Hibernation of off-grid solar e-waste in Kenya: An unintended response to an emerging waste issue

Abstract

Off-grid solar devices enables a transition to green energy. With this transition however, there is generation of electronic waste and concerns about its management. Currently most solar e-waste ends up 'hibernating' or stored at home, while only a minor share is recycled. Through a mixed method approach, this paper addresses underlying causes of hibernation. It develops a new framework to shed light on elements at the interplay between economic, emotional and symbolic reasoning explaining off grid solar e-waste hibernation in rural homes in Kenya. It finds that 72 % of waste hibernates and that the hibernation potential increases with decreasing economic value and with increasing symbolic and emotional meanings. Hibernation period is anticipated to increase with an ageing stock of devices. Thus, while better products, repair and recycling are long-term solutions, hibernation offers an 'unintended' intermediate solution to the problem of broken devices, which might otherwise be disposed of.