I wrote few times in the past about direct marketing and its environmental impacts (check here and here). This is definitely an issue where an innovative approach combining creativity, green basics and visionary thinking is required to make things better and greener. And we’re happy to update you that someone is actually doing it!

Springwise reports that Paris-based direct marketing agency TBWA\Excel launched its Mailing Vert service (Le Mailing Vert) in partnership with envelope maker Manuparis, Vincent Printers, Groupe Moselle Vieillemard printers and direct marketing/sales logistics firm Diffusion Plus.

Excel is an agency of TBWA group that specializes in fundraising and commitment to social service associations, foundations and corporate citizens. I believe the idea behind the Mailing Vert service is to provide Excel’s customers, many of whom are non-profits, with a greener offer that will enable them to have direct marketing campaigns, promoting their causes with as little environmental impact as possible.

According to Springwise, partners in Mailing Vert adhere to a charter including four principles:

1. To protect the environment, such as by purifying all waste water and using vegetable-based inks, solvents and cleaning agents.
2. To preserve raw materials and protect natural resources through the use of paper that’s either recycled or derived from sustainably managed forests.
3. To track waste and minimize energy consumption, such as by optimizing transportation networks.
4. To measure and offset the ecological impact of each phase of the direct-mailing process.

All in all this is great news and I hope many advertising agencies will follow the example that Excel sets here. I know that in a perfect world we might be able to avoid direct marketing at all, but as it doesn’t look that it’s going to be vanished anytime soon, I guess we need to look for realistic solutions that will make sure that these campaigns will be made responsibly and will reduce their impact as much as possible. Excel definitely gives an example how it can be done.

And they’re also doing it in a fun way (not less important!), as you can see from the video clip below.

From their website: “FiberStone is made from 80% Calcium Carbonate (CaCOз) with a small quantity (20%) of non-toxic resin (HDPE- High Density Polypropylene). The Calcium Carbonate comes from limestone collected as waste material from existing quarries for the building and construction industry.”

The bottom line is that no trees are cut down, no water is consumed, no bleaching chemicals are used, and no air pollution is created. Along with being waterproof and recyclable, it is also tear resistant. They offer a wide range of products such as marketing and packaging materials as well. Does this sound like a dream come true for some of you struggling to find ways to reduce the environmental impact of your creations and microbrands?

I asked a representative from the company a few questions with the indie craft community in mind…

Do you need any special equipment or inks to print on this paper?
It can be printed offset/lithographically, gravure, screen printed, inkjet, or on a solid ink printer such as a Xerox Phaser.

Will you be offering your products online to individuals?
There is so much interest from corporations and smaller companies that we cannot offer it to individuals with small runs at this time.

Any different colors or textures available besides white?
It is only available in white. We can emboss textures into it. It has a brightness of 92.

Any possibility you will partner up with an art/photo printing site to be included as an option?
Sounds interesting. I’d love to explore this further.

Do you offer bookbinding or have plans to make that available?
On larger runs, yes.

This is not the first time I have ran across an amazing eco-friendly material that would be widely embraced by our community, yet is practically unattainable. Many companies like this focus on consultation and sales to other established businesses rather than to the general public or cottage industries.

I wonder though, could groups of crafters mobilize and create co-ops to purchase specialized materials? Might these companies be responsive to ideas about how they can cater to artists and crafters while tapping into a lucrative and under-served supply niche?

I think this product would be of obvious interest to those who scrapbook or create art (that goes for a lot of us). Also, thousands of indie entrepreneurs rely on promotional and labeling materials to market themselves, and compete with the pizazz of commercial packaging.

Most national craft supply chains seem out of touch…only appealing to the indie crowd minimally, as if they are waiting out a trend. Hopefully they will come around, but it likely won’t be a significant effort anytime soon. Bypassing these stores to acquire green options in existence is becoming increasingly necessary. Upcycling demonstrates our inventiveness, but does not present a long-term solution.

The modern craft resurgence has been a catalyst for thousands of microbrands. In this realm, personal responsibility meets product fabrication, and independent art gives mass media a run for it’s money. It makes sense for our community to be proponents of environmental innovation in our materials and substrates. As of yet, we do little more than ride the coattails of established retail trends when it comes to technology, though much of our merchandise thrives on resourcefulness and personal attention that big business cannot replicate. Ironically, some of them continue to capitalize on aesthetic styles we have initiated.

