The most unique (and veggie) orchestra in the world

They might not be vegetarians, but they sure know how to play the vegetables.

Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome the one and only: The Vienna Vegetable Orchestra.




You can find more information on the orchestra at their website: http://www.gemueseorchester.org/

enjoy,

Raz

so, what’s the deal with paper?

We got few requests to give more information about the environmental impacts of the paper used by the book publishing industry. We are happy to receive such requests because we believe this info is something that every book lover should get acquainted with.

In our blog, we’ll try to give you the full picture of what’s going on out there with the production of paper. We promise to bring you each week one new fact about paper and the way its production affects the world we’re living in.

One of the best information sources for this issue is Green Press Initiative, a non-profit program, which its mission is to work with publishers, industry stakeholders and authors to create paper-use transformations that will conserve natural resources and preserve endangered forests. These people are doing a great job and are a significant force in the effort to move the book publishing industry towards sustainability.

At the Book Expo America 2007, a major event of the book publishing industry that took place in NYC at the beginning of June, Green Press Initiative participated in a panel on the environmental impacts of book publishing (isn't the panel itself a sign of change? I believe it is..). This interesting panel included also 3 publishers (Random House, Chronicle Books and Powell’s Books). All four delivered presentations that are available on Green Press Initiative’s website.

The presentation given by Green Press Initiative (the first one on this page) is a great introduction to anyone who is interested in the environmental impacts of paper. Think of it as Paper 101. But if it’s not enough for you, don’t worry, it’s just the beginning. In the next couple of weeks, I will write more thoroughly on many of the issues brought up in the presentation.

And as promised, to the fact of the week:

Fact 1: Canada’s Boreal Forest stores more carbon than any other forest. It is estimated that 2.5 million acres of forest are cut there each year, and 65% of the trees cut down are harvested specifically to make paper – much of it consumed by publishers (news, book, magazine, catalog) in the US. Source: Green Press Initiative

Raz

small changes have the power to make a BIG impact

why did your parents named you Eco-Libris?

This week we launched Eco-Libris, a great new green venture (if you haven't had the chance yet, you are welcome to check it out - http://www.ecolibris.net/). I feel like a proud father that his new baby was just born and he's sending pictures to everyone (links in this case :-). So, I believe that as a good father, my first task is to explain the name - why Eco-Libris and what does it mean?

Well, the name is inspired from ex-libris (in Latin: ‘from the books of..’) is a decorative label or print people used to paste on their books for the purpose of identifying the books' owner. In general, it was a more decorative and aesthetic way to make sure everyone will know this book is yours than just writing your name inside it. We see Eco-Libris as the new, green version of ex-libris.

In our vision people will balance out their books by planting trees and will indicate their commitment to sustainability by putting our sticker on these books.

As the ex-libris was an elegant way to show the identity of the book owner and her (or his) appreciation of the book, we hope to see Eco-Libris stickers become the new way book owners present their identity, saying: hey, i love this book, but i also care about the environment. i am trying to live more sustainably. That’s who i am!

btw, the credit for creating the name goes to Oren Entin, one of the most creative people on our team.

enjoy,

Raz

starting NOW

Hi, my name is Raz and I am one of the co-founders of Eco-Libris. I am very excited to write the first post on our blog.

Although I have written dozens of articles on green business for Israel's second-largest newspaper web edition (sorry, they are only in Hebrew...), this is my first time here at the blogosphere. So, I have some catching up to do, but I’ll do my best to keep it interesting and with a good sense of humor (hopefully), in the spirit of my favorite green news website - Grist.

So, welcome to the blog of Eco-Libris, a green venture of a dedicated team who wants to do good and do well at the same time. Check out our team page to see who we are - http://www.ecolibris.net/team.asp.

Behind the smiling faces, there is a bunch of excellent people (I’m not kiddin’, you can check it with our mothers), who have diversified backgrounds and share the same belief: we need to green up our lifestyle and make it much more sustainable. And as you may know already we decided to begin with books, by aiming to plant a tree for every book read.

This blog is the place where we’ll tell you more about what we’re doing and what’s going on in general in the fast growing green market. Here, you’ll receive the hottest news on Eco-Libris, interesting stories from the green world in general and the junction of sustainability and book publishing industry in particular. Not only that, but we also plan to cover trends and issues related to your everyday life, from green sex and eco-fashion to where you can find cheap compact fluorescent bulbs. We also promise to bring you links to cool sites and videos related to eco-friendly issues that we always pick up as we surf the web.

So stay tuned, you won’t regret it ;-)

Humbly yours,
Raz

p.s. if you wandering what's the photo - this is the Eco-Sexy Kit of the excellent sex toys shop, Babeland. And this is our first recomendation on this blog. It includes body-friendly Laya Spot vibrator and a selection of premium, all-natural spa products. Check out their website for more details. Enjoy!