What did you do with your old cell phone when you bought a new one? Is it still lying around somewhere at the bottom of a drawer? If you are not using it and have not thrown it out, then you might as well donate it. By donating your old cell phone, you are not only relieving yourself of clutter in your house, but also helping the environment in doing so.
A few retailers and organizations will accept old phone donations. If you look hard enough, you will also come across many initiatives that can be contacted directly in order to make your donation.
You must ensure that you delete all personal information on your old phone, including contacts, pictures, videos, etc – and double check that your service has been disconnected – before you donate it.
Red Cross
The ‘Donate a Phone’ program, a fundraising initiative by Nextel recently racked up close to $400,000 through the American Red Cross Armed Forces Emergency Services Fund. This is how it worked: every phone donated is recycled. The recycled phone brings in around $1.50 towards the American Red Cross. Even though the donation per phone seems small, it adds up to quite a large sum of money.
Welcome Home!
This project is in aid of Guards and Reserves who were part of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The program raises funds from donated old cell phones, which are recycled through the EUSA – Employers United for a Stronger America.
These are just two ‘old phone donation’ programs while you can locate several initiatives similar to these in and around your area.