Challenge
The City of Vancouver is committed to fostering a more sustainable and inclusive society. This ambition naturally extends to the city’s procurement practices, and especially in regard to the life-cycle of IT goods. With an existing system focused on e-waste recycling, the city was eager to establish an approach that maintained the highest-value reuse of materials, supported circular systems, and took steps towards closing the digital divide.
Solution
Microserve, armed with a strong legacy of sustainable practices and community engagement, emerged as the ideal partner for the City’s vision. We were honoured to be part of a Request for Proposal at the close of 2019. We were entrusted with the responsibility of managing end-of-life hardware and software, along with the delivery of comprehensive life-cycle solutions. Our partnership with BC Tech, notable for its two-decade length, enabled us to channel the City’s recycled IT hardware to fulfil the needs of low-income individuals and non-profits, providing these assets a worthy second life.
Benefits
Our collaboration with the City of Vancouver truly expresses the “win-win-win” nature of our initiatives. It reinforces our goal of bolstering sustainable procurement and provides a practical solution to the issue of inequitable access to technology. Moreover, our partnership serves as an avenue for promoting learning and youth development. We are proud of the positive impacts generated by our efforts, that range from reducing digital inequality to supporting the City’s journey towards its Zero Waste 2040 plan.
