TÓQUIO 2020
As medalhas recicladas dos Jogos Olímpicos de Tóquio
July 24, 2020 - August 9, 2020 - As medalhas dos Jogos Olímpicos de Tóquio 2020 são feitas de materiais reciclados de equenos dispositivos eletrónicos, reunidos ao longo de dois anos em abril de 2017 e e março de 2019.
Municipal authorities collected 72,000 tonnes of small electronic waste from households right across Japan, while NTT Docomo (the predominant mobile phone operator) collected around six million old and unwanted handsets from members of the public.
The devices were then painstakingly dismantled so that tiny amounts of rare metals could be extracted before being refined and made ready for smelting. The final harvest includes 32kg of gold, 3,500kg of silver and 2,200kg of bronze (95% copper and 5% zinc).
Graphic designer Junichi Kawanishi won a nationwide competition to design the medals which he says symbolise the energy of athletes, the diversity of the games, and the warm glow of friendship.
Even the ribbon has been carefully considered, with its colours added through the addition of CO₂-friendly chemically-recycled polyester fibres.