Annie Leonard, better known as the director of The Story of Stuff Project and author of The Story of Stuff: How Our Obsession with Stuff is Trashing the Planet, Our Communities and Our Health, has added yet another short film to the 'Stuff Project' collection: The Story of Electronics. And what an appropriate time for the release of this new installment, it being the month of the infamous "Black Friday" where many people rush to the stores to get great deals on electronics so they can replace those that were probably purchased only last year. Where will the old electronics end up? More likely than not, they'll wind up in a dump either here or overseas where they will then pollute the ground with harmful chemicals. And, thus, the cycle will continue next year (and every year after that). I digress.
Anyway, in the video, Leonard tells us why electronics are "designed for the dump" — made to be easily replaceable, not long lasting and certainly not easy to dispose of.
This article appears in Nov 11-17, 2010.