Perhaps our individualism has put us at a disadvantage when it comes to commercial supplies. The spectrum of our collective practices is vast and varied. Some artisans conceptualize a finished piece with clarity before acquiring their materials. Others enjoy the challenge of refurbishing existing objects, and excel at collecting more of the same treasures. I have met thrift store enthusiasts that dismiss the need for modern commercial supplies altogether, and designers whose vitality rests on the consistency and availability of mass manufacturing. It’s been futile trying to define our genre, much less self-organize in the traditional sense. Yet, we continue propping up a huge community that nurtures creativity. It wouldn’t hurt to examine what possibilities we are missing out on because we don’t collectively pursue them.

My recent survey reflected that, overwhelmingly, we want our creations to encompass a cycle of sustainability. We all know that green practices in homes and business are helpful for the environment, but they don’t inspire people. Art propels world views, and for most of history, permanence has been a major factor in it’s value. Increasingly, this is at the expense of the planet. Michelangelo erected a few bronze sculptures, but he never had a practically limitless supply of plastic canvases and acrylic yarn to cross stitch with.

Getting back to this fabulous paper product…how thought provoking would it be to offer giclee prints of your latest doodles on waterproof paper with the clear statement of it’s intended lifecycle?

“This work of art has thus far created minimal environmental impact. At the wish of the artist, please submit it to the designated recycling program when interest in it has ceased.”

I admit, this is completely upside-down approach! Having worked at an art supply store, and as an artist, I can’t stress how important the term “archival” has become. It’s understandable that one would want to create their original art with potential to last indefinitely. The problem is that the moment it leaves your possession, you are no longer in control of it’s longevity. The idea that your creation might be revered as a family heirloom to be passed down for generations, find a permanent home in a museum, or become priceless long after you’re gone is a smidge unrealistic. We need access to materials that are durable and light-fast, yet have not wreaked havoc on living things, and better yet, will continue to be harmless if discarded of properly. Such is the case with FiberStone paper.

Now, where is my organic cotton duck canvas primed with natural gesso and mounted on stretcher bars made from recycled plastic bottles?

Maybe our cultural legacy lies in finding creative ways to eliminate the environmental footprint of creativity itself. I don’t think that means we should tip-toe around technology. After all, the vibrancy of the current handmade movement is largely due to the internet.

You can see all of the patterns here - but make sure you notice there’s a page two, navigation is in the upper right. Most of them come in additional colorways and you have to click through to see them. Each sheet is about 22×30, and they sell for $6 or you can get 3 sheets of the same pattern for $12.

Soolip says the material is produced “produced using fair trade partnerships,” but strangely there is no additional information on the website about this. However, I also don’t want to assume that just because it’s not certified, it’s not a valid claim. Certification of any kind, from organic to fair trade to the quality of a child care center, is a product that costs money. Not every business, whatever their ethical standards, can afford to pursue it - or they simply may choose not to.

What kinds of sewing projects can you do with wallpaper-type quasi-fabrics? Kim has a couple of suggestions in her post about Soolip. Anyone else have any ideas? (I know there are tons of crafty ideas where wallpaper is used as, well, paper - but since I’m trying to sneak this into the Fabulous Fabrics series, I have to at least make an effort!)

Related posts: Da’vida Fair Trade; Recycled Felt (And More) From Hart’s Fabric; Wallpaper Journals.

Image source: it all skyrocketed with Gutenberg’s printing press…

A Green Printer dispatch.

Ever wondered how much energy and thought it took to produce that shiny brochure your marketing staff handed to you this week? And no, it’s not just the brand and visual design genius we’re talking about.

Let’s face it: making a few pieces of paper look pretty takes up some pretty hefty resources and the paper and pulp industry is there to meet our paper hungry needs (so much for the paperless office).

In fact, the OECD Environmental Outlooks calls the pulp and paper industry the single largest consumer of water and the third greatest industrial greenhouse gas emitter, right after the chemical and steel industries and the oil and gas industry.

And, that rank, as echoed by Co-op America is not set to go down anytime soon.

