Students Demand Dell Recycle Computers

Students and Dell computers. These days, the two go hand-in-hand. Or that's what Steven, Dell's half student/half surfer spokesperson would have us believe. With his obnoxious antics and continuous presence on televisions across the country, Steven is drilling catch phrases like, "Dude, you should have bought a Dell!" into the minds of the next generation of college students. Whether they relate to him or not, the Steven campaign may just be helping Dell corner the college market.

Since the campaign began just over a year ago, Dell reports a 100 percent increase in consumer sales. While young customers may be drawn to Dell's affordable prices and catchy marketing tactics, they may be overlooking the fact that the company is counting on them to buy a brand new computer in a just few years. When this happens, their outdated or defunct computers have to be thrown away or recycled.

That's where the Computer Take Back Campaign comes in. The campaign's new site, www.toxicdude.org, calls on Dell to become a leader in environmental responsibility and offers up a wealth of information about the need for computer recycling programs. The site uses Steven's newly-famous chesire grin and, in a subversive play on his gimmicky teen language, reads: "the computers on your campus are totally toxic."

Tens of millions of computers become obsolete in the United States every year because of growing sales and shorter life spans. One of the largest known sources of heavy metals like lead, mercury, and other pollutants, discarded electronics threaten public health and the environment. Campaign organizer, Kara Reeve, explains that because of "the growing amount of electronic waste, the high levels of toxins found in computers, and the issue of exporting computer waste to third world nations" the Computer Take Back Campaign intends to target Dell as a leader in the computer industry and to demand responsibility for the duration of their products' life span.

		"The corporate world has too much leeway without facing any consequences. It's our responsibility to step up and say 'no, we aren't going to take it!'"

What would this mean exactly? Well, instead of donating used computers or putting them out the street, the Computer Take Back Campaign wants companies like Dell to make it easier for computer owners to send their equipment back to its producers at no cost. Basically the campaign is asking Dell to offer the same programs in the United States as it offers its European customers. In Germany, Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands, and Denmark, Dell provides programs that take back computers for free. The computers are then reused, recycled, or disposed of appropriately according to each country's environmental standards. European producer responsibility laws require companies to offer such programs to ensure that valuable materials are recycled and their products do not end up in landfills.

Because of Dell's efforts to gain college-aged consumers, the Computer Take Back Campaign is especially reliant upon student activism to launch this movement. Kara explains, "Dell is the leading seller of computers to government agencies and educational institutions. Since we are organizing on campuses and many colleges have contracts with Dell, students can put pressure on their school to negotiate contracts with Dell that include Take Back."

While the campaign is just beginning, some students are rising to the challenge. "The corporate world has too much leeway without facing any consequences. It's our responsibility to step up and say 'no, we aren't going to take it!'" says Karl Horberg, a second-year at American University in Washington D.C. Every computer at AU facilities is a Dell and every student receives an email from university administration at the beginning of the school year encouraging them to buy a Dell. Karl, who is also working as an intern for Ecopledge and Freedomplanet this fall, says he hopes that students who feel targeted by Dell ads will also get involved in the campaign.