Good for you on speaking up and asking the question about electronics. My guess is that while they could tell you about the Fair Phone, I am guessing the didn't have their own for a "show and tell" session.
It is so bad now with plastic that each individual cheese slice has it's own wrapper of plastic.
I'm not a big fan of recycling programs when it comes to plastic because all those programs involve separate collection trucks to pick up the stuff and then those sorting and cleaning stations use a lot of water to clean the plastics and water is in short supply in several areas of the world.
There has to be way to package things in a biodegradable form of packaging that would be more environmentally friendly. It will be interesting to see where this group goes with what they are working on.
I'm definitely going to write another post on plastic, because there's much more to be said on this subject. Re-recycling - years ago, before I was made redundant from my job as a trade magazine editor, I was invited to a city up north to judge a food contest (which was fun!). The evening before the contest, the judges were invited to dinner with local dignitaries, including several councillors (local government reps). After dinner, some of the councillors started talking about recycling programmes, and one of them said, "Until recently, all different colours of glass were recycled together, but we still got the public to sort them into different containers, as it made them feel more actively involved."
That sounds like a typical government way of thinking. I hope you do write more on it.