The Environmental Defense Fund further attests that paper use is on the rise with paper and packaging still making up one third of municipal landfill waste. And, producing all those nice brochures (or manuals or contracts or….) takes up a lot of energy. In fact,

• Producing paper uses 11.5 percent of all energy in the industrial sector.
• One third of all wood harvested in the U.S. goes into paper products.

Thus, on the bright side, paper use presents the potential for enormous environmental savings. Citigroup took up the challenge of using post-consumer waste paper and saved 43.8 billion BTU’s of energy, enough to supply 430 homes for a year.

But then, what about those cool, “a must” coloured graphs and charts on the company brochure?

More than likely, it was made using inks containing volatile organic compounds (VOCs). That’s short for those nasty major pollutants linked to the deterioration of the earth’s protective ozone layer and, consequently (some researchers suggest), to accelerating climate change.

So what are we to do?
Let’s begin with the water used to print those brochures. Waterless printers have been able to dramatically reduce water consumption. For example, a printer in Switzerland, operating one of the world’s first waterless web presses, eliminated the use of approximately 250,000 liters (about 66,000 gallons) of water in one year. That water would normally have come from a nearby lake, which is a source of drinking water for tens of thousands of people.

The invention of water-washable inks has allowed the waterless pressroom to be virtually VOC-free. Water-washable ink technology takes out the need for solvent-based press and blanket wash solutions, which typically account for a large portion of a printer’s VOC output.

So, have your cake and eat it too. We all love handing a cool looking brochure to a client. It just doesn’t need to cost the Earth.

More resources

• No piece of paper is completely environmentally invisible, even the recycled kind, so choose check out these guidelines for environmentally preferable paper by the Environmental Paper Network.
• Handy printable signs to encourage better office paper use by the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF).
• Ever wondered where to even start to buy greener paper? The first step starts with asking the right questions and this Paper Supplier Evaluation PDF by the EDF is about as thorough as it gets.
• Recycled paper purchasing article from GreenBiz.com.

Get these brands and more, all while tracking how much CO2, trees and wastewater you’ll save with the Eco-Widget, at Green Printer.

Gail Gibbons is well known for her children’s non-fiction books. From Weather Forecasting to Chicks & Chickens, the text and illustrations are loaded with detailed information. Recycle! is no exception. The book begins by talking about the problem of garbage and how to dispose of it. Recycling is presented as a solution that can “cut down the amount of trash we make.” From a simple explanation of recycling, Gail breaks down the specifics of recycling paper, glass, cans, plastic, and polystyrene. She explains how each is made, recycled, and reused.

It takes lime, soda ash, and sand, called silica, to make glass. These three elements are mixed together and heated at a very high temperature to make a glassy liquid. Measured amounts, sometimes dyed, are dropped into forming machines, where the liquid hardens to make bottles and jars. Many products come in glass bottles or jars. Sometimes, when they are through being used, they are just thrown away. It would take thousands of years for them to biodegrade at a landfill. Instead, these bottles and jars could be reused. RECYCLE!

This book should be a basic primer for all Americans (including our president), no matter what the age. Learning how plastic and polystyrene never break down, or how making paper from recycled paper uses less energy and resources than making virgin pulp should be basic knowledge in these times of climate change.

As a preschool teacher, I have found Gail Gibbons’ books to be difficult for young children to understand if you read them word for word. Instead, the illustrations provide wonderful sources for developmentally appropriate discussions with young children, and the text can be read minimally to not overwhelm the children. It is important to make reading an interactive experience with young children, and Gail offers many opportunities for such interactions in her books. Older children can appreciate the full volume of information found in each book, and Recycle! is geared for children ages four to eight.

