NoWa creates jewelry from old phones

NoWa stands for No Waste. The jewelry tells a meaningful story. They are made from discarded materials and produced with the help of people who have difficulty finding a job.

NoWa receives support from Stichting DOEN and Rabo Foundation. With this funding the company can grow further, collect more phones, and raise greater awareness about electronic waste by sharing their work with more people.

NoWa collects old mobile phones. Staff dismantle the phones so they can be properly recycled. The company uses the gold and silver from the phones to make earrings, bracelets and necklaces. NoWa operates in a circular way, meaning materials are reused instead of discarded. NoWa also partners with social enterprises like NouJij, ICT vanaf Morgen and Atelier Revive, who offer work to people who struggle to find employment. Together they create unique jewelry.

NoWa doesn’t just sell jewelry. The company also wants to tell as many people as possible how important it is to continuously reuse materials. In the Gold Seekers workshop, participants search for gold in their old mobile phones, learning about circularity in a fun way.

NoWa also collaborates with companies through campaigns like ‘You Are Worth Gold – and so is your mobile phone’. Employees can hand in their old phones. Working phones get a second life, while broken phones are turned into new raw materials.

NoWa has already collected tens of thousands of phones, yielding kilograms of gold and silver. More and more people know NoWa’s jewelry and story: Her Majesty Queen Máxima has worn the jewelry, and NoWa was a finalist in Stichting DOEN’s Fair Future Challenge, a competition for businesses with sustainable and social products.

NoWa’s ambition is big. Over the next five years, the company aims to collect at least 1 million phones. With support from Stichting DOEN, the team can grow. That way NoWa is able to organize more collection campaigns and create more jewelry.

In the Netherlands, Rabo Foundation focuses on social entrepreneurs who contribute to an inclusive labor market. Rabo Foundation also supports social entrepreneurs working on the circular and regenerative economy or the food transition. These enterprises not only create social value but also offer opportunities to people who struggle to find independent employment, either directly or through partnerships in the supply chain.

Support consists of various financial solutions depending on the enterprise’s stage of development, as well as knowledge and coaching.

Thanks to a loan from Rabo Foundation, NoWa can make even greater impact: recovering more valuable materials from old phones and contributing to a more inclusive labor market.

More about the Rabo Foundation.