How one e-waste recycling company is creating second chances for trash – and for people
What do you get when you transform trash into jobs? For one LA-based recycling company, it means a whole new way of doing business.
Isidore Electronics Recycling is a company that believes in second chances – for the discarded devices we toss in our landfills every day and for the people who emerge from the criminal justice system looking for work.
Part of the LA Cleantech Incubator (LACI), Isidore is a full-service electronics recycling company on a mission to save the planet and give back to society at the same time.
By creating job opportunities for those facing barriers in the workforce, such as the men and women who have successfully exited California’s correctional system, Isidore’s mission for good touches everything they do.
Employees work to break down the electronics into their base parts, pulling all the valuable components out and isolating the rare earth metals like gold and silver that can be found inside.
“E-waste is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world,” says Isidore founder and CEO Kabira Stokes.
Things like old TVs, computers, radios, printers and an assortment of other out-of-date devices are being disposed of in record numbers and wreaking havoc on our planet. In fact, more than 70 percent of the toxins in our landfills can be attributed to the electronics we dump there.
By providing new opportunities for people who desperately need them, Isidore is helping to foster a sense of hope for the future and reshape how we look at e-waste.
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As Director of Special Projects, Nicole Cammorata helps guide Mashable's editorial innovations, licensing programs, and specialty series. Previously, she was the site's Executive Editor and its very first Shopping Editor before that. Nicole is also Mashable's resident gifting expert and gets a thrill out of helping readers find the perfect present. She received a B.S. in Journalism from Boston University and an MFA in fiction writing from The New School. She lives in Maine with her husband, their three young children, and a backyard full of flowers.
