DENVER, July 2, 2019 /3BL Media/ – Arrow Electronics employees in the company’s Manila, Philippines office donated sports equipment, clothing, furniture and other essential items to the Elsie Gaches Village, a residential care facility for children and adults with intellectual disabilities and neuro-developmental disorders. 

“We really enjoyed interacting with the residents and getting to know them better,” said Hai Ling Wong, senior human resources manager, ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) at Arrow. 

More than ten years ago, a small nonprofit and a Dutch company conspired to make a difference in the lives of impoverished Africans. The nonprofit, Close the Gap, collected usable IT equipment from major corporations in Europe. The Dutch company refurbished the various devices and made them suitable for use. And ever since then, together they have been providing computers to those in need, and have deployed more than a half million computers to help bridge the digital divide.

In case you haven’t noticed, the recycling industry is in trouble. I feel fortunate that although some folks think of us as electronics recyclers, we are emphatically not in the recycling business. Our mantra is “Reuse First” and we provide data security and environmentally preferable outcomes for the assets entrusted to us by our customers.

I’ve been focused on electronics at end of life since 2008, when I did the research for Green IT For Dummies.In the past eight years, the growth in electronic waste has exploded, making it the fastest-growing waste stream in the world.