GPI will have a webcast this Friday on the Latest on the challenges and opportunities of printing in Asia

Last month we wrote here about a report published by Rainforest Network Action (RAN) which connects children's books to the destruction of endangered rainforests in Indonesia. We also work now on an interview with Ian Lifshitz, Sustainability & Public Outreach Manager at Asia Pulp and Paper (APP), which is at the center of the report.

The challenges (as well of opportunities) of printing in Asia are also the topic of an upcoming webcast organized by our friends at the Green Press Initiative. The webcast will take place this Friday, July 16, 2010 at 11:30 AM (ET). Registration is free, but you need to register online until July 15 to attend it. You can do it at http://greenpressinitiative.eventbrite.com/

It is expected to be a very interesting webcast, so we recommend everyone who wants to learn more about these issues to join. Here are more details on the webcast:

Manufacturing books in Asia has risks and rewards. Aside from ensuring compliance with the Lacey Act, socially responsible publishers need to take new steps to ensure that they are not impacting communities or the world’s most biodiverse and Endangered Forests. This webcast will attempt to update you on the realities of sourcing from Asia and provide perspectives on your options and related tools. Panelists will address the connections to Indonesia and present success models and clear steps for minimizing risk and utilizing your market leverage for positive benefit.

Panel Details:

Linda Kramme, Global Forest & Trade Network - North America, World Wildlife Fund
Linda will discuss the biodiversity and climate impacts that illegal and unsustainable logging in Indonesia is having on the country's shrinking forest and wildlife resources. She will also share some tools that WWF has developed to help paper purchasers "green" their supply chains and reduce impacts.

Lafcadio Cortesi, Rainforest Action Network
Lafcadio will discuss the impacts that logging in Indonesia has on local communities. He will also discuss Rainforest Action Network’s campaign to encourage children’s book publishers to stop sourcing fiber from Indonesia and recent tests which indicate that much of the fiber in books printed in Asia is sourced from Indonesia.

Shona Burns, VP Production, Chronicle Books
Shona will discuss Chronicle’s efforts to print books in Asia while ensuring that paper is made from fiber that is responsibly sourced.

Kurt Andrews, Production Director, Melcher Media
Kurt will discuss the success Melcher Media has had reducing the portion of books that are printed in Asia and increasing domestic production while at the same time maintaining margins.

Todd Pollak, Program Manager, Green Press Initiative
Todd will moderate the panel, and will also introduce a newly developed tool from Green Press Initiative which identifies overseas paper suppliers that are at low risk for Lacey Act violations or impacting endangered forests or local communities.

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: Promoting sustainable reading