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- Sustainable Electronics Initiative (SEI) is an initiative started in the United States in the summer of 2009 by the , which is a division of the Institute of Natural Resource Sustainability of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. SEI is dedicated to developing and implementing sustainable means for the design, manufacturing, remanufacturing, and recycling of electronics (computers, cell phones, televisions, printers, etc.) Members of SEI include individuals from academia, non-profit organizations, government agencies, manufacturers, designers, recyclers and refurbishers. The goals of the Sustainable Electronics Initiative are to provide research, education, technical assistance, and data management for the general public and other interested parties with regards to electronics and electronic waste. SEI conducts collaborative research with professors and industry representatives, facilitates networking and information exchange among its participants, promotes the diffusion of technology through demonstration projects, and it provides a forum for discussion of applicable policies and legislation. SEI was created as a response to the growing national and international demand for more sustainable electronic designs and more environmentally friendly ways to handle electronics once they reach the end of their useful lives. Currently, individual states have passed laws regarding ewaste, but federal legislation has not yet been passed. The United States House of Representatives and United States Senate are, however, currently considering federal legislation which will fund electronics research, recycling, and refurbishing. Bill S.1397 was proposed by Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) in July, 2009. The bill addresses the illegal dumping of electronic waste to undeveloped countries. More importantly, however, the bill also focuses on the importance of research and development for the designing and manufacturing of sustainable electronics, which would be recycled, reused, and refurbished more easily. The European Union, on the other hand, has passed several strict laws governing electronic equipment and its disposal. While one of the SEI goals is to minimize waste, this goal can be reached through the application of life cycle analyses. By analyzing the complete life cycle of a product, SEI will take into consideration the design, processing, manufacturing, use, and disposal stages of electronic equipment. With the use of life cycle analyses, SEI plans to make the overall process of computers and other electronics more sustainable and less environmentally harmful. (en)
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- Sustainable Electronics Initiative (SEI) is an initiative started in the United States in the summer of 2009 by the , which is a division of the Institute of Natural Resource Sustainability of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. SEI is dedicated to developing and implementing sustainable means for the design, manufacturing, remanufacturing, and recycling of electronics (computers, cell phones, televisions, printers, etc.) Members of SEI include individuals from academia, non-profit organizations, government agencies, manufacturers, designers, recyclers and refurbishers. (en)
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