Gallery
Video Gallery
warning! please note that those videos are quite heavy comparing with other visual content available here in this Digital Sanctuary, please stream responsibly!
Experiment overview
An immersive field study that documented the human and environmental realities of electronic waste processing through direct engagement with affected communities.
Main objectives
This project allowed me to develop comprehensive understanding of e-waste challenges by analyzing the complex dynamics of electronic waste processing through direct observation and participant interviews, mapping the often-invisible supply chains that connect discarded devices to informal recycling communities, and identifying the specific health, economic, and social challenges faced by workers in the e-waste sector through relationship-based qualitative research.
Achieved results
The field study successfully documented the lived experiences of communities dependent on e-waste processing, creating a nuanced understanding beyond statistical data.
Through extended engagement, the research mapped previously undocumented supply chains that revealed the complex connections between consumer disposal and informal recycling economies.
The relationship-building approach established trust with local communities, creating pathways for future collaborative solution development rather than externally imposed interventions.
Main reflection
This immersive experience revealed how profoundly disconnected most technology users are from the physical afterlife of their devices.
By witnessing communities literally living in the shadow of discarded electronics, the research made visible the human costs of digital consumption that remain invisible to most consumers.
The ethnographic approach demonstrated that meaningful solutions require understanding e-waste not just as an environmental problem but as a complex socioeconomic system supporting entire communities despite significant health risks.