Have you heard about planned obsolescence? It’s an industry practice of designing products with limited lifespans (thus driving sales). It explains why electronics are now the fastest growing source of waste in the world, with big impacts on our planet. Social entrepreneur Laetitia Vasseur founded STOP Planned Obsolescence to reverse this trend (Halte à l’Obsolescence Programmée — HOP, in French). Ashoka’s Hanae Baruchel caught up with her to learn more about her movement’s activation of 70,000 consumers and 30 companies across France driving better policies and practices to build tech that lasts.
Hanae Baruchel: Laetitia — let’s start with the basics. What is planned obsolescence?
Laetitia Vasseur: