[X4U] Recycling Mac's

[Jim Scott]

On Feb 8, 2007, at 7:56 PM, Daly Jessup wrote:

> Jim wrote:
>
> I've found new homes for more than 500 older Macs in the last 4.5  
> years of my retirement. I've placed hundreds of 520-5400 all-in- 
> ones everywhere from K-3 classrooms to needy kid's homes, and the  
> like.
<snip>
>
> Last night I went to our monthly Mac User Group meeting here in San  
> Diego. I had a perfectly working Epson 777 color inkjet printer  
> which contained almost new color and black ink cartridges plus two  
> brand new color and black Epson original cartridges. It included  
> the driver installer CD and power and USB cables. I was unable to  
> give it to any member. One lady who is head of technology at the  
> local elementary schools said she could not accept  it. The schools  
> were accepting nothing less than color laser printers.
>
> Incredible. I could only imagine the teachers who are paying for  
> supplies out of their own pockets while the district won't permit  
> them to accept donations like this.  I mean this printer would at  
> least  have permitted some teacher to print out an entire learning  
> module and reports before she had to dispose of it.
>
> It made me sick. Our Mac User Group has almost entirely  
> discontinued its once vibrant "School Program" because the  
> impoverished district won't allow them to accept any but the most  
> modern of Macs, the kind that no one not out of their mind would   
> consider giving away. Meanwhile, teachers are having to buy pencils  
> and protractors out of their own pockets.
>
> Hmpf.
>
> Daly

I'm up the coast in Humboldt County, Eureka to be exact. I ran into  
the same thing. Each school district has its own standards for  
equipment, so if you try to donate to the school something that's  
below their standards, they won't accept it.

So, what I've done is go to the teachers directly, and give the Macs  
to them. Teachers have a lot of latitude about what they can bring  
into the classroom in the way of tools and supplies to get their jobs  
done. A number of teachers who have asked me to give them Macs also  
have brought their old Macs and printers into the classrooms in my  
county. I now regularly get requests from teachers for Macs, either  
for their classrooms, or for students they think would benefit by  
having one at home. There also are a lot of non-public schools that  
have received my Macs -- church schools, private schools, etc. I've  
even given Macs to day care operators.

Another way I've found to place Macs and Mac peripherals is to put  
offers on Freecycle that say: "Free Mac Computers for Kids Only" or  
"Free Mac Computers for Teachers Only", etc. Works like a charm. I  
occasionally put ads in the "Free Ads" section of my local daily  
newspaper. One Saturday, more than 4 dozen people showed up to get 50  
working laptops and desktop Macs I had on the floor of my garage. I  
opened the door at 8:55 because the crowd was getting antsy, and by  
9:10 everything was gone.

There are a lot of creative ways of finding new users for old Macs.  
My problem in our large rural county with a population of only  
120,000 is finding the old Macs. Of the way more than 500 Macs I've  
given away, close to 180 came from MacRenewal in Eugene, OR. But I  
can't afford to drive 620 miles and rent a truck to haul them here  
anymore. The e-waste recycling law that went into effect in  
California about a year ago also has dried up some former sources of  
old Macs as e-waste recyclers have gone around getting them to sign  
exclusive disposal contracts. That has caused me to use Freecycle,  
Craigslist, and other creative ways to keep a steady stream of Macs  
heading my way.

The message is: Don't get grumpy, get creative ... and proactive.

Jim