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Elementary Students Plan Cellphone Donation Drive to Protect Gorilla Habitats

Photo Credit: Rob Knight @RobKnightPhoto

Third-grade students from Clarke and Oconee county schools are working together to raise awareness about the connection between cellphones and wildlife. The Guardians of the Gorillas will take their campaign to the UGA community next week. Carrie Sigmund is with The Regional Educational Service Agency or RESA.

"They’ve made the connection with recycling cellphones and how that can protect critical gorilla habitats,” Siegmund said.

“They’ve created artwork in the form of zines and they’re going to go on UGA’s campus and distribute those to raise awareness.”

Students will collect old cellphones to help reduce the amount of components needed and help protect gorillas in their natural habitats.

“It’s called Coltan, that’s the mineral that’s inside the cellphones that’s so expensive and hard to find,” Siegmund said. “Coltan is found in that critical gorilla habitat. They’re mining there to get the Coltan, which is destroying the forest and leading to more poaching.

The field trip and related projects are being funded by a sustainability grant from the office of sustainability.

Students are hoping to collect 500 cellphones.

“Collection facilities are at the Tate Center, CHaRM, which is the Center for Hard to Recycle Materials in Athens, Creature Comforts downtown, and any of the participating schools,” Siegmund said.

UGA Sustainability Grant and a UGA Office of Service-Learning support grant. 

Money raised through recycling efforts will go to the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund.