Emoco
Big Change funded Andrew Speight as a finalist in our Big Education Challenge in 2023. This funding and support programme helped Andrew develop his idea for…
Funded projects
WEEE Renew - Spark Award Changemaker
WEEE Renew, led by Yulian (22) and the PPCP Team, is a youth-led initiative tackling the urgent issue of youth unemployment through digital inclusion and corporate e-waste recycling.
What we did:
- Big Change awarded WEEE Renew, led by 22-year-old Yulian Findlay and the PPCP team, a Spark Award in 2025.
- Our funding and support will help the project expand across Greater London, offering young people aged 16–24 hands-on experience in IT repair, logistics, asset management, and community outreach.
- We are backing their goal to ensure at least 80% of participants secure employment in the IT sector, while also diverting e-waste from landfill and digitally empowering grassroots organisations.
The Spark
Young people in the UK are facing a growing skills and employment gap. Currently, 14.6% of young people are unemployed, and as many as one in two employers believe young people are not job-ready. Kings Trust Youth Report reveals the impact of unemployment on young people's mental health and aspirations, finding NEET young people have the lowest happiness and overall wellbeing compared to any other group.
Yulian Findlay, 22, founder of WEEE Renew, has a passion for both technology and sustainability. Along with his team, he knows firsthand the challenges of finding employment without prior experience. They developed WEEE Renew to give young people the experience they need to build their confidence and their CVs and build professional networks. The project diverts corporate e-waste from landfill, embedding environmental responsibility into the future of work.
I graduated with a degree in Computer Science, but no one would hire me without experience. It took two years to land a job. WEEE Renew gives young people what I didn’t have: a chance to show what they can do.
Vijai, WEEE Renew team member
of young people are unemployed in 2025, up from 13.2% the year before (House of Commons Library).
young people are currently Not in Education, Employment, or Training (Office for National Statistics).
of UK employers believe young people are not job-ready (CIPD Report).
The impact
WEEE Renew offers a six-step, youth-led model called IMPACT, which transforms e-waste into opportunity. Through this model, young people aged 16–24 gain practical experience in logistics, IT repair, asset management, digital marketing, and community outreach. As they refurbish and deliver devices to community organisations, they build transferable skills and grow their professional networks.
The project has already donated dozens of devices to local community centres and helped young people like Daniel, a refugee who is now a content creator, and Vijai, who struggled for two years post-graduation but now leads logistics.
WEEE Renew aims to expand across Greater London providing a scalable model. The goal is for at least 80% of participants to secure employment in the IT sector. By empowering young people and digitally transforming grassroots organisations, WEEE Renew is creating lasting social and environmental impact.
The Big Changemaker
Yulian Findlay
Yulian leads the WEEE Renew project with a team of young people who have all faced similar employment challenges. He has a keen interest in tech and sustainability and is proficient in e-commerce. He and his team are driven by lived experience and the shared belief that work experience can change lives.
He launched WEEE Renew to provide a solution for young people like himself who struggled to find entry-level work. Through WEEE Renew, he is creating pathways to success for others and proving that environmental and social justice can go hand in hand.
