« Corporate Twittering increases consumer trust, but many don't want companies to listen to them | Main | A Declaration of Interdependence »

Infographic: Used mobile phones yield 1000 times more gold than gold ore

Ross Dawson, June 24, 2010 4:49 PM US PT

A couple of weeks ago I flew to Perth to participate in a scenario planning project for a mining company. As I struck up conversation with the person next to me, it turned out we would both be presenting and contributing to the same workshop. I was kicking off the two-day workshop with a broad presentation on the future of business, while Damien Giurco, Research Director at University of Technology Sydney's Institute for Sustainable Futures, would speak later on 'Cities as the mines of the future'.

Damien showed me their excellent report Peak Minerals in Australia, which provides an in-depth analysis of the state and implications of peak minerals. One of the data points quoted in the report was fascinating: used mobile phones yield 1000 times as much gold as gold ore. I thought it was worth creating an infographic to bring the point home - click on the image to download a large version of the infographic.

In short: make sure you recycle your mobile phone!

0 TrackBacks

Listed below are links to blogs that reference this entry: Infographic: Used mobile phones yield 1000 times more gold than gold ore.

TrackBack URL for this entry: http://futureexploration.org/mt-tb.cgi/1230

3 Comments

Gnoll110 said:

Years ago I read a series of sci fi book's where the setting was an Earth where our civilisation had exhorted natural mineral deposits. Future civilisations had to resort to mining our city sites.

I remembered a book name, "Soldier of Another Man's Fortune". I eventually found it over at Amazon as Soldier of Another Fortune

The series is called "The Destiny Makers"
With Fate Conspire,
Morning of Creation,
Soldier of Another Fortune,
Death's Gray Land &
The Last Reckoning.

The books are more about time travel, alternate histories and super power tension, but the world setting is a world short enough of resources, that fridges are shared communal property.

July 14, 2010 12:04 AM

Ross Dawson said:

Thanks! It sounds very prescient - I'll have a look.

July 14, 2010 4:53 PM

Cani said:

We should all start saving our phones and melting them down for gold. Pension lump sum?

August 19, 2010 2:22 AM

Ross Dawson is globally recognized as a leading futurist, entrepreneur, keynote speaker, strategy advisor, and bestselling author. He is Founding Chairman of four companies: professional services and venture firm Advanced Human Technologies, future and strategy consulting group Future Exploration Network, leading events firm The Insight Exchange, and influence ratings start-up Repyoot.

Ross is author most recently of Implementing Enterprise 2.0, the prescient Living Networks, which anticipated the social network revolution, and the Amazon.com bestseller Developing Knowledge-Based Client Relationships (click on the links for free chapter downloads). He is based in Sydney and San Francisco with his wife jewellery designer Victoria Buckley and two beautiful young daughters.