Below is a the Problem Statement and Literature Review portion of the SAP Assignment for First Year Seminar: Digital Media and Social Justice. This post contains the group portion of the assignment as well as the individual portion assigned to each group member. The group contains Matt Thomas, Megan Fenner, William Good, and Joseph Mrowca.
Group Problem
Statement Part 1
The
usage of personal electronics has grown at an incredibly rapid pace since its
emergence in the early 1970s. We live in an era where our lives are centered
personal desktop computers, laptops, cellular devices, televisions, and gaming
devices. Educational institutions, workplaces, and health centers all rely on
technology to accomplish simple tasks. While these developments are exciting,
and for the most part, progressive, what happens when an individual cannot
afford to own a cell phone let alone a computer? It is hard to imagine how
school assignments would be completed without a computer. With the
revolutionary development of the Internet, communication, business, and
learning have been made easier and more accessible for those who can afford it.
In 2003, Cleveland was named the poorest city in the country with an overall
poverty rate and children’s poverty rate at 31.3% and 46.9%, respectively. In
2013, the overall poverty rate increased to 36.9% and the children’s poverty
rate increased to 54.4%. With such a high percentage of people living below the
line, how can society progress while leaving its children behind?
Electronic
waste, a previously buried issue in society, is beginning to emerge to the
surface as a significant 21st century issue. As a culture of
consumption, perhaps one of our biggest faults is chasing and nurturing the
idea of “out with the old, in with the new.” Many of the electronics dumped in
third-world countries have not yet reached the end of its true lifespan. If
those who can afford to purchase a new computer or phone every two years simply
donated or traded their device in responsibly, the progression of e-waste could
be slowed while simultaneously providing impoverished citizens an opportunity
to keep up with the rest of society.
Group Problem Statement Part 2
The
goal for this social action project is not to simply reduce and impede the
progression e-waste, but to improve the standard of living for underprivileged
families in the United States. The Internet is a tool used on a daily basis by
nearly 75% of North Americans. Free access is provided in numerous public
locations, however not everyone has access to technology. Technology and the
Internet are used for businesses, learning, and entertainment. Our social
action project alone won’t be able to close the 25% gap of people unable to
access the Internet. However, we feel that something is better than nothing. It
is important to bring these issues to light. Simply because new, updated
technology is released annually, does not justify the habit of discarding our
“outdated” devices.
There are numerous organizations
that are dedicated to collecting functional, unused, and unwanted electronics.
It is our goal to partner with one of these organizations and begin to bring
awareness to the gap technology access. In addition, we aim to raise awareness
about e-waste and the importance of responsible donations. The idea is to
provide an equal opportunity for those who cannot afford electronic devices and
Internet access.
Group Problem Statement Part 3
As a class we would
all participate in this proposed social action project. Teams would be set up to accomplish specific
goals. One team would be in charge of
creating a video to be streamed online to raise awareness and possibly funds. Another would tackle raising awareness through
other mediums like setting up posters, flyers, collection boxes, contacting JCU
radio for an on-air mention, and contacting the JCU paper to possibly have an
article put in the paper about the project.
The third group would be in charge of contacting local charities and
outlining the project in an attempt to form a partnership. Hopefully through this partnership we could
easily ensure the electronics we collect are handled and distributed
responsibly. All of this, for the most
part, would take place on campus, though we could easily decide as a group to
expand the project to outside school boundaries.
Matt's Literature
Review Part A
Internet access is a vital and
necessary tool in today’s society. This is the Internet Age, where
information is king and you can find anything online. But many people are
trapped by this wealth of information because they have no way to access it.
Internet access is taken for granted by many, but imagine how difficult
simply going to high school is in this day and age without it, or starting and
managing a small business, or taking a high level position anywhere without
access to valuable online resources. There is no historical precedent for
this, however. The easiest way to access the Internet currently seems to
be through the mobile phone. Even if we could provide more low-income
families with a mobile phone and low cost data plans it would go a long way in
evening the Internet access gap that divides middle and lower class families.
Group Literature
Review Part B
We would like to start a campaign to
have people donate their old cell phones so that they may be recycled: not for
parts, but resold to people cheaply and effectively to low-income families.
That would go a long way to solving two problems: the Internet access gap
that divides this country and the growing amount of e-waste that pollutes
foreign countries as a result of the United States’ inability to reduce its
carbon footprint. The idea is simple, get the message out via posters and
word of mouth that there are boxes set up around campus specifically for old
cell phones to be recycled. We then team up with a local charity to
provide local underprivileged parents, young adults, and teenagers with access
to the World Wide Web through their newly acquired smart phones.
Bibliography
"World Internet Users
Statistics and 2014 World Population Stats." World Internet Users
Statistics and 2014 World Population Stats. Web.
02 Nov. 2014.