Read more about eco kids’ books:

• Teaching Your Kids to Cook

• Eco Kids’ Books: How to Turn Your Parents Green

• Eco Kids’ Books: William is Going Green

• Breaking the Princess Stereotype: Princess Bubble

Gather your materials and ideas. Here’s what’s involved:

• An inkjet printer
• The seed packet outline template (download here in JPG or PDF file formats)
• Embellishment option 1: A graphics program such as Adobe Photoshop or GIMP (free open-source software)
• Embellishment option 2: Decorate the packet post-printing by hand
• Embellishment option 3: Do both!
• Paper grocery bags
• Iron and scrap fabric
• Scissors
• Ruler
• Pencil
• Glue stick
• Paper creaser or popsicle stick
• 1 can of wildflower seeds
• Optional: rotary cutter with dedicated blade
• Optional: stamps, stickers or other embellishments(as long as they don’t poke holes in the paper)

Create your design

You need only a basic knowledge of manipulating graphics to create a design with the template. Don’t fret over acquiring Photoshop if you don’t own it. I have been singing the praises of open-source options like GIMP and Inkscape for years now. If you are not adept to using this type of software, no worries! You can simply print the PDF file, then write, collage, stamp, or glue to your heart’s content. Here is a brief description of the steps I take using GIMP(for all you rookies): Open the template in your program. It’s 150dpi, and is sized to print at 8.5″x11″. You’ll want to work in layers for manipulating different elements. Create your design within one of the outlines. When you are done, save it in the native format(.psd for Photoshop or .svg in GIMP), so you can adjust later if needed. Now, simply merge down those layers, leaving the background free. Copy/paste the text and images, and align them on to the second packet outline (or do different designs, it’s your party!). Keep in mind that printing on brown paper means that white will not be a factor in your colors. They will be duller than what appears on the screen. That said, I have an inexpensive multi-function HP printer, and even light blue showed up nicely. Important text should be in bold or dark colors though, and keep it about 1/4″ from the fold lines as well. When you print, make sure to check the options for margins. If you can, set the printer to ignore them.

Turn bags into printer paper

All paper grocery bags that I’ve encountered have a single seam along the length of one side. You don’t want to print on seams, so rip or cut it open along that line. You won’t be using the bottom. Cut it out, or tear it apart so that the bag lays flat in a single layer. The point is to have as much surface area as possible to divide into 8.5″x11″ pieces. Using a scrap piece of printer paper as a template, place a ruler around the edges and trace/cut or rotary cut out individual pages. Yes, it’s against all convention to use your sewing cutlery on paper, but buy a dedicated blade for your rotary cutter, and I promise you’ll find it enormously useful for this and other projects. I made 3o Japanese stab bound books for Christmas presents last year, and opted to make this tool multi-use rather than buying a dedicated paper cutter. This also allows you to stack up to 3 layers of bags that you can cut through in one pass. For a standard size bag, you’ll get about 6 sheets of paper(12 packets). Once you have your sheets cut out, they will probably be somewhat wrinkly. So, we’re going to crossover to our sewing supplies again, and using a piece of scrap fabric as a buffer, iron out the sheets on med-high heat one at a time. This will help them to go through the printer smoothly, and make a nicer finished product.

Tips on printing

I think buying packaged specialty papers is to your printer as packaged patterns are to your sewing machine. It creates a predictable finished product, but both of these machines are potential avenues for experimentation. I have had no problem sewing through cardboard. Likewise, I’ve had no problem printing on regular fabric. More on that later, but let’s stick with the program. Load your paper bag paper with the blank side in the correct direction to be printed on in the paper tray. Keep the cleanest edge (one with the least folds or wrinkles) on the feed side. If you are printing your design, set your printer properties to a high-quality setting, and adjust the ink volume to medium-heavy or heavy. I got over 75 cards printed without putting too much of a dent in my notably puny cartidges. Print a sample or two, and adjust as needed. When trying this, I was pleasantly surprised by the sharpness of the images on the seemingly rough surface. I had one or two jams, but they were because I was messing around with the loading tray. No big deal. Again, I have a run-of-the-mill, front loading HP, any inkjet should work similarly. If you try, this and have any particular issues or tips for your model, please leave them in comments.

Cut, paste, and plant!

Cut out the individual packets along the lines. If you want to add additional decoration or hand drawings, now is the time. With the right side down, fold all the flaps in towards the middle, and crease using your popsicle stick or paper creaser(sometimes these are called “bone folders” though they are generally made from plastic nowadays). glue the large side flap over the top of the folded in bottom (the tapered end is the top) and opposite side flap. I find they stick better if you apply the glue to both surfaces being stuck together. Press and smooth out to seal, then let dry completely. Give them at least a few hours to set, then pour a tablespoon or so of seed mixture into the open end, and apply glue to both the flap, and packet surface to thoroughly seal. Smile about all random acts of guerrilla gardening you are setting into motion : )

I want you guys to be able to go nuts with this idea. So I’m releasing it under a Creative Commons license. That means you may “perform”, tweak, and publish this tutorial to your hearts content, even for commercial purposes. The only requirement is that you should acknowledge its use anywhere you might republish or showcase a derivative product online by linking back to craftingagreenworld.com. Here are just a few possibilities for hobbyists and entrepreneurs alike:

• Enlarge the template image and use for packaging larger trinkets and such.

