Environmentally conscious publishers gathering steam
September 13, 2003 at 3:57 PM ET
James
iharrypotter.net (via GreenBiz)
After Canadian Potter publisher Raincoast
announced that it would be producing every page in "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" with 100% post-consumer recycled paper, it has been gaining quite a bit of fame globally. Articles detailing the visionary idea proliferated, and successive contracts from prominent authors started appearing for publishing at both Raincoast and a sister publisher in America, Green Press Initiative.
This excellent news also details the finanical appeal for so-called greener papers - this move certainly matches with current global concerns about the environment.
Raincoast is one of 35 Canadian publishers who committed to greener papers under the auspice of Markets Initiative, a nonprofit organization that champions the cause of environmentally superior publishing.
In the U.S., a sister organization, the Green Press Initiative, has secured similar commitments from 45 publishers and nine prominent authors -- including Alice Walker, Barbara Kingsolver, Paul Hawken, and Andrew Weil.
Committed publishers pledge to eliminate paper that contains fiber from old growth forests and to increase their recycled paper usage over the next three to five years. Green Press Initiative has been successful with university and specialty presses, but has yet to score a commitment from a major publishing house.
"Our goal is to shift the industry," says Tyson Miller, founder of the Green Press Initiative, "and not have it isolated among progressive publishers. We try to reach out to the visionaries in the company."