<p>As
an applied anthropology study of electronic waste (e-waste) in the remote town
of Alice Springs, this dissertation chronicles how e-waste is understood and
managed in the arid interior of Australia. What is electronic waste?
‘Electronic’ refers to the presence and movement of electricity throughout an
object so that it may perform some expected function. Waste, however, defies
simple definition. Waste usually refers to something that has been discarded
due to being unwanted or unusable.<br></p><p><br></p>
<p>This
dissertation traces and tracks the boundaries of e-waste in Central Australia
using ethnographic methods, anthropological theories of waste, and digital
garbology. Digital garbology, a synthesis of digital anthropology and
garbology, helps to identify and recommend strategies for confronting uneven,
and often unjust, distributions of e-waste. Rather than focusing solely on
discarded consumer electronics, this dissertation takes a critical look into
the different types of waste emerging from the production, use, maintenance,
and discard of electronics.</p><p><br></p>
<p>Over
the course of thirteen months of fieldwork in Alice Springs, it became clear
that the label e-waste is not consistently applied to discarded electronics.
E-waste is often discarded in out-of-sight locations such as landfills,
recycling centers, and illegal dumping grounds. Before being discarded,
however, unused electronics are often stored inside homes, sheds, and other
living spaces. Rather than simply focusing on electronic objects that have
already been thrown away, this dissertation explores how and why some
electronics seem to resist being labeled as e-waste.</p><p><br></p>
<p>Why
Alice Springs? The management of e-waste in Australia has focused on the recovery
of valuable metals from the recycling of televisions, computers, and mobile
phones at the expense of other discarded electronics such as solar panels and
household appliances. And yet, the closest e-waste recycling facility to Alice
Springs is over 1,500 kilometres (900 miles) away in Adelaide, South Australia.
The remoteness of Alice Springs reduces the ecological benefits of recycling.
However, it also creates room to discuss the viability of alternative e-waste
management strategies such as reuse and repair.</p>
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:purdue.edu/oai:figshare.com:article/12571883 |
| Date | 26 June 2020 |
| Creators | Gideon A Singer (9031820) |
| Source Sets | Purdue University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, Thesis |
| Rights | CC BY 4.0 |
| Relation | https://figshare.com/articles/thesis/An_Applied_Anthropology_of_Electronic_Waste_in_Central_Australia/12571883 |
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