The five-year-old non-profit Comprenew Environmental collects and recycles used electronics, including computers and cell phones. Last year alone Comprenew kept over two million pounds of electronics out of landfills. Formerly a for-profit business, Comprenew changed its emphasis and moved from Rockford to the inner-city of Grand Rapids to be near the clients they want to serve.
In addition to the summer Academy pictured here, Comprenew has year-around classes for adults giving them hands-on experience at fixing and troubleshooting computers. The long-term goal is teaching these adults, many of them struggling to find jobs, computer skills to make them marketable in the growing green economy.
Comprenew partners with Davenport, ITT, GRCC, and GVSU to offer their students hands-on experience with computers that the higher-education schools can’t duplicate. Located at 629 Ionia, near the bus station hub, Comprenew is easily accessible to students and city residents.
Comprenew, with its staff of ten supplemented by active volunteers, is always on the lookout for computers, office equipment, and computer stations that businesses no longer need. As a non-profit, Comprenew can offer a tax-deduction for all donations. Paul Kehoe, Sales and Development, can be reached at (616) 0988-8282.
**The above pictures trailer was purchased with a grant given to them by the Wege Foundation.
