Making a Difference...Somewhere

I can't tell you how much I admire friends like B and Michael Homan for their hard work in New Orleans. Read B's Field Hearing Notes he made while he attended the field hearing in New Orleans by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. He has spent a great deal of time and energy trying to help with the rebuilding process. Thanks B and Homan, I appreciate your efforts.

I just cannot make myself join the process (other than my work for Katrina Aid Today) because of my cynicism about politicians. Yeah, Lieberman, Obama and Mary Landrieu were there listening to concerns and voicing their disapproval of the slow process, but will they actually be able to do something? Great sound bytes. But what will be done?

I am offering something that can make a difference. Not in New Orleans, but it's a good idea.

CollectiveGood creates financially productive partnerships with charities and companies to ensure that the benefits of mobile phones are maximized, and their environmental impact is minimized. We pioneered the concept of providing marketing, operations and logistics support to charities and the private sector to create innovative used mobile phone collection campaigns that are successful in every community.

By reusing these phones, the greatest possible value is perpetuated from these devices; consumers are offered a socially and environmentally responsible means of disposing of their old mobile phones, charities generate newfound funds to further their missions, and we all take steps to bridge the digital divide by providing affordable modern communications to citizens in the developing world. Our low-cost, refurbished mobile phones are usually used to provide affordable wireless service throughout the Caribbean, Latin America, Eastern Europe and India.

CollectiveGood recycles all donated non-functioning mobile phone batteries in an environmentally responsible manner through our relationship with the Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation, and all unusable mobile phones are disposed of in accordance with all local and national environmental standards.