Action For Apes Challenge
Action for Apes is a collaborative effort in support of the Houston Zoo’s challenge to combat gorilla habitat destruction. A material called tantalum is found in almost every cell phone, as well as in other handheld electronics such as tablets. This metal comes from the ground in Central Africa, which happens to be where animals like chimpanzees and gorillas live. When the metal is taken from these habitats to be used in electronics, the homes of chimps, gorillas, and an array of other animals become disrupted, and these animal populations decrease.
1212 N Velasco St, Suite 110
Angleton, TX 77515-3010, United States
Monday through Friday
8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
- Cell phones
- Smartphones
- iPods or other MP3 players
- iPads or other tablets
- Wi-Fi hotspots
- Handheld gaming devices
- GPS devices
- Electronic accessories, such as chargers, Bluetooth headsets, etc.
- Make sure you terminate your service or switch your contract to a new phone.
- Clear any personal data from the device by removing the SIM card or manually removing the information.
- On most handheld electronics, you can find “Reset” under “Settings.”
- Turn your electronic off if the battery is still charged.
- The materials in the electronics can be reused instead of mining new minerals from the ground in Central Africa.
- When you recycle devices with us, we donate in bulk to the Houston Zoo. The Houston Zoo then returns the devices to a company called Eco-Cell that sells the individual parts of the phone so that they can be reused. Any proceeds then go to conservation efforts to help save animals in the wild.