Learning Light
Second Floor, Gladstone Building,
1 St James Row, Sheffield, S1 2EU
Tel +44 (0)114 223 2442; Web www.learninglight.com
19th October 2010
The Guardian features Learning Light's e-learning programme for
e-waste workers in Nigeria
The Guardian newspaper has featured an e-learning programme
developed by Learning Light which is helping people in Nigeria to
recycle electrical and electronic waste safely.
An article by Louise Tickle, published in the Education Guardian on
12th October (http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2010/oct/12/electronic-waste-recycling),
explained that people in developing countries who make a living
scavenging the dumps of electronic equipment thrown away by the
first world face daily hazards most of us never consider. Recycling
our waste electrical items is a dirty job, and those who do it are
among the poorest and least educated in the world.
Some of simple processes used to recycle this waste release
carcinogenic chemicals. The crude break-up of electrical items can
cause heavy metals such as lead and mercury to leak into the soil
and the water table - where they are taken up by plants, ingested by
animals and, eventually, accumulate in humans.
Even when electronic equipment is certified as safe for re-use and
exported legally, the thousands of manual workers who dismantle it
are still unlikely to have had any training in how to handle it
safely.
This challenge has been taken up by Professor Oladele Osibanjo,
director of the Basel Convention Coordinating Centre For Training
and Technology Transfer for the African Region. In looking for
suitable flexible and accessible learning materials, Osibanjo, based
in Lagos, Nigeria, is using e-learning materials created by Learning
Light, in combination with face-to-face workshops led by Dr Margaret
Bates from Northampton University's Centre for Sustainable Wastes
Management.
Learning Light, a company limited by guarantee which focuses on
promoting the use of e- learning and learning technologies,
initially developed these learning materials for use among prisoners
in the UK - allowing them to learn a skill and gain a nationally
recognised qualification and thus reduce the chance of their
re-offending.
Covering various aspects of waste recycling operations, the Learning
Light e-learning programmes deal with disassembling electrical
equipment - from sewing machines to LCD televisions - in the most
environmentally-friendly way and concentrate on the requirements of
the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (WEEE
Directive).
Those who complete these e-learning programmes have the knowledge
and skills to disassemble electrical equipment - such as old
personal computers - and break down this equipment into its
constituent parts. These parts can then be recycled and, depending
on the costs of copper, plastic and so on, can produce an income for
the ‘disassembler'.
Delivered in discrete online units which require no reading or
writing by the learners, Learning Light's teaching units are loaded
onto a computer or, where broadband services are available, accessed
online. The progammes use strong visual and oral prompts that
translate easily from a UK context to a Nigerian classroom.
In the UK, the Learning Light course leads to an NVQ. In Nigeria,
the course is being developed to lead to a formal Nigerian
qualification for people who might never even have finished school.
End
Notes for Editors
About The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (WEEE
Directive)
The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (WEEE
Directive) was introduced in January 2007. The Directive aims to
reduce the amount of electrical and electronic equipment being
produced and to encourage everyone to reuse, recycle and recover it.
The Directive also aims to improve the environmental performance of
businesses that manufacture, supply, use, recycle and recover
electrical and electronic equipment.
Electrical and electronic waste is the fastest growing waste stream
in the UK. Some 1.8m tonnes of this waste are generated every year.
The WEEE Regulations aim to reduce the amount of this waste going to
landfill and improve recovery and recycling rates.
The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations
apply to electrical and electronic equipment with a voltage of up to
1000 volts for alternating current or up to 1500 volts for direct
current and cover: large household appliances; small household
appliances; IT and telecommunications equipment; consumer equipment;
lighting equipment; electrical and electronic tools; toys, leisure
and sports equipment; medical devices; monitoring and control
equipment, and automatic dispensers.
About Learning Light Ltd
Sheffield-based Learning Light is a centre of excellence in the use
of e-learning and learning technologies in the workplace. Its
knowledge base contains over 400 papers offering insights and advice
on how to use e-learning & learning technologies.
Learning Light, which operates www.e-learningcentre.co.uk one of the
leading resources on e-learning in the UK, works closely with the
Universities of Leeds and Sheffield and has undertaken a Systematic
Literature Review of the available papers on the effective use of
e-learning in conjunction with the University of Sheffield.
Learning Light occupies a unique space in the e-learning and
learning technology sector networking with:
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Suppliers of e-learning and learning technologies to support the
growth of the sector
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Buyers
seeking out learning technology solutions to improve the
effectiveness of their business or organisation
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Leading organisations worldwide who provide it with market knowledge
from around the globe
It:
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Provides unbiased and impartial advice to both suppliers and
buyers
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Hosts events and workshops that provide the platforms to impart
and gain knowledge by encouraging collaboration and sharing of
best practice
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Acts as a conduit between suppliers and buyers to forge
successful business partnerships
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Provides market intelligence and benchmarking information gained
from its many contacts and networking partners
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Provides access to research materials from leading learning
technology professionals
Further information from:
David Patterson/ Gill Broadhead, Learning Light, +44 (0)114 223 2442
Bob Little, Bob Little Press & PR, +44 (0)1727 860405
www.learninglight.com