Surprisingly a lot more than people would think!
I volunteer four days a week for a charity, which provides digital devices for free to the people of Manchester facing digital poverty. We get referrals from all over the city and the greater Manchester area. I prioritize and filter them, prepare the devices and get them out to them. I also do the collect run, which takes me to many different places to collect any old hardware people want to get rid of. I refurbish it if I can, spare parts if I can, and finally securely dispose of it to EEE regulations so it all ends up being reused.
We provide phones, sim cards, laptops, tablets, desktops, and various electrical items. I’m PAT testing trained so everything is tested when it’s refurbished. There’s quite a bit of admin involved which I usually catch up on a Sunday ready for the week ahead. This past week I’ve managed 20 different devices, all either collected or posted.
For my local community, I live 45 minutes from the city. I do nothing. Literally nothing. We live on a sink estate, have horrible neighbors except for one, and motorbikes with masked riders going up and down the street constantly. There is a police station 5 minutes walk. No presence. No stopping them. Don’t get me started on those small gas canisters of nitrous, like driving through a metal sea.
I had this crazy idea to build a box outside the house and fill it with things for people to swap items for. I would love to live in a place where it wouldn’t;t be robbed or burned down for a laugh. It’s a nice daydream that one.