By Mansi Vasisht:
Nearly a decade ago, smartphones didn’t exist- at least not the way they do today.
Our obsession with ever-advancing technology has placed a high standard on all of our products, demanding that each generation quickly improves upon the last.
Electronic waste is one of the fastest growing segments of our nation’s waste stream.
Reduce, Reuse and Recycle are terms most commonly associated with items such as paper, plastic and glass. The need to recycle these items is understood because of the global impact consuming and discarding them can have; and when their only purpose seems to be to occupy space in a landfill.
But what about e-waste?
E-waste can be some of the most dangerous discarded items, but they are rarely seen as such. And why is that? The reason often comes down to their packaging, i.e. part of the problem is the packaging of these devices. Their sleek and appealing exteriors make it hard to see them as waste.
The effects of improper E-waste disposal are not known well, but they have a real global impact on the earth’s water, air and soil.
So, the question that now arises is – since e-waste is so detrimental to the environment, what can we do with it?
Authorised recycling is the answer to this question.
Authorised recycling e-waste enables us to recover various valuable metals and other materials from electronics, thus saving natural 
We have some great initiatives like Pick My Trash which ensure that your e-waste is scientifically recycled by authorised recyclers, and we can handover our recyclable waste to them and make sure they don’t end up polluting our environment.
We all need to manage and dispose off our e-waste responsibly to ensure that we live a healthy life on a healthy planet.
Mansi is currently interning with Chintan’s Scavengers to Managers program.