• Are you a gardening enthusiast? Package your own seeds! Keeping them sealed in a cool, dry place should prevent any random sprouting. I’ve had no problem whatsoever with that.

• Do you make and sell items for gardeners? This would be a great addition to a gift set.

• Make them into tags by taping a loop of scrap paper on the back to attach with a string.

• What else could you put in them? Emergency sewing kits? A small beading project? Surprise collectible pin-backs? Trading cards? Product samples?

• Try sticky velcro to seal the top for larger reusable contents.

Go ahead, escape the the force of craft gravity. The sky is no longer the limit. This attribution requirement only applies to the fabrication described in my tutorial. You may attach your own copyright preference to any original imagery or artwork you apply in the process.

Brown Paper Seed Packet Business Cards by Crafting a Green World - Autumn Wiggins is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.

Editor’s note: This week, our friends at Life Goggles take a look at a very cool (and very green) accessory: the Mighty Wallet. If you’re looking for an alternative to leather or other less-green materials, and want something that can go right into the recycling bin after its useful life is over, this product is definitely worth checking out. This post was originally published on Wednesday, May 21st, 2008.

The Mighty Wallet is another alternative to using a leather wallet.

Made from a single sheet of Tyvek paper (like that’s used for express envelopes) it containing 25% post consumer content (water and milk containers) and is 100% recyclable (grade 2). The wallet is also apparently virtually indestructible. It’s certainly tear-resistant as I couldn’t tear it with my bare hands (looks like my phone book tearing days are over), and it’s water resistant too. It’s incredibly thin and light, but has lots of slots to put cards in and the wallet will expand just like an stuffed envelope.

Available from Dynomighty for only $7.50 they come in a variety of designs, like the airmail envelope shown, faux wood, “raw hide” (printed to look like leather), camo, dot matrix printer, and one that looks like shredded paper. Available in two, or three fold versions, there is plenty of choice; go take a look for the full range. The designer Terrence Kelleman talks you through the wallet in the video below.

Read more about Green Fashion Accessories:

• Green Shopping Spotlight: Max and Zane
• Eight Great DIY Recycled Bags
• Green Style How-to: Make Your Own Stylish and Functional Reusable Bag

It turns out (fortuitously … I didn’t know this up front) that Xerox was planning to release a series of tips on this topic this week in anticipation of Earth Day. That information was released today:

• Cut paper use. Make two-sided prints and copies using the “duplex” function, print multiple images per page, and print only the quantity you need at the time you need it. Saving paper also saves energy: Environmental Protection Agency estimates say it takes 10 times more energy to manufacture a piece of paper than to create another print or copy.
• Recycle the paper you use, and use recycled paper. Install bins in several office locations to make it easy to collect paper for recycling or for reuse as notepaper. And commit to purchasing recycled paper – it can meet the same performance specifications as non-recycled paper.
• Reach for the ENERGY STAR® .Upgrade old products with new, more efficient systems and the savings add up. For example, a large bank customer reduced annual energy consumption by 34 percent, or 1.9 million kilowatt hours, using Xerox ENERGY STAR-qualified copiers and multifunction products instead of equivalent non-ENERGY STAR products. At 10 cents per kwh, that translates to savings of nearly $200,000 in annual electricity costs. Nearly all Xerox systems are designed to meet or exceed these energy standards.
• Replace copiers or printers with products that do-it-all. An office copier, two printers and a fax machine can consume 1070 kwh of energy each year. But if one multifunction system can handle your document needs, it uses only 800 kwh annually. Xerox studies show that a Xerox Document Centre multifunction system typically consumes 20 percent to 30 percent less energy per year than the individual ENERGY STAR copier, printer and fax products it replaces – that savings doubles if the products replaced were not ENERGY STAR qualified.
• Don’t throw away empty toner cartridges. Xerox provides customers with prepaid postage to return cartridges for reuse and recycling. Remanufactured cartridges are built and tested to the same performance specifications as new-build products. Or, consider using solid ink printers, which eliminate cartridges altogether and generate about 90 percent less waste during use than a typical color laser printer.
• Seek office equipment designed for remanufacturing or recycling. Despite more than a decade of proof, there are still buyers who mistakenly believe that products with recycled parts are not as good as those built with new parts. Xerox devices are designed with recycling and reuse in mind and involve rebuilding and upgrading returned products and parts to as-new performance and appearance. These recycling and remanufacturing programs have diverted more than two billion pounds of waste from landfills since 2001, and energy savings from parts reuse totaled 500,000 megawatt hours– enough energy to light more than 380,000 U.S. homes for one year.
• Use software to simplify the way you use document. Cut back the time and energy spent on manual paper-based processes with workflow management systems and collaboration tools. In paper-intensive processes like legal discovery or mortgage loan document management, Docushare combined with scan-enabled multifunction devices can help reduce errors and improve version control – and ultimately eliminate the costs of producing, storing and shipping paper documents.

