TCL®, one of the world’s best-selling consumer electronics brands and leading technology companies, announces that it received two awards from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for its sustainability efforts during 2020 – including the first-ever Special Sustainability Leadership Award. The EPA recognized TCL as a top standout among all manufacturers for its innovative efforts to keep electronics recycling solutions safe and accessible during the COVID-19 pandemic. And for the third consecutive year, TCL North America was presented with the Gold-Tier Award in the EPA’s Sustainable Materials Management (SMM) Electronics Challenge for its continued commitment to accessible electronics recycling and advancing educational efforts across the United States.
The tremendous impact of the pandemic during 2020 shut down electronics collection, and TCL’s sustainability team met the challenge by quickly rethinking how to get solutions safely and conveniently back in communities. After testing several approaches and working with its industry partners, TCL created a combination of safety protocols and to-the-minute event planning that could be reproduced across the country, enabling participants to drive up, drop off, and go. TCL’s initial event employing its solutions in Denver, Colorado, met resounding success with all 280 slots reserved online in under 24 hours, diverting tons of electronics from local landfills.
“TCL is honored to receive the first-ever Special Sustainability Leadership Award from the EPA for our efforts in keeping electronics recycling accessible, and most importantly, safe for our users across the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Jonathan King, Vice President of Corporate and Legal Affairs for TCL. “Receiving gold-tier honors in the SMM Electronics Challenge for the third consecutive year shows TCL’s leadership and steadfast commitment to electronics recycling. While 2020 was a challenging year for us all, programs like the TCL Take Back Tour allowed us to continue making an impact in sustaining our environment, and 2021 will be no different as we work to recycle our 100 millionth pound of electronics this Summer. This milestone wouldn’t be possible without the extraordinary efforts of the TCL Team, and is a testament to the unrivaled value of this employee-driven program.”
TCL will continue to extend its environmental leadership and minimize its footprint through a series of new sustainability initiatives in 2021. Enhanced package labeling techniques, expanded electronics and packaging recycling, and participation in new energy efficiency programs are core components of TCL’s goal to create a more sustainable future. “The innovation and environmental leadership shown by these companies is outstanding,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “The Electronics Challenge award winners are corporate role models creating new products that show environmental improvement can go hand-in-hand with other technological advances. EPA encourages others to follow their lead by implementing similar innovative approaches.”
In support of its commitment to promoting Earth Day, TCL’s Take Back Tour will continue in April with free events in communities in Louisiana, Kentucky, and Oklahoma, raising awareness of the benefits that effective electronics recycling can bring to cities and towns across America. Since 2014, the TCL North America leaders have committed to creating a high-performing culture that allows the company to have a successful business they can feel good about. TCL Cares is the “guiding hand,” a simple set of rules that all decisions are filtered through:
- #TCLCares for our users. It is our responsibility to add joy and simplification to their lives by innovating and advancing technology.
- #TCLCares for our employees. It is our commitment to provide an environment that embraces diversity, excellence, learning, and laughter.
- #TCLCares for the communities we serve. We are all one, and we are committed to finding ways to give back and make a positive impact.
- #TCLCares for our environment. We have an obligation to minimize our footprint on the planet our users and employees call home.