Building a bridge to better educational opportunities worldwide

Last Christmas, we at Axians Amanox decided to support Labdoo.org with a monetary donation instead of traditional customer gifts. Labdoo.org overcomes the "digital divide" by distributing donated laptops and IT parts to educational organisations in disadvantaged regions to improve educational opportunities worldwide. During our visit to the facility in Oberwil-Lieli, Frank Geisler, President of Labdoo.org (Switzerland), told us more about the organisation and the process from donations to the reuse of the equipment in schools around the world.

The organisation

In a world increasingly characterised by technology, access to education remains a decisive factor for equal opportunities. Not everywhere in the world do children and young people benefit from digital education. This is where Labdoo.org steps in, a global aid organisation that uses its unique approach to overcome the "digital divide" with undeveloped countries and thus create better educational opportunities for disadvantaged children and young people. The volunteers are already actively engaged in 151 countries. The organisation thus supports 8 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations (Agenda 2030)

The Labdoo.org association in Switzerland is a prime example of the effectiveness and positive impact of volunteer work on a global level. Frank Geisler and his core team of 5 volunteers are supported by around 150 volunteers throughout Switzerland and have been active since 2012. Since 2015, the organisation has even been registered as a full association.

The idea

The idea behind Labdoo.org is simple: donated laptops and IT parts are refurbished and sent to educational organisations such as schools, kindergartens, orphanages and refugee homes in disadvantaged regions. But how do they get to their destination? Frank Geisler reports:

"The equipment we donate, is transported to the destination countries in hand luggage by volunteers. Larger recipients have the equipment collected, professionally packed and sent by container together with other relief supplies."

This not only improves access to education, but also promotes the sustainable use of equipment, that is no longer used in companies of different sizes.. The focus is on CO2-neutral transportation to take ecological aspects into account.

It is important to emphasise that Labdoo.org only supports educational organisations. Regular field visits on site ensure that the donated equipment is neither sold nor rented and is used and recycled properly.

The challenges

Labdoo.org's biggest challenge is to strike a balance between incoming donations, processing the devices and distributing the laptops to the aid projects - and to do all of this quickly, on a voluntary basis and during off-peak hours or at weekends. The rapidly increasing number of equipment donations requires continuous efforts to manage the logistics and secure the financial resources for spare parts and tools.

Sanitation Workshop

An important part of Labdoo.org's work is the open sanitation workshops in which volunteers from all over Switzerland can participate. These take place once or twice a quarter at the headquarters in Oberwil-Lieli and offer an opportunity to meet other volunteers and help prepare the equipment for reuse. All planned workshops and registration can be found here (next workshop on 27 April 2024).
In addition, closed workshops are offered during the week, e.g. for companies. For a donation to cover the costs, these are tailored to the needs of the company and also serve as a team-building measure.

Prospects

Labdoo.org is growing rapidly, but this success would not be possible without the support of volunteers. Therefore, they are always looking for more helpers, especially in logistics and marketing. Are you interested? Find out more here. The organisation is constantly striving to optimise its processes in order to save more end-of-life IT equipment from being scrapped.

It is inspiring to see how Labdoo.org is helping to improve educational opportunities for children and young people worldwide through the power of community and commitment. Together we can help create a better future for all.