Help our environment and the planet. Help a
charity and a person in need. And you don't have to do anything except
find the old cell phones collecting dust in a drawer or closet at your
home. Simply turn them in, and get cash or donate it.
How do you
identify the model number of your phone? Please remove the battery pack
from the back of your phone and locate the label (see right) to find the
model number. This sample here is a
Cell
phones contain a rare ore called Coltan used as a semiconductor.
This metal if found in Central Africa. Increased mining operations
means habitat loss and increased hunting pressure on gorillas an
other wildlife.
Wildlife
Reserves suffer most from mining. Two World Heritage sites,
Kahuzi-Biega National Park and Okapi Wildlife Reserve, have suffered
the most damage from mining.
Coltan
mining has helped fund the on-going war in the region.
Cell phone
popularity over the past five years induced a flood of more than
10,000 illegal miners into the "protected" parks. Needing food, they
have hunted gorillas an elephants to near extinction in these areas.
What can
you Do To Help?
Recycle
Your Old Cell Phone! The US is home to more then 150 million
cell phone users (and growing fast). More then 100 million cell
phones are thrown away, or stuffed in a drawer, each year. If fewer
new phones need to be produced, there will be less impact on
gorilla's habitat.
Recycling
goal for your unused cell phones is reuse it in other countries or
nations. All cell phones will be refurbished for reuse.
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed
citizens can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever
has." -Margaret Mead
