Design Project 1 | Interviews

Interview Guide

Overview: we are trying to understand consumer habits around the notion of “electronic waste” - things like computers, cables, monitors, mobile phones, etc. that get replaced every few years. We’re looking to identify how you think about the replacement process and also if/how you dispose of the old materials.

Questions:

• Please describe your electronics purchase process? How much, how often?
• How do you normally dispose of old stuff?
• Recycle?
• Throw?
• Store in a bin?
• Give away?
• What factors do you consider when thinking about the disposal process?
• What makes it easy/hard to recycle such products?
• Other thoughts?

Interview Findings for My Focus Area

Raw Interview Notes

—--- 1 —----

1/12/24 @ 3:00PM PST

Brian Snyder: 40-something, Bay Area based tech partnerships

Proliferation of bins

Old laptops and phones

Hard drives

Why do I have this crap?

Extract data off to cloud

Then hardware itself - convenience factor of annual pickup and keep hoarding it

Buy new stuff? Move stuff over but don’t feel confident about success and had data loss!

Eg picture life - not everything got moved/saved

Cables/wires/chargers sit in a bin

—--- 2 —----

1/12/24 @ 8:00PM PST

Naresh and SeeWai Parshotam: 50-something, Bay Area based tech and accounting executives

TV’s - give it away if functioning or recycle if it doesn’t work

Cables - when break throw it away

Phones etc - upgrade every single version from Apple. Lease the phone - from Apple. Monthly fee and end of year 1 upgrade to next version. Phones got better quality

13-14 jump was not so much better. 15 reviews weren’t positive; extended life. If don’t need the capability

TV in bedroom - 15 years old, prior model

Laptops - run out of life

Cables - obsolete or breaks.

Recology doesn’t have messaging or policy or other

Needs to be simple

Don’t know where it’s going!

Recycle shoes - rabid recyclers

—--- 3 —----

1/13/24 @ 11:00AM PST

Bill McCarthy: 60-something, Indianapolis-based construction executive.

Bit of a gadget guy, replace before it needs to be replaced

Who can i give what I am getting rid of - who to give it to? Repurpose eg Apple Watch - first one to Will; still has second one. Tendency to get new one

Other stuff - when apple came out with imac was first to get new one

Has 3 of them - kept all of them

If you don’t keep up with OS become pretty object that doesn’t do much

Has 3 of them at lake house :)

Make art exhibit out of it!

Did nothing with them - didn’t wipe them, didn’t

Has 4 and only uses one…

Concern about data - phone example, good thing that Apple or ATT will give you a credit and will wipe it and send it back. Doesn’t keep old phones.

Still has first ipod ;)

Cables/connectors/adaptors: there was a time with lots of cables (wires to speakers etc.) still have some of the cords. Occasionally someone will do electronic recycling drive - not very prevalent in the midwest. Have to seek it out even today - need to find a place to do that with. Every couple of years get - try not to throw it.

Needs to be easier and more frequent to make it worthwhile to recycle.

When recycling - try to be discerning about what they’re going to do with it. Concerns about security of what’s on there, are they actually going to recycle appropriately - usually have a nice little flier… materials/metals was “beer money at the job site” but now people are stealing it. Now has to be locked up! Cautious and thoughtful about both value and environmental impact.

—--- 4 —----

1/14/24 @ 9:00AM PST

Catherine Martineau, 50-something, non-profit person

Average consumer of electronics

Often thinks about it, thinks about what happens

Has evolved over the years

Concept of electronic recycling goes back 20+ years? Per her own consciousness; have seen variety of evolutions - who’s offering what service at what price

Think she disposes it appropriately but more conscious about reducicng consumption

Bin the garage full of electronic recycling, put everything in there

Got a flier - company that was going to pick it up in partnership with Recology

Tell them when to pick up, had a link to say what you had, put it on the curb - did that

In the bin: cables, chargers, old phones not worth getting credit for

Computers we remove with hard drive; maybe have a pile of laptops somewhere; uses chromebooks so all in the cloud

Checked online whether it was a legitimate service

Have heard or read horror stories about the crap we dump on different countries and what may happen there; displacing hazard to other areas of the world is main concern

Is there something reusable/recyclabe;

Use it as long as possible; pixel8 replacing

Giving it away - if it is in a good condition then maybe; but by the time she’s got