Sure, Xerox is tooting it’s own horn here, but that’s OK… these are smart practices regardless of the brand attached to them.

One last question I had for Patty: there are a number of fantastic books out there on green business thinking and best practices. Which ones would she recommend an ecopreneur have on his/her shelf? She recommended:

• Green to Gold, Daniel C. Esty and Andrew Winston
• Capitalism at the Crossroads, Stuart L. Hart

Many thanks to Patty for taking the time to talk with me…

After I wrote here about the publication of the of Environmental Trends and Climate Impacts: Findings from the U.S. Book Industry, and reviewed some of the most important findings, it’s time of the third (and last) part of our coverage of the report.

Today I am very excited to bring you an interview I conducted with Tyson Miller, the Founder and Director of the Green Press Initiative (GPI). The Green Press Initiative, together with the The Book Industry Study Group (BISG), initiated and prepared this impressive report that presents and analyzes the book industry’s ecological footprint.

Not only that Tyson Miller is one of the people who led the work on the report, but he is also one of the most knowledgeable people about the issues brought up in the report. In the last seven years he directs the Green Press Initiative (which he also founded) – a program which is catalyzing environmentally responsible book publishing in the U.S. He initiated the Book Industry Treatise on Responsible Paper Use, which more than 150 publishers have signed so far, and is also involved in the efforts of big publishers, such as Simon & Schuster and Scholastic, to develop green policies.

Therefore, I was very happy for the opportunity to have this interview with Mr. Miller, shedding more light on the report and its implications. I hope you’ll enjoy it as well!

Can you tell us about the work on the report - how many people were involved, who led it, how much time it took, etc. ?

It took about 9 months and was led primarily by BISG, GPI and our research partner, the Borealis Centre for Environment and Trade Research. We also were very fortunate to have a generous group of report sponsors and a diverse committee of industry stakeholders to help guide the process.

Over 1,000 constituents involved in all segments of the book industry were invited to take part in the survey that was the basis for the report. Eventually 104 responded. Were you satisfied with this response rate?

I would have been happier with better participation… but it was the first effort and we were asking for a lot in terms of the time commitment to answer all of the questions. I’m confident that future studies will have a higher participation rate. Nevertheless, the data gathered accurately reflects trends and for publishers, at least, we had 45% of market share responding.

How difficult was the calculation of the book industry’s carbon footprint?

Quite a challenge, but our findings were in line with the findings of several large publishers that have done their own carbon audits. I was surprised to see that the CO2 equivalent emissions connected to paper represented over 70% of the industry’s emissions. I figured transportation would have had more of an impact.

You report that the average use of [post-consumer waste] recycled paper is 5% - what do you see as the main obstacle that currently stops publishers from using more PCW recycled paper?

We had to use the 5% figure as an estimate for the printing and writing sector. The actual trend for recycled fiber at the mill level was over 13% and had jumped sixfold from just 2.5% a few years prior. But since we only had 17% of mills reporting, we couldn’t use the figure. My guestimation is that the industry is likely at about 15% recycled fiber. Either way, the biggest hurdle is cost and with increasing demand and a lack of corresponding infrastructure development, costs could rise.

