Michael Oghia

“Thank you for this. I think that one of the key things to reducing e-waste is to keep devices in productive use longer. The smartphone cycle is largely being driven by planned obsolescence through lack of software updates. While few of us here are in the smartphone business, we see the same thing with CPE devices. No software updates means poor security, which pushes for replacement of the devices. More capable devices can sustain more updates, but cost more up-front, and there still very little relationship between price paid and number of years of supported software updates. At least, I believe this anecdotally. It would be nice if we had survey data to prove or disprove this belief. Perhaps RIPE along with some of the entities you mentioned might be able to do a confidential survey of ISPs in order to summarise the results? EN 303 645 and upcoming UK legislation requires that the support time for devices to be made clear at point of purchase. See https://www.iotsecurityfoundation.org/keep-software-updated/ for many references. (Yes, I'm the presenter for the webinar, the first of which was August 28) While the nic.cz Turris system is well supported, and very capable, it does not seem have had a lot of influence on big ISP purchasing. What kind of software support lifespans are ISPs able to contract? While many RIPE clueful people know about, deploy and contribute to openwrt, it does not seem to show up in a supported way in devices that I see either big or small ISPs deploying. The big ones don't seem to care. The small ones can't afford to take a risk. Years ago, it was the common that an ISP would buy some 12-port switching device for it's core, and two years later (when it was too slow), would migrate it from the core to an access aggregator, and then two years later, it might find a few more years service as internal lab equipment, or being used for a multi-tenant CPE. I learnt this as a switch (chip) designer. Is this still a thing? In my more recent (2014-era) hands-on ISP experience, this was no longer a thing, because the devices had all become far too specialized. Maybe SDN is changing this? Are there best practices in making purchase decisions that support this migration of equipment? {I'm reminded of: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQjHJKNyoUE }”

Thank you so much for this thoughtful and, frankly, on point comment Michael. This is also exactly why I encourage the RIPE community to take a more explicit stance on the Right to Repair in Europe.

We received another comment from J. Scott Marcus on the Connect-WG list that I'd like to add here for both posterity's sake, but also to highlight the importance of seeing this issue as a holistic one (i.e., there is no single solution or panacea). It's a 2020 study Scott authored for the IMCO Committee of the European Parliament titled: “Promoting product longevity: How can the EU product safety and compliance framework help promote product durability and tackle planned obsolescence, foster the production of more sustainable products, and achieve more transparent supply chains for consumers?” View at: https://bit.ly/2Z1LEEG

So well said Suzanne, brilliant job! I'm glad that RIPE NCC is submitting this.

“One interesting development: the city of Amsterdam, as part of the plan to go carbon neutral and detach from the gas network, is starting to experiment with using the waste heat produced in the "Science Park" (an area that has large datacenters such as Equinix's). This is planned to be used to provide heating and warm water for the surrounding neighbourhood(s). It's not easy to pull off but it's certainly an interesting approach!”

First of all, thank you so much for taking the time to read this and reply Robert. Second, that's a great example of a holistic solution. While I don't doubt it'll be difficult to implement, the impact will likely be significant. And it's a good way to take what would otherwise be a problem and transform it into an opportunity for the neighbourhood.

Excellent post Vesna, and I particularly like the comparisons you made between digital commons governance and RIPE community governance (I hadn't thought of it that way).

Well said Chris, in every way. It's unchartered territory of sorts, but we're all in this together and relying on the community is key.

I'm positive you all will make the best of this situation. Stay safe, healthy, and well!

Thank you so much for highlighting this issue Mirjam. Unsurprisingly, you've hit on all the relevant points in such a concise way as to how it relates to the RIPE community. I'm touched that you quoted my article, and I want you and the RIPE NCC to know that I am always available to help shed light on this topic. Two additional questions I would ask the community is: (1) Would you like to learn more about how to recycle, reuse, or donate older equipment? and (2) Have you ever experienced challenges regarding e-waste recycling, such as difficulty finding a vendor? Thank you again!