One CA Alum’s Mission to Reduce Tech Waste and Provide Technology Access
I will always remember the first email I received from Braden Fitzpatrick, Colorado Academy Class of 2022, in August 2021, stating that he had some refurbished computers that he would like to donate to Horizons Colorado. Below is an excerpt of our first email exchange:
EMAIL FROM BRADEN:
Hello, my name is Braden. I am a senior at Colorado Academy. During Junior year, I created a non-profit called Recycle the Power. Recycle the Power allows me to repair old or broken phones, laptops, iPads, and E-Readers. I have a lot of fixed devices and was wondering if Horizons could benefit from any of them?
MY IMMEDIATE RESPONSE:
YES BRADEN! When can we meet? Love this! Thanks so much for thinking of Horizons!
I was excited for many reasons. The first and foremost was to be able to supply technology access to our Horizons Colorado students and families, many of whom do not have the means to have technology in their homes, unless, in the student’s case, it is on loan from their school. How valuable would it be to be able to provide laptops and desktops to some of our families? It could be a game changer for them and their future. This was a true gift! The other reason for the excitement was—knowing that electronic waste is a huge issue around the world—what better way to do our share in helping the environment than to extend the “life” of a computer, phone, or Apple iPad and help others along the way? The way I saw it, it was a win-win!
Needless to say, this relationship has continued to develop through the years. In January, Braden contacted me to let me know he had 26 Apple MacBooks and a few phones that he had refurbished; would Horizons be interested? As always, I responded with an emphatic “yes!” Our brilliant program director, Jessica Nuñez, had the idea to give the MacBooks to some of our outstanding high school students after they participated in the “Educating Children of Color Conference” in Colorado Springs. You can see from the photo how excited they were!
All of this led me to speak with Braden to find out more about what inspired him to create Recycle the Power in the first place. Not surprisingly, Braden came up with the concept while participating in Preceptor Tom Thorpe’s REDI Lab during his Junior year. While doing some research for the REDI Lab project, Braden found examples of other people refurbishing computers and had his “ah-ha” moment. Being a person who is very interested in electronics (Braden is currently at Colorado School of Mines, working on an electrical engineering degree), he thought this was exactly what he wanted to pursue.
He gets technology donations through word of mouth and also through Trimble, a company that he worked with in the past, which frequently has large quantities of technology that they would like to replace. Rather than the technology going to a landfill, they give it to Braden to refurbish.
I asked Braden how long it takes to fix the devices, and he told me that an older Windows computer takes about a day (which can vary depending on whether replacement parts are needed), and MacBooks usually take a lot longer, because Apple intentionally makes it difficult for people to fix their technology on their own: They either want customers to go through the Apple service department or buy a new computer—planned obsolescence at its best/worst!
There is a growing movement called Right to Repair that is gaining traction across the country. According to Recycle the Power’s website:
“Devices with large amounts of damage can be made functional again with relative amounts of ease. Repairing devices is more cost effective and better for the environment than purchasing a new one.”
Horizons is so lucky to have this collaboration with Braden. In fact, with the remaining 20 laptops that Braden donated to us, we will be able to support our summer program this year, as well as our tutoring program. This will make a huge difference for our budget and our impact! If you are interested in finding out more about how to donate technology to Braden and Recycle the Power, you can contact Braden at fitz@recyclethepower.com and through the website, https://recyclethepower.com/
Young people like Braden, who are talented and civic-minded, give me tremendous hope for the future!