How many of the trees cut down for the production of books are grown in tree plantations? What can done to stop the conversion of rich ecosystems into tree plantations?

Most of the world’s paper supply, about 71 percent, is not made from timber harvested at tree farms but from forest-harvested timber, from regions with ecologically valuable, biologically diverse habitat. (Toward a Sustainable Paper Cycle: An Independent Study on the Sustainability of the Pulp and Paper Industry, 1996)

Do you think that the effort to go green in the industry should be solely voluntary, or it might be that we need legislation, tax paper sourced from non-sustainable sources, to move faster?

I think that market transformations are inherently voluntary initiatives and are moving along at a pace quite quickly without legislation. Legislation could be useful for big-picture objectives like carbon-reduction emission reduction targets across all sectors.

What is the reason that e-books weren’t part of the report, and is there any plan to further explore the environmental impacts of e-books in the next reports?

In order to address e-books effectively, I’d need to look at a lifecycle comparison that analyzes the impacts of e-readers vs. paper as a medium. I do hope that we can explore much more in-depth in future iterations.

How’s the U.S. book industry doing in comparison with the European book industry?

I haven’t seen a benchmarking analysis from Europe…but I’d say we’re on par or ahead.

What’s the most important lesson we can learn from the report?

Likely that the emissions associated with paper constitutes approximately 70% of the industry’s carbon footprint and also that the industry is really meaning making meaningful progress - a sixfold increase in recycled fiber at the mill level over the past fours years. I also found it telling that such a significant portion of surveyed companies had environmental policies that are completed or intended.

This report will definitely become an important benchmark in the industry. When we can expect the next report?

Hopefully we can track a reduced number of metrics annually.

What’s next? Are there any planned actions on an industry scale?

More of the same - we’ll keep plugging away and supporting the leaders and those that aren’t quite ready to lead.

I read in the report that there’s a Book Industry Environmental Council in development - can you tell us more about it?

We felt that it would be great to have industry leaders helping to inform important priorities such as the development of a standardized tracking mechanism for monitoring environmental indicators and progress, determining parameters and protocols for reducing the industry’s carbon footprint, guiding future revisions to the Treatise, and developing standards for an on-product environmental label.

Thank you Tyson for the interview! The report can be ordered on GPI and BISG websites. The summary of the findings is also available for reading.

See Also:

Eco-Child’s Play: Scholastic Goes Green

Green Options: Religion Publisher Releases First “Green” Bible

That question framed my response to an offer to talk with Patty Calkins, Vice President of Environment, Health and Safety at Xerox Corp. After all, don’t copy machines “[consume] vast amounts of water, paper, and energy…?” I’ve seen numerous press releases on environmental issues from the company whose name is now synonymous with “photocopying,” but I was still skeptical: isn’t this still a business model built on heavy inputs of energy and paper?

Patty and I talked on the phone last Wednesday (April 9), and, as in other situations, my reservations were addressed directly and concretely. I had forwarded a version of the above question prior to our talk, so she was ready for me. Among the company initiatives she detailed for me:

• Xerox has a history of taking “green” steps forward early: double-sided printing functions in 1969; recycled paper products in the early ’70s; automatic power-down functions on some of its machines in the early ’80s; involvement with the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Energy to create the ENERGY STAR standard; a “waste-free” push in the ’90s that included “our essentially inventing remanufacturing.”
• The company had set a greenhouse gas emission reduction target of 10% (over a 2002 baseline) by 2012. It actually met that goal at the end of 2006, so it has set a new goal of 25% reduction by 2012. Patty was candid about the fact that “we really don’t know how we’re going to get there” (a claim I’ve heard from other corporate executives).
• Xerox is the world’s largest seller of cut-sheet paper under a single brand, and started taking steps to address the sustainability of it paper supply chain in the late ’90s. Initiatives have addressed supplier practices, including chemical processing and bleaching of paper, adherence to an environmental quality standard (preferably ISO 4001), and meeting a sourcing standard for wood fiber such as Forest Stewardship Council, Sustainable Forestry Initiative, Canadian Standards Association, and others. The company has recently received “Chain of Custody” certification from the FSC.
• Finally, Xerox works with customers and clients to reduce their own environmental impact (and not just their carbon footprint, but also water and air pollution, biodiversity and forest impact, and waste creation). Recent developments on this front have included its sustainability calculator, which measures the environmental impact of upgrading to new, more efficient equipment, and “High-Yield Business Paper.”

