WATCH

Death by Design 2017

Consumers love – and live on – their smartphones, tablets and laptops. A cascade of new devices pours endlessly into the market, promising even better communication, non-stop entertainment and instant information. The numbers are staggering. By 2020, four billion people will have a personal computer. Five billion will own a mobile phone.

But this revolution has a dark side, hidden from most consumers. In an investigation that spans the globe, filmmaker Sue Williams investigates the underbelly of the electronics industry and reveals how even the smallest devices have deadly environmental and health costs. From the intensely secretive factories in China, to a ravaged New York community and the high tech corridors of Silicon Valley, the film tells a story of environmental degradation, of health tragedies, and the fast approaching tipping point between consumerism and sustainability

SPEAK/DEBATE

We should use our cellphones for 5 years before replacing them.

WRITE

Step 1: Survey your schoolmates and teachers about cellphone use in your school.

(You can run the survey in pairs)

1. Which phones do most students have?
2. How long do they have them for?
3. After how long do they upgrade to a newer model?
4. How many cellphones have they had in the last 10 years?
5. What do they do with their old cellphones?

Step 2: Write a descriptive essay explaining your results. (175 words)

Write individually.