Flight Centre, through its Flight Centre Foundation, has partnered with not-for-profit charity LiteHaus International to donate and repurpose end-of-life technology devices to vulnerable communities across Australia.
The partnership will change the way Flight Centre manages corporate e-waste, in the form of laptops, tablets and other devices, by transforming them into opportunities to help bridge the digital divide.
Jack Growden, CEO of LiteHaus, said redirecting end-of-life devices away from landfill reduces corporate e-waste and provides learning support to tens of thousands of Australian students in need.
“Roughly 90 per cent of corporate e-waste in Australia ends up in landfill, with more than 1,000 laptops globally thrown away every second,” Growden said.
“Instead of throwing them away, we need to redirect end-of-life devices away from landfill and into the hands of the tens of thousands of students in need across Australia.
“Flight Centre is leading the way and setting a fantastic example for other corporates by converting e-waste into opportunities through our Full Circle Program.”
Flight Centre’s recently appointed global sustainability officer, Michelle Degenhardt, said she hopes other corporations will follow suit once they see how easy it is to adopt processes to transform e-waste into opportunities.
“Thanks to our collaboration with LiteHaus, we are able to address our impact on the environment while also doing our part to bridge the digital divide,” Degenhardt said.
“There is no cost to corporates who donate anywhere in the chain, so it really is a fantastic chance to give back and contribute to the important conversation around sustainability.”
This week alone, Flight Centre has donated 355 laptops, 25 desktops, and 10 servers to LiteHaus who will distribute to First Nations and other vulnerable communities across the Northern Territory.
This initiative follows news of the Australian-born travel retailer’s first Reconciliation Action Plan, which it released earlier this week.