“Walking the talk” isn’t simply a PR phrase for the company, according to Patty, but a conceptual foundation for how they do business. That “walk,” of course, isn’t simply based on altruism: the company sees real opportunities to create value through implementing sustainable business practices.

Of course, Xerox (like other large corporations) has been targeted by activist organizations directly and indirectly: Greenpeace ultimately praised the company’s decision to stop “stop using fibre from Sámi Reindeer Forests in northern Finland” in 2005 after a campaign; the Rainforest Action Network claimed (also in 2005) that Xerox supplier Weyerhaeuser’s logging practices violated “the legal, social and ecological commitments that allow them to log on public lands in the province of Saskatchewan,” despite the Canadian Standards Association’s certification of those practices as “sustainable forestry.” While that RAN campaign didn’t target Xerox directly, it did call into question the validity of CSA certification. The Saskatchewan Forest Service denied any illegal operations in the forest (though RAN claimed SFS “selectively enforces its laws…”)

Ultimately, some will judge Xerox by its response to activist campaigns. Overall, though, their approach to the sustainability of their business is based on a solid foundation : measurable goals that apply across the supply chain and lifecycles of products they sell and lease. I got the sense from Patty that the company was engaged in an ongoing learning process, and working creatively to locate (and relocate… constantly) the nexus between sustainability and value creation. Issues will come up, of course, in part because the company has publicly declared its commitment to greener practices. They’ve clearly set themselves on the path, though… and that’s worth praising.

Of course, I’m interested in hearing what you think. Please leave a comment, or join in the conversation at the Green Options Discussion Forum. Also look for a follow-up post on how small businesses can “green” their document management practices on Ecopreneurist.

See also:

Tip o’ the Day: Please Consider the Environment before Printing this Email

I drink at least a liter of water a day, which means I end up using the restroom at least five times a day. In the bathroom at work, we have the fairly standard stack of single sheet paper towels that you pull from the holder one at a time (although sometimes a clump comes out, if they’re packed too tightly). It takes two paper towels to dry my hands thoroughly.

So, on a daily basis I use at least 10 paper towels, or 50 paper towels a week, or 200 paper towels a month, or 2,400 paper towels a year! That is a lot of paper. But, I have to wash my hands and I have to dry them. Yet, every time I grab the paper towels, I feel a tinge of guilt. So, I started trying to find ways to conserve paper towels.

First, I decided to cut down to just one paper towel. Yeah, my hands were still a little damp when I left the restroom, but they air dried within a minute or two. Still, with one paper towel per hand washing, I was using at least 1,200 paper towels a year. Not good enough.

This has been bugging me for a while. Finally, one day I had an epiphany. If I were to use one of those quick drying microfiber towels that hikers and campers use, I could just keep that in my pocket and use it to dry my hands anywhere I go. AND they are made with some sort of anti-microbial/germ fighting thing that helps prevent them from getting getting germy and stinky.

I know that it takes more resources and energy to make one quick-dry towel than it takes to make one paper towel, but I’m not so sure the same holds true vs. 2,400 paper towels - especially when you consider the paper towels are virgin paper. My guess is I can get at least a couple years use out of the microfiber towel. Weighing that against nearly 5,000 paper towels I might use over two years, and it’s a no-brainer — microfiber towel wins!

So, I am going to start pushing a new mantra that’s similar to the bring your own shopping bag slogan that is starting to catch on. Bring your own hand towel. If you are wondering whether using a paper towel or a hot air hand dryer is the better choice, the best choice is neither — bring your own hand towel!

I was at a sporting goods store with my wife’s parents over the weekend and I found a small microfiber hand towel that even comes in its own cute little nylon pouch. I bought one as a gift for my wife’s birthday in May and I asked her to get me one for mine, which is later this month.

I will reduce my carbon footprint even more with this little towel. And I’ll save some trees, too!