Does My iPhone Have Gold?

I already know what you're thinking. You're thinking about the money you exchanged for your smartphone. Or you might even be thinking about the wonderful selfie, the wonderful video editing, the space that allows you to have all the applications that exist or another of the unlimited functions that these devices have and that make us so dependent on them! But no. That's not what I'm referring to. What I'm referring to is the intrinsic value of your iPhone!

Let's see, when I say intrinsic, I mean the value itself. Did you know that, in addition to the natural resources used to produce a device like this, that is, in addition to water and, from a more consequential perspective, the air that ends up being used and polluted through greenhouse gas emissions caused by its production , smartphones are made up of a variety of valuable resources and materials, including metals, plastics, and glass?^{(1 )}

I'll try to be more specific. Did you know that, according to estimates, a typical iPhone has around 0.034g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and almost a thousandth of a gram of platinum. In addition to these, it also has aluminum (25g) and copper (around 15g). And, so that we all have a clearer idea of ??what these small quantities mean, I can tell you that, according to BBC studies, in every iPhone 5, you will find, for example, US $1.58 in gold, $0.36 in silver, $0.05 in platinum and $0.12 in copper!

These data seem insignificant when isolated. But, let's think about the big picture. Millions of smartphones are already produced, sold and thrown away. Did you know that for every million smartphones we recycle, approximately 40 thousand euros of copper (16 tons), 872 euros of silver (350 kg), 85 euros of gold (34 kg) and 37 euros of palladium (15 kg) can be recovered ?

And, would you imagine that in a ton of recycled iPhones, we would save 300 times more gold compared to a ton of gold ore and 6.5 times more silver than a ton of gold ore silver

And this is just a small part? We are not even mentioning the plastic, the glass, the battery (which involves lithium and its impacts) and the remaining list of ?ingredients? , so that our precious iPhone is operational in our pockets.

All of these elements are present in relatively small quantities, but when we amplify the thinking (about cost and impact) for the more than two billion people using smartphones today, the results They're scary!

Forall Phones has its trade-in system where you can give your old iPhone a new lease of life. On the other hand, you can bet on a smartphone that you give a second chance, with the confidence of having a 100% operational device.

And there are other ways to recycle them: you have, for example, the possibility of donating your old cell phones to those in need (and here, you can also count on your

em>Forall Phones! Find out more about our campaign Ecophone). i>

There's not much more I can say. I just feel the need to appeal to you! Don't get complacent, don't get used to this rampant consumerism, this endless waste and above all the lack of awareness about the need to recycle and reuse. Let's let our children and our grandchildren inherit this precious asset, the possibility of having an environment where they can grow and enjoy it. Save the planet! Save your iPhone.

Go green or go home!

Raquel Fernandes

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⁽²⁾ EPA ? United States Environmental Protection Agency