Bin was overflowing, was time to dump it

Many years ago a guy in PA started an electronic recycling business, not sure what happened to the company

Don’t know of an EASY way; maybe could go to recology; kept accumulating; flier was a trigger; battery in plastic bag every week

WOuld make more sense for Recology to do it more regularly

Sometimes also takes stuff to Goodwill - give you an impression that if the object is of value it might be resold or donated don’t know if there is a group of people that deal with that

There is a LACK of transparency about what happens

There are laws in CA for materials -> policy level action

Still not convinced that

—--- 5 —----

1/14/24 @ 10:00AM PST

Jim Rowe, 60-something, financial advisor/wealth manager

Family unit of 4 people both kids grown and out of the house

Jim and Tamara

Last few decades - electronics were provided by employers

When upgrade time - hand it in and get new ones

At home - for many of them, have kept them

Keeping old phones in a box

This is going to be interesting historically…

Habit of keeping it

Same with Ipads etc - keep for a long time

Tend to extend life but then keep it

Haven’t been active users of electronic waste

TVs etc since moved to MP (15 years) have had same TVs

Old one was taken back by dealer; didn’t have one that they needed to be disposed of

Cords and adapters - think we need them

Menlo Park does annual or semi-annual recycling - they take it to the location; hang on to it and do it next time (eg recology)

Not the heaviest of users nor the heaviest of disposals

Computer or Ipad - concern about data (how do we know it’s all clean and no one can access the data?) Concern about privacy

Transparency and trustworthiness of the process: I just put it in the bin - assume they’ve hired a firm and they do it correctly

Eg paper - I see them shred it

With cords etc you don’t see them doing it

Hazardous wastes - always see a chart to see what to do. Don’t have the visual for electronics? Suspect it does but would be helpful

Clear, compelling, logical process would be helpful. Trust that is being done the right way.

Glad we had the conversation :) What are we going to do with this; things don’t take more than a box or two… might need space

Portola Valley - has large bins for recycling where residents can dump stuff

—--- 6 —----

1/15/24 @ 2:00PM PST

Steve Seleznow, 70, former superintendent of schools in Maryland and Exec Director of non profits

2 homes - both of them have boxes loaded with routers remotes cables etc

Rare earth minerals! Wealth :)

What is possible for individual to make a difference- do compost, recycle

24 yo son

Nicole 54

Steve 70

All care about sustainability- sensibilities and sensitivities

Steve has to learn: find that common ground; younger ones do naturally and steve needs to align

Eg composting vs garbage disposal in sink

Son been more exposed to sustainability; steve was at first earth day!! Generation destroyed environment

OK boomer your generation made this mess

Need to learn new behaviors: were thinking about corporate not individual

How to behave differently:

1) not something I can dump - composition of materials shouldn’t just be thrown away; may be usefulness to it. How can I throw this remote away! Scientific instrument.

Wires that have have materials - could end up in water etc -

2) save it because no easy, convenient way to get rid of it. Also have computer screens etc under desks.

Could run them up to transfer station in San Mateo … son said no and went to goodwill!

If there was a really clear way to dispose of it, would do it. Once a month or so

Recology every once in a while does it but not regular; often forget to do it.

Bette way to help large community and citizens.

Doesn’t think distinction about computers and phone Va cables etc

Distinguishes batteries vs others: learn don’t throw batteries away like prescription drugs

—---7 —----

1/15/24 @ 3:00PM PST

Maritere Pacheco Revuelta, 50-something, former non profit/government in Puerto Rico

Jose and Maritere are not super tech

Phones change when not working well or broken

Don’t buy latest and greatest

Maritere will but less expensive as not required

Laptops - daughter works for MSFT :) Bought in 2020/1 May need to change it started to see some problems

Same with chagrgers and stuff - keep until broken

Children

Girl: looks at latest

Boy: doesn’t

Phones: gives it back to the carrier and get new one

Laptops: keep it home and then throw it away …

We live in Puerto Rico - don’t see many places to recycle; not much of other types of recycling either. Puerto Rico hasn’t moved much in the - papers and cardboard boxes not anything else

Big problem with waste - landfills are full! Big problem. Have to start recycling

Data on laptops and desktops: before last phone wasn’t concerned but now puts it in the cloud.

Laptop still around. Jose is like her too.

Kids maybe more concerned about data.. computers

Campaign to educate people and alternatives. Lack of information and transparency!

Start with education!