or e-Stewards, he enjoys fishing, and listening to entrepreneurial podcasts.
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Additionally, David Barford, our Administrative Assistant since the spring of 2021, has moved into the role of Communications Manager. He will continue to produce the e-Stewards newsletter, the Circular, create press releases and announcements, and maintain and enhance external public communications for e-Stewards. David began his career as a professional musician, holding both undergraduate and graduate degrees in oboe performance, and served as Principal Oboe with the Tucson Symphony Orchestra for six seasons. Deciding he needed a change in scenery and climate, he moved to Seattle in the spring of 2020. Whether writing and performing educational music shows for schools, volunteering at his local food bank, fostering dogs, or now advocating for ethical electronics recycling with e-Stewards, he has always strived to serve his community. He enjoys hiking, exploring the music scene of Seattle, and playing with his “tri-pawed” Lab named Duke and tuxedo cat Monty.
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Samsung Partners with iFixIt
Samsung, an e-Stewards Enterprise, has launched a new program for self-repair with device repair advocates and experts at iFixIt, enabling consumers to more easily maintain their own devices. With this partnership, consumers will be able to access free repair manuals and buy parts through iFixIt for certain Samsung phones and tablets. Samsung will also accept returns of broken parts for proper recycling. e-Stewards Enterprises are committed to make best efforts to use e-Stewards certified recyclers to safely, ethically, and responsibly recycle their IT assets.
2022 Introductory Discount until the End of the Year!
e-Stewards is currently offering a one-time introductory rate for e-Stewards V4.1 Certification for e-cyclers, processors, and refurbishers. Sign-up with a Certifying Body before December 31, 2022, and you will receive 50% off your annual license fee for the first year. Please click here for more details and share with others who may be interested!
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e-Stewards Guidance Tip
Tolling Operations where the Organization's customer is an individual: Some e-Stewards were concerned that our tolling language (Section 8.4.4) would mean that when they offer an individual repair service for electronic equipment they would have to enter into serious contractual requirements informing them of hand-off conditions, import and export laws, etc. In fact, the tolling requirements were meant for Business-to-Business relationships involving large-scale transactions which might be formed to provide a loophole from the e-Stewards Basel Convention compliance. We have now added new guidance which reads:
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"Where the Organization’s customer is an individual (e.g. a customer seeking to having their own equipment repaired and returned), the Organization need not follow the conditions of Section 8.4.4 (b,c, and d). It is, however, recommended that such a customer be advised of the benefits of e-Stewards data sanitization and ethical disposition for such time as they might wish to discard the device.” |
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Tech Resale suspended for multiple CNCs
The Basel Action Network (BAN), the administrator of e-Stewards, has found multiple Critical Non-Conformities in the practices of former e-Stewards certified company Tech-Resale of Cedar City, Utah. The Critical Non-Conformities findings include:
- Willful transboundary movements of materials of concern to developing countries on multiple occasions
- Bringing discredit to the e-Stewards program
- Willful misrepresentation of facts on multiple occasions
While Tech Resale’s certification lapsed during the period of the investigation and the e-Stewards program discouraged recertification during that time, this finding forbids Tech Resale’s e-Stewards recertification for a minimum of two years from August 15, 2022, as well as being contingent on reaching a resolution with their aggrieved customer (WT World Trading, Inc.). We urge stakeholders of the e-Stewards program to take appropriate steps, after learning of this information, to endeavor to ensure responsible downstream management of their electronic equipment.
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Hollywood, FL. Bill Morris describing the ADVANCE+ program to attendees at the ITAD Summit 2022 this past July. At the conference, e-Stewards debuted its new short film documenting its ADVANCE+ workforce inclusion program. The program has recently opened its doors to all Certified e-cyclers, with discounts given to e-Stewards Certified companies for the ADVANCE+ Training/Employer Development program run by the James Emmett Company. Please contact Bill Morris, e-Stewards Social Impact Committee Chair, for more information. You can also learn more about the program by watching our recent webinar update on the 2022 program.
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Staff Thoughts: ITAD Summit Success
The e-Stewards team attended the ITAD Summit in July in Hollywood, FL. Daniel Puckett, e-Stewards’ new Business Manager, helped run the e-Stewards booth, attended panels, and was reminded of his unique childhood where his dad, BAN founder Jim Puckett, towed him to several e-scrap events.
"I went to my first electronics recycling and reuse industry conference at around ten years old, and going to ITAD this year brought back the same level of childhood excitement. New people to meet, unlimited learning about the industry, and of course a great breakfast. Between Bill Morris’s inspiring presentation about the growth of the ADVANCE+ workforce inclusion program, the debut of our short film highlighting it, and introducing new processors to e-Stewards at our booth, I can say that this conference was even better than my first. Thank you to the ITAD conference organizers and everyone we met there -- see you next year!”
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Groups seek to maintain momentum for SEERA
After being included in the COMPETES Act which passed the U.S. House of Representatives, the Secure E-Waste Export and Recycling Act (SEERA) was unfortunately not included in the final CHIPS Act, which was passed by Congress and signed by President Biden in August. SEERA would promote responsible, domestic recycling to finally stop the flow of toxic e-waste exports from the U.S., which harm the environment and workers in developing countries. It would also provide additional data security to the U.S. supply chain, as noted in an op-ed by Neil Peters-Michaud, CEO of Cascade Asset Management. The Coalition for American Electronics Recycling (CAER) continues to advocate for the bill’s passage by encouraging Congressional leadership to consider other vehicles with which to pass SEERA into law and will participate in a Congressional staff briefing next week to continue advocacy in this regard. Congressional Leadership has indicated it would be considering additional legislative opportunities for the Bills and sections as part of the House-Senate Conference to advance the Bi-Partisan Innovation Act (“China Bill”).
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E-Scrap Conference
September 19 – 21, 2022: New Orleans, LA
e-Stewards Leadership Council Meeting
October 13 - 14, 2022: Seattle, WA
Electronics Reuse Conference
November 14 – 16, 2022: Denver, CO
International Electronics Recycling Congress
January 18 – 20, 2023: Salzburg, Austria
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About e-Stewards:
The e-Stewards® Initiative is a market-based solution to help individuals and organizations identify and promote electronics recyclers who ensure that used electronics are managed with the highest environmental and social responsibility standards. e-Stewards Certified Recyclers and Refurbishers are audited and certified to ensure the highest levels of responsibility. e-Stewards Enterprises are major corporations, municipalities, nonprofits, or institutions that agree to make their best efforts to use e-Stewards Certified Recyclers. e-Stewards is a program established by the environmental advocacy organization Basel Action Network. See e-Stewards Video.
Do you have news, photos, or videos about your company? We welcome news and invite you to share ideas with [email protected]. Thank you for reading!
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