CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – People who get a new smart phone, tablet computer, e-book reader or mp3 player rarely focus on the outdated devices they replace. But those discarded products represent a significant waste of energy and materials, and, if improperly disposed of, serious environmental risks.

John Pflueger, principal environmental strategist at Dell, will deliver the keynote address March 23 during the Electronics and Sustainability Symposium at Illinois.
The two-day second annual Electronics and Sustainability Symposium will address these challenges and others, along with possible solutions. John Pflueger, principal environmental strategist at Dell, will deliver the keynote address at a luncheon at 11:45 a.m. March 23 (Wednesday) at the I Hotel and Conference Center, 1900 S. First St., Champaign.
Other speakers include William Hoffman, environmental scientist with UL Environment, based in Northbrook, Ill.; Andrew Steckl, Ohio Eminent Scholar in the University of Cincinnati’s College of Engineering and Applied Science, whose latest work could lead to the creation of a disposable paper e-reader; Charles Newman, founder of ReCellular, based in Ann Arbor, Mich., the world’s largest recycler and reseller of used mobile phones; Courtney Rushforth, of the city of Urbana; Bill Olson, the director of sustainability and stewardship at Motorola, producer of the first “green” android phones; Manish Mehta, of the National Center for Manufacturing Sciences, based in Ann Arbor; and Alex Lobos and Callie Babbitt, of the Rochester Institute of Technology.
A full schedule is online.
Registration is $200 for both days, or $125 per day, and includes the opportunity to tour the U. of I. National Center for Supercomputing Applications.