All of us


		Avoiding Poisonous metals
		Selecting all Metals
		Buying Well Designed Products
		In Favour of Recycling Companies
		Involving People through Proper Information
		Bringing Pressure to Bear for a Change in the Law

	AVOIDING POISONOUS METALS

	The use of metals and minerals has been indispensable in some of humanity's great advances, but at the same time we have gradually discovered some negative consequences of this use, especially for health. For example, lead and cadmium have been used for years in a range of industrial processes and have been disposed of indiscriminately. Some metals are toxic for humans and measures must be taken to prevent their affecting us. Control, monitoring and suitable disposal are very important, but however many measures are taken there can always be accidents that release toxic metals into natural systems. Alternatives therefore need to be developed so that the use of toxic products can be reduced to a minimum. Pressure by consumers is very important in reducing the use of these toxic products. We need to find out about the consequences for health and for the environment of the products we purchase, by inspecting the labels, asking sales staff or looking for information through consumer organisations (bulletins, web sites, etc.). After that, we need to choose the products that pollute least. Very often, all it takes is for one small consumer sector to make specific demands for non-polluting products for manufacturers to take it into account when looking at trends in societies with a view to future products.

	SELECTING ALL METALS

	Exploitation of mineral resources has a number of serious effects for the environment. These can be reduced to a great extent by practices and habits which allow the metals we use and throw away to be retrieved. Selection of metals such as the iron and aluminium for certain canned foods and drinks at source makes it possible to reuse them in many cases or at least recycle them. If part of the material is cleanly recycled, without mixing it with other products or impurities, the quality of the final product improves considerably. First of all, we have to choose the products we buy, from tin cans to fridges, bearing in mind the use we are going to make of them and their fate once we have finished with them. This is a long-term job which will allow us to develop environment-friendly shopping habits. Secondly, we need to look for ways of using the products we do not need. For example, there are metal recipients for tea or coffee that can be used as decorative elements or for storage. Thirdly, we should ensure that any metal product we throw away goes to the most suitable place for reuse or recycling.

BUYING WELL DESIGNED PRODUCTS

When it comes to buying, there are some products that require large amounts of minerals and metals. A new house or flat, a car, household appliances and other similar products have a long life and our purchasing decisions will have repercussions many years later.


		Electrical products are not designed to be dismantled to recover the metals they contain.

These purchases must be specially thought out and must take into account environmental criteria that go beyond the period when we will have the article at home. By choosing those products that can be dismantled and repaired easily, we are ensuring that the materials of the new device will last longer, because when it breaks down we can repair the parts instead of throwing it away and buying a new one. Subsequently, pressure on the natural environment by further mineral extraction to produce more appliances is reduced.

There is no doubt that we can not spread our consumption model all over the world. Rich countries must therefore reduce consumption and get more out of materials that have already been extracted.

IN FAVOUR OF RECYCLING COMPANIES

Unemployment is a scourge in today's world. It is really a question of taxes that is gradually changing: if we lack materials and have excess workforce, there has to be a tax on raw materials (which are very cheap at present) instead of on employment (very expensive).

Although these changes in taxation are important, we also need to explore every field in which a wide range of forms of work can arise. At the moment, we see that there are people working in mining and people working in the disposal of all sorts of waste (including minerals). It is therefore obvious that businesses devoted to recovering metals can also be economically viable.

These companies exist today, but to help them they have to have government support and, above all, support and subventions for mining companies must be reduced.


		Recycling is an enterprise with a future'.

Support from society is also needed. If we recycle we are helping to open up the job market to a lot of people (who are often living in very deficient social conditions) and we are avoiding the extraction of huge amounts of minerals and its environmental consequences.

INVOLVING PEOPLE THROUGH PROPER INFORMATION

Metals have certain advantages over other materials when it comes to retrieving them: they are easy to identify, have a high commercial value, their robustness means they can be put to other uses and they are relatively easy to recycle. If these factors are made clear, society can get involved in campaigns in favour of selecting them.

Campaigns generally include many suggestive elements to attract people but it is also important to provide information so that they can understand the causes and results of individual actions. If people understand the process, they can get involved much more in suitable measures and in the search for new solutions.


		Campaigns are important for bringing about a change in habits.

Apart from campaigns, there are people who act correctly and consequentially, but their action is restricted to the personal or family sphere. We need to take further steps. We must not merely adopt habits of respect and protection of the environment, we must pass them on. For this we need to try and spread these habits to every field we move in.

	BRINGING PRESSURE TO BEAR FOR A CHANGE IN THE LAW

	Building a strong society includes producing proposals to keep it moving forward. Structuring society through laws, rules or other legislative instruments is not just the responsibility of politicians. This job is the responsibility of all citizens, who must work for a fairer future with greater respect for people and the environment. If the work of making laws is left in the hands of a small number of people, the results could be biased. That is why we need to incorporate as many contributions as possible in the processes. Personal participation is not possible because we can not all be everywhere and it would be impossible to reach agreement between so many people, but we must try to take part through social platforms and representative organisations. Today we are witnessing the creation of large world networks for social participation. In the same way, participation on a local level is very important for finding the best proposals through processes that are as open as possible.