Software updates, product launches, general wear and tear -- your smartphone can quickly begin to feel dated, and many people switch to a new device every two years.

This is a disaster for our planet.

Requiring devices to come with more durable screens and 3+ years minimum software support is gaining traction within the European Commission, whose Working Plan could bring smartphones into the environmental age.

Vice President Frans TImmermans has talked about the importance of consumers in shaping the EC’s Working Plan.

Keeping a phone going for just one more year can cut its overall carbon footprint by a third. Now is our chance to speak up and let the European Commission know that we want devices that are greener and more durable -- for the good of the planet. 

Frans Timmermans: include smartphones in the Ecodesign Working Plan -- we want devices that last longer, for the good of the planet!

The EC produced its latest Working Plan in the Ecodesign Directive last November.

The directive discusses the role of ICT products within the growing ‘repair and recycle’, or Circular, economy -- but fails to include them into their final Working Plan, which informs legislation on consumer goods.

The Working Plan also looks at resource waste, particularly in smartphones, which are difficult to repair and contain critical materials which are then removed from our economy in large quantities.

“Product design clearly determines the potential durability, reparability, and recyclability of devices,” the EC report claims. But if we leave it completely up to manufacturers, they’ll choose the low-cost option every time -- with the environment suffering the cost.

With the support of almost 300,000 SumOfUs members like you, we managed to push back against Big Pesticides and keep the European Commission’s proposed ban on neonics alive.

Now let’s make sure the European Commission knows we think it’s vital for the EcoDesign Directive’s Working Plan to include smartphones -- to ensure devices are greener, cleaner and better for our planet.

Frans Timmermans: we want to see smartphones in the Ecodesign Working Plan!

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