When we have Fair Trade coffee, Fair Trade clothes…then what about Fair Trade technology?
Our mobile phone, computer and game console have a bloody past — tied to tantalum mining, which funds the war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Drawing on his personal story, activist and refugee Bandi Mbubi gives a stirring call to action. (Filmed at TEDxExeter)
It is time to be asking questions about technology. Where does it come from? Who makes it? And for what?”
– Bandi Mbubi
Why you should listen to him:
Bandi Mbubi grew up in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, formerly Zaire, experiencing first hand the political unrest and oppression which have since worsened there. As a student activist, Bandi suffered persecution and fled the country, seeking political asylum in the U.K. But Mbubi has kept his home country on his radar, noting how the mining of tantalum — a mineral used in cell phones and computers — has fueled the ongoing war there in which 5 million have died.
- How you can help push for fair trade cell phones? (ted.com)
- TED: Bandi Mbubi: Demand a fair trade cell phone – Bandi Mbubi (2012) (ted.com)
- “Two Children May Have Died for You to Have Your Mobile Phone” (ipsnews.net)
- Nintendo slammed over ‘blood’ gadgets (cnn.com)
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