There are many families in Spain that have only one computer or none at all. That does not make life easier in these modern times. Especially now children and parents often study and work from home. Residencia Estates, Mobile Service Point, Electron Box and ESpecial Life decided to join forces to create a colleting project.
What can you donate?
Old computers, laptops and tablets are completely wiped clean and reinstalled so that they can be given a second life for children who need them, and we can sure use your help!
Computers, laptops or tablets of any brand with an IOS operating system from 2007 or newer or Windows 7 system 2007 or later. Monitors, keyboards and mouses are also very welcome.
Also, if you have a computer to give but without keyboard nor mouse? For a small donation of 10 euros, we get the set completed and ready to be donated.
Drop off points (clic on link to open in maps)
- Residencia Estates, Elviria – Marbella
- Mobile Service Point, Elviria – Marbella
- PC Doctors, Fuengirola
- De Tropen, Vélez-Málaga.
(We will pick them up there and bring them to Fuengirola or Marbella)
Until: 30th of September 2021
They will be donated to children in need throughout the province by Cruz Roja Málaga. The first delivery will be before the start of the school year and the second at the end of October.
The story behind this campaign
It all started with Marijke de Nier (Residencia Estates) asking if we knew how to completely delete files from a computer. She had three computers and four laptops in the office that she no longer used but did not want to give them away as they were because of the sensitive and data protected company files on them, however she did want them to get a ‘second life’ for those in need. But where to start and how to make sure they go to people that need them most? From there it was a small step towards the idea of ??making old computers, laptops and tablets as good as new for other people to use. Especially over the past year and a half we have often seen in the news that many families are struggling now and that more than ever before, almost everything is happening online. They have no or one computer used by everyone in the household. A tough situation to be in. Before we knew it, we had a whole plan in place.
The objective
We have a clear goal; to provide children with a suitable computer, laptop or tablet on which they can follow online lessons and do their homework.
The technology
We reached out to Ratham Girdhari from Mobile Service Point and David Maltby from PC Doctors to ask them to participate in this campaign. Both were immediately enthusiastic and explained what they are going to do to get the computers completely ready for basic use again.
“A lot of people come here with the same question as you: how do I really get files removed from my computer?” says Ratham Girdhari. “A very logical question, because you don’t want someone to be able to access your files. The easiest way is to drag everything to the trash, empty it and reset to factory settings. Even then, but only by someone who is technically very skilled, one can manage to dig up a spicy photo from somewhere. But really, the average computer user would not know how to. If you want to take your computer to the recycling station, piercing the hard drive is the only way to really get rid of everything.”
But what a waste! Because a punctured hard drive means the computer can no longer be used, so the two highly professional techs guarantee us that they will delete everything and overwrite it with a new operating system.
The employees of the PC Doctors and Mobile Service Point do such chores almost every day, which normally costs sixty euros or more. However, they will happily do it for free for this project, simply because they also believe that children in Spain should be able to use their own computer.
Recycling makes sense in many ways
After the new operating system is installed with basic Open Office programs in place, children can use the internet and do their homework. “It doesn’t take a lot to do that,” says David Maltby. “People often get rid of a computer because it is no longer as fast or because it has to be able to run heavier programs. The older computers, laptops and tablets are still perfectly usable for basic functions.”
Just like us, both gentlemen are also enthusiastic about the fact that computer will truly be recycled this way. An enormous number of raw materials are used to manufacture a computer. Some components are actually dangerous to destroy, you cannot simply throw away a computer for exactly that reason. So of course, it makes more than sense for someone to be able to re-use it. By participating in this project, you are not only helping children, but also the environment!
Is everything recyclable?
Virtually all types of computers, tablets and laptops are recyclable. If the device does no longer function at all, in most cases certain parts can still be re-used. It also does not matter whether the keyboard or installed operating system is currently in a different language than Spanish, everything will be adapted by the professionals for Spanish users.
Individual computers without a monitor or just stand-alone monitors are also very welcome, since Ratham and David ensure that complete combinations will be delivered.
Red Cross Málaga
The Cruz Roja Málaga helps many families who are struggling financially. The moment a family takes that huge emotional step to ask for help to be able to pay the electricity bill or for food, the volunteers of Cruz Roja also immediately look at what else the family needs. For example, they offer guidance to find a job and help children with their homework online. Through the provincial headquarters in Málaga, the computers, laptops and tablets will be distributed to the children throughout the province. The President of the Regional Branch of the Cruz Roja, Luis Utrilla Navarro, is incredibly pleased with our project. “In the province of Málaga we have more than 8,000 families that we help through the youth care department. In addition, there are also dozens of families who have come here as refugees from Syria. After having spent time in a refugee camp they go on to live independently. The computers are also necessity for them to be able to participate in Spanish society,” says Luis.
