As a digital defector's scrap metal

Strings of lights in the trees in the yard. Candlesticks in the windows. Christmas carols on the cell phone.

The Christmas atmosphere is electric. And not just from the anticipation of a red-haired guest. Christmas is created with the help of a wide variety of electrical and electronic devices.

When the red-faced guest arrives, more gadgets are revealed from the children's packages. A flossing sloth, a crying doll, a barking balloon dog. Various electronic and interactive toys are also popular gifts this Christmas.

The pineal gland has come a long way in terms of electricity.

We are used to electrical and electronic devices supporting our everyday lives. Electronics are increasingly creeping into new areas.

In the morning, many of us wake up to a timed light in a motorized bed, check the quality of our sleep on our smart ring, brush our teeth with an electric toothbrush, and whip up breakfast in a blender.
We might wear a shirt that monitors our well-being. Maybe we commute to work in an electric car or bus. Our door locks behind us with an electric lock. Or we work remotely from home. Devices, cables, and wireless connections bring everything we need to us.

And it's not just us surfing the web, but also the household appliances, objects and goods we own.

Accelerating digitalization is a nightmare for recyclers.

Last year, the world generated more than 50 million tons of electrical and electronic waste (WEEE). More than ever before. By 2030, the amount is expected to increase to 75 million tons.

The world's natural resources will by no means be sufficient for the digitalization of societies unless the resulting SER can be collected and recycled more comprehensively than is currently the case.

Currently, less than 18 percent of global e-waste streams are recycled. Recycling technologies are nearly impossible to separate all materials from increasingly complex devices.

As clothing, toys and other common objects are connected to electricity, an increasing proportion of all municipal waste generated will be solid waste.

Recycling processes should evolve at a speed that even Santa Claus can't. Recycling technology is evolving, but it doesn't want to keep up with the development of device technology.

Perhaps the solution can be found in consumption and business models that are in line with the circular economy, which guide the design of devices to be longer-lasting and repairable.

What if people in the future no longer buy devices to fill their homes with, but instead lease and rent them? Even gift packages would reveal a toy lending library pass.

While we wait for the development of circular economy business models, we will have to live in the midst of increasing electronic waste.

When the flossing sloth left over from Christmas finally stops moving, we can at least return the device to the SER recycling bin.

Elina Saarinen
editor-in-chief

The article has been published as an editorial. Uusiouutisetin the magazine 7/20, which was published on December 11.12.2020, XNUMX.

Photo: Tero Pajukallio.