ON Semiconductor Supports Arizona Students and a More Sustainable Future

America Recycles Day, a Keep America Beautiful initiative, is a nationally recognized day dedicated to promoting and celebrating recycling in the United States.

The Keep America Beautiful America Recycles Day is the only nationally-recognized day dedicated to promoting and celebrating recycling in the United States. Held on November 15th, America Recycles Day educates and encourages individuals on how to be more mindful of what they consume, where and how to properly recycle as well as pledge to recycle more and recycle right in their everyday lives.  

Recycling is one way to waste less. When you recycle, your waste becomes something new. ON Semiconductor held an electronics waste donation "drive-up” event at its headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona on October 28, 2020. 

This event took place in conjunction with the company’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) day during global responsibility and inclusion week, in which we showed and encouraged our employees to share ON Semiconductor’s core values of respect, integrity and initiative.

Being a company that gives back to the local community, we collaborated with Arizona Students Recycling Used Technology (AZ StRUT), a local charity who donates refurbished electronics to educational institutions and other nonprofits who need them. AZ StRUT partners with students and volunteers to assist with their refurbishing efforts.

AZ StRUT has collected, refurbished and distributed over 70,000 refurbished computer devices in the past 20 years. In addition, their donations mainly come from businesses and schools. Last year, AZ StRUT recycled 425 tons of electronic waste from these collections. 

The need for digital devices is critical right now as digital learning is not a simple solution for all Arizona students. A new study by Common Sense Media and the Boston Consulting group shows that 29% of Arizona students do not have access to the Internet. 

Without a home computer, people are further disconnected from critical necessities and opportunities. Their inability to study, work or participate online will widen economic and health disparities.

Because of this, AZ StRUT is experiencing an increase in requests for equipment to make remote education and working from home possible. AZ StRUT helps to bridge the digital divide and ON Semiconductor is happy to help meet this need.

At the event, we collected personal electronics from employees and the local community –working or not, old or new – in our parking lot in a socially distant manner (donors did not have to get out of their cars! We assisted by accepting donations via rolled down car windows and opened car trunks (all event workers wore masks and gloves for everyone’s safety too!). 

Overall, the event was a grand success as the total collection weight was 2,762-pounds of electronics saved from the landfill, which included 24 desktops, 46 laptops, 62 cell phones and nine tablets. At ON Semiconductor, we believe that as we grow we must also further invest in our communities to make a positive and measurable impact and this event is an example of contributing to the circular economy.

“Thanks for your help to assist Arizona students in need and keeping these items out of our landfills. Together, we focused on taking positive actions that better our lives and environment! We are so grateful to ON Semiconductor and their employees’ support for a very successful electronics collection,” said Tom Mehlert, AZ StRUT’s executive director.

Watch the local TV segment that aired on the morning of the electronics waste donation drive-up event, which discusses the critical need for electronics devices.

To learn more about ON Semiconductor’s other recycling efforts, check out their 2019 CSR Report.