The Conclusion of the last "E-Waste" Decade sees a number of Dynasties created by the stories, real and imagined, underplayed and exaggerated. Who came out ahead and who lost?
1. Basel Action Network: Winner
BAN.org went from being a very obscure NGO working on an even more obscure treaty. They had a very small budget for travel, and no budget for science. But despite their meager assets, they manage to craft a story that was widely accepted as fact, and in the process became recognized as important experts in the field of waste, recycling, pollution and international development. They tried to "capitalize" on their success by branding a certification program, which they named "E-Stewards". Mainly it is insurance that if you pay for it, they won't attack you. But it was successful and BAN created a dynasty.
2.: Journalists: Winners
Jerry Powell and company had a magazine, Resource Recycling, which was competing with Recycling Today, Waste News, Scrap, Recycling International, Waste Age, Waste Dynamics, etc. The company used the controversy surrounding E-Waste to build a huge conference with built-in controversy and word-of-mouth sales. Being one of the first to recognize the hot-buttons and controversy BAN.org was churning, Resource Recycling was able to turn that into money, but was not the only one. Other trade publications sold more "data wiping" and "shredding equipment" ads which were not likely to be paid for by Taiwanese reuse factories. Other journalists, from CBS 60 Minutes to Businessweek to Audabon magazine were able to write "gotcha" stories with a uniquely exotic flavor. Recycling exports are bad was a "man bites dog" shark attack story that just kept on giving. So journalists are winners - financially.
1. Basel Action Network: Winner
BAN.org went from being a very obscure NGO working on an even more obscure treaty. They had a very small budget for travel, and no budget for science. But despite their meager assets, they manage to craft a story that was widely accepted as fact, and in the process became recognized as important experts in the field of waste, recycling, pollution and international development. They tried to "capitalize" on their success by branding a certification program, which they named "E-Stewards". Mainly it is insurance that if you pay for it, they won't attack you. But it was successful and BAN created a dynasty.
2.: Journalists: Winners
Jerry Powell and company had a magazine, Resource Recycling, which was competing with Recycling Today, Waste News, Scrap, Recycling International, Waste Age, Waste Dynamics, etc. The company used the controversy surrounding E-Waste to build a huge conference with built-in controversy and word-of-mouth sales. Being one of the first to recognize the hot-buttons and controversy BAN.org was churning, Resource Recycling was able to turn that into money, but was not the only one. Other trade publications sold more "data wiping" and "shredding equipment" ads which were not likely to be paid for by Taiwanese reuse factories. Other journalists, from CBS 60 Minutes to Businessweek to Audabon magazine were able to write "gotcha" stories with a uniquely exotic flavor. Recycling exports are bad was a "man bites dog" shark attack story that just kept on giving. So journalists are winners - financially.
