Recycle Tech Equipment
How to Recycle or Dispose of Equipment
NYU community members can help reduce environmental impact when it comes to recycling and materials disposal. As a rule of thumb, electronic equipment should never be placed in landfill. NYU has protocols and resources to facilitate the reuse and proper disposal of equipment. You can help ensure that toxic materials don’t seep into groundwater or land.
Staff and Faculty
- If you have equipment you no longer need, please see the Procedures for Recycling or Disposing of Computer and Electronic Equipment and the Standard for Destruction and Disposal of Electronic Equipment and Data.
- Some administrative spaces have dedicated technoscrap bins you can use to recycle electronics.
Students
- Use one of the technoscrap bins around campus to dispose of electronic equipment such as keyboards, mouse, monitors, cables, printers, and printer cartridges.
- Bins are located at Bobst Library and select residence halls, including Othmer, Brittany, Broome St, Founders, and Third North (access may be limited to residents).
Tech Recycling and Cybersecurity
All members of the NYU community should exercise caution when disposing of or recycling computers, USB sticks, external disk drives, and mobile devices such as phones and tablets. They're likely to contain personal information and sensitive data. Make sure any such devices are securely wiped. Check your device’s support documentation for instructions, but general best practices include:
- Logging out of all accounts and deleting any saved usernames and passwords.
- Removing SIM cards and any storage cards you may have added.
- Reformatting computers, external drives, and USB sticks.
- Resetting mobile devices to their original factory settings.
For additional guidance and tools for securely disposing of computers and storage devices, see the Standard for Destruction and Disposal of Electronic Equipment and Data.
IT Support
NYU IT Service Desk is available 24x7. Please email if not urgent.
