Every four weeks he gives up his time to help people fix their phones, in his home city of Aachen in the west of Germany.
But he can’t help you with any make of phone – just one brand called Fairphone.
For the past eight years Mr Lesse has been an active member of an unpaid skills-sharing network of dedicated Fairphone users. He organises local community meetings and helps with repairs.
“I don’t repair phones if I don’t have to, but I have always been strongly motivated to encourage people to try to fix their own Fairphones by themselves,” he says.
It has always been a matter of passing on information and taking the inhibition away from the people to dare and open their phones,” he explains.
With a modular design, Fairphone devices allow components such as the display screen, battery, USB ports and cameras to easily be exchanged, repaired and customised by their owners.
The Fairphone 2 could be taken apart in under two minutes,” says Mr Lesse. “There were models where you didn’t even need tools to take the display off in order to replace it yourself.”
Fairphone customers range from programmers who have been drawn to the software possibilities of the phones, to consumers in search of a more sustainable product.
The firm started in 2013 and follows four principles: sourcing raw materials from non-conflict mining areas, and making products that are recyclable, long-lasting and repairable.
According to United Nations figures, a record 53.6m tonnes of electronic waste was generated worldwide in 2019 – up 21% in just five year – with mobile phones making up a significant part of this. What’s more, only 17% of electronic waste was recycled.
Fairphone argues that by making phones easy to fix they can have a longer working life, generating less waste and so having a positive impact on the environment.
So far, the Dutch firm has sold some 400,000 devices – which means it is a very small player in the smartphone market.
“Fairphone is still a niche product, which can’t be found in many stores, which is why the community network is important,” says Mr Lesse.
Yet Fairphone has created waves within the industry, particularly in Germany, where it has earned a significant body of support.
Germany has presented Fairphone with numerous certifications and awards, most notably in 2016 the German Environmental Award, the most lucrative environmental prize in Europe.
Mr Ballester believes this government acclaim, as opposed to industry market recommendations, is one of the reasons Fairphone has gained such a sizeable following in Germany in comparison to other European markets.
