Virgin Media O2 helps customers tackle e-waste with educational content and collections on Virgin TV for Earth Day

Virgin Media O2 helps customers tackle e-waste with educational content and collections on Virgin TV for Earth Day

Virgin Media O2 is raising awareness of the issue of electronic waste (e-waste) and the climate crisis with content across Virgin TV to mark Earth Day (April 22).

With the UK on course to become the largest contributor of e-waste in the world per capita, Virgin TV has created a 60-second promo, to soon be broadcast on Channel 100 and in pre-rolls, which highlights the problem of e-waste and how consumers can tackle it by sustainably disposing of their unwanted devices, rather than them ending up in landfill.

This includes using O2 Recycle, which is open to anyone regardless of their mobile network and has seen almost four million devices recycled since 2009; by taking unwanted small electricals to any O2 store for recycling; or by donating unwanted smartphones to Virgin Media O2 and Hubbub’s ‘Community Calling’ initiative, where devices can be rehomed with people in need.

It comes as new research found that more than half of those surveyed (58%) have never heard of e-waste and just under half (45%) weren’t confident in how to sustainably dispose of electronic devices, despite three quarters (75%) being concerned about the climate crisis.

TV collection

Virgin TV customers can also access a specially curated on-demand collection of TV shows and documentaries, highlighting the significance of climate change and pollution, with the circular economy offering solutions to many of these challenges.

The collection is made up of 16 titles including Sky Documentaries’ Plastic Nile, Channel 4’s The Great Climate Fight and Discovery’s The Great Global Clean Up.

It forms part of Virgin Media O2’s sustainability strategy, the Better Connections Plan, and the company’s goal to encourage consumers to carry out 10 million ‘circular actions’ by the end of 2025.

David Bouchier, Chief TV and Entertainment Officer at Virgin Media O2, said: “E-waste is a growing problem in a world that is more reliant on electronic devices than ever.

“With our research showing TV is one of the most powerful ways to inform people about important issues such as the climate crisis, we hope our specially created film and programme collection will help our customers learn more about what they can do to protect the planet.”