The Electronic Waste
Code of EthicsTM
as of 01 November 2010:
We
pledge:
1.
To educate youth about the global problem of Electronic Waste (“e-waste”), and
to support their efforts to develop solutions;
2.
To convince manufacturers to build electronics from materials that do not harm
any form of life, and that are designed to be easily broken down and completely
re-used at the end of their lifecycles;
3.
To advocate for practices designed to neutralize the carbon footprint of
electronics throughout their lifecycles;
4.
To create less electronic waste by limiting our electronics purchases, and by
using our electronics until they stop working;
5.
To manage our e-waste in a manner that protects and safeguards all forms of
life;
6.
To transport our e-waste safely, in a carbon-neutral manner, and in compliance
with local, state and federal laws;
7.
To re-use, repair, salvage, and recycle our e-waste in accordance with the
highest ethical and international standards, even when these standards exceed
the requirements of our local, state, and federal laws;
8.
To stop our e-waste from being dumped or deposited into solid waste landfills,
or from being incinerated;
9.
To ensure that our e-waste is not dumped in developing countries;
10.
To keep child labor and prison labor from manufacturing our electronics or
processing our e-waste;
11.
To employ only those electronics recyclers who abide by this Code of Ethics;
12.
To encourage educational institutions, corporations, and governments to create
curricula, programs, and incentives designed to support “Green Chemistry” so as
to promote the creation of molecules and materials that do not harm life;
13.
To patronize those manufacturers who agree “take back” their electronics at the
end of their lifecycles and process them in accordance with the principles in
this document;
14.
To support the passage of legislation that requires every manufacturer,
handler, transporter, and recycler of used electronics meet the highest ethical
and international standards;
15.
To employ, when necessary, independent audits or other mechanisms to verify
that our electronics are manufactured, re-used, repaired and/or recycled in
accordance with the principles herein, and,
16.
To share our knowledge about the challenge of e-waste with our families,
friends, classmates, colleagues, neighbors, customers, suppliers, employers,
and elected representatives.