My Green Resolution for 2009 - Jennifer Taylor of GreetQ

Our quest for 2009 green resolutions brings us today to the beautiful (and green) Seattle, where GreetQ, an online greeting card retailer is located. We are very happy to host Jennifer Taylor, the owner of GreetQ.

GreetQ offers a unique service: shoppers can buy paper greeting cards online, add a personal message, then schedule the cards to be sent on a specific date. GreetQ then mails the personalized card to the recipient on behalf of their customers on that specific date. The scheduled cards, which can be scheduled for up to one year in advance, are queued online in the customer’s “card-queue.”

GreetQ is collaborating with Eco-Libris to plant a tree for every 10 greeting cards purchased through the GreetQ.com's website.

Hello Jennifer. What is your green resolution for 2009?
In addition to seeking out talented independent designers, one of our main focuses when selecting new lines for GreetQ, is to make it a priority to find brands that use environmentally responsible practices. Many of our brands use recycled paper, are FSC certified or print with soy inks.

One of our resolutions this year is to better highlight these practices for our customers so that they can more easily make informed purchasing decisions. We are also introducing a “Green Glossary” which will define in detail how each of these practices helps the environment. For instance, “what is soy ink and why is it better than regular ink?”

We are also working to “greenify” our operational practices, including reducing packaging while not compromising the safe delivery of cards. We are also researching ways to decrease our overall environmental footprint by reducing energy usage and using environmentally safer ink - not just for greeting cards but for all of our printing needs including invoices and receipt.

What's your green wish for 2009?
I would hope that more companies, in the tradition of Eco-Libris, work to find solutions that help customers reduce their environmental footprint without drastically compromising their lifestyles or without introducing additional complexity into everyday living. Eco-Libris is a great example of a solution that allows book lovers to continue reading “real books” while helping the environment. I hope that GreetQ moves closer and closer to refining similar solutions, allowing customers to still send paper cards, while keeping their environmental impact at a negligible level.

Any other plans for 2009 you would like to share with our readers?

We are working to introduce features that will make sending and personalizing greeting cards even easier; this will include additional personalization options such as rich text editing, making it easier to get your personalized message formated exactly the way you want it.

Thanks, Jennifer!

This collaboration also includes a special offer for Eco-Libris customers and fans: a 25% discount off the regular subscription rate. Code to enter at checkout: ECOLBR.

So check out GreetQ's artful, beautifully made cards at their website: http://www.greetq.com.

So far on "My Green Resolution for 2009":

Bill Roth, author of "On Empty (Out of Time)"

Vonda Schaefer of Valley Books

Madeline Kaplan, author of "Planet Earth Gets Well"

Chris Flynn of Torpedo

Edain Duguay of Wyrdwood Publications

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Plant a tree for every book you read!

What's in your paper? a new website gives your the answers you're looking for!

The Environmental Paper Network launched a great new website entitles 'What's In Your Paper' (thanks to the Green Press Initiative's newsletter for the info!), where you can learn not only what's in your paper, but also how your paper can go green.

Firstly, a little bit about EPN: The Environmental Paper Network (EPN) was founded in 2002 to bring together conservation organizations to draft a Common Vision for the Transformation of the Pulp and Paper Industry. The consensus platform of the Common Vision has been the primary basis for citizen and NGO advocacy and institutional policy development which is driving the rapid growth of environmentally responsible paper markets.

The new website is full with informative and user-friendly information, including Paper Steps - a guide for making your office or company paper more environmentally responsible, glossary with all the definitions you need to know about, toolkit for the eco-friendly paper purchaser, a guide on how to save paper and much more.

Is paper that important? does your paper usage really matter? for those who still ask it, the website gives a very clear explanation:

What’s In Your Paper matters because the impacts of paper production result in one of the world’s most significant environmental challenges. Our daily choices about paper use and what paper we buy is one of the easiest, and most significant choices we can make to make a difference.

Paper’s life-cycle is often a trail of greenhouse gas emissions, fresh water consumption and pollution, and the loss of native forests and biodiversity. It also brings us many benefits, from great literature to personal hygiene, and it is inevitable that paper will be part of our lives for the foreseeable future. So, our choices matter. We must all do our part to take the Steps to Responsible Paper Purchasing.

Not convinced yet? here's a reminder from a video we showed a while ago from The Secret Life of Paper's website, which is also presented on the website's What's Hot section:

And don't forget to check out their blog - The Paper Planet

Yours,

Raz @ Eco-Libris
www.ecolibris.net

My Green Resolution for 2009 - Bill Roth, author of "On Empty (Out of Time)"

Today on our 2009 green resolutions and greetings series we have the pleasure to have with us Bill Roth, the author of a great book entitled "On Empty (Out of Time)".

Bill is collaborating with Eco-Libris to plant a tree for every printed copy of the book. Each book will have an Eco-Libris sticker saying "One tree planted for this book".

Hello Bill. What are your green wishes for 2009?

My dream for 2009 is that America takes world leadership in implementing the Green Economic Revolution.

This means that as individuals we reduced our consumption of gasoline, electricity, plastics and beef by 20% to achieve the UN’s target for 2020 CO2 emission reductions this year. By the way, that would put approximately $500-$1000 annually in each of our pockets!

And here’s one path for achieving this result, make Fridays your “save to gain day” by not eating red meat, buying only locally grown food, doing something other than commuting to work in your car, not consuming anything that comes in a throw away container and turning your thermostat up or down 5 degrees in the direction that will reduce energy consumption.

It means that our governments adopts energy efficiency standards for ALL buildings designed to reduce energy and water demand by 20% and will facilitate this re-engineering of our buildings by providing 30 year financing at a 3% interest rate to pay for the upgrades. This will re-stimulate our construction and manufacturing industries with millions of good paying jobs and the 3% interest rate is not a subsidy, that’s today’s interest rate on a 30 year government bond.

In my book, On Empty (out of time) I outline the fullest range of technologies and government policies that will produce Energy Independence, lower pump/meter prices and Global Warming solutions. We have the technologies and our consumers are the best in the world in adopting new technologies. What we need is only commitment, by our government and by us as American consumers.

Any green resolutions on the personal level for the 2009?

My personal green resolution is to reduce my use of plastic water bottles. The U.S. disposes of 60 million per DAY! I am switching to a metal container and filtered tap water.

And I am happy to report that I continue to implement last year’s resolution of carrying a reusable grocery bag rather than relying upon “paper or plastic” provided by the grocery store.

Thanks, Bill!

Here are more details about On Empty (Out of Time):

(from the author's website) America's final "wake-up call". Since the 1974 oil embargo we have been promised Energy Independence and lower prices. Instead we are now paying 10 times more for oil and we are importing 4 times as much.

And we are now out of time. We face a recession because of high oil prices and the military cost of protecting someone else's oil fields. And a new crisis, Global Warming, is emerging.

On Empty graphically details the imminent threat of economic and environmental disaster and proposes fresh solutions for achieving a "Man on the Moon" crash program of deploying American-owned sustainable technologies. And it outlines how you, the American Consumer, will lead the charge.

You can buy the book at http://www.onemptyroth.com.

So far on "My Green Resolution for 2009":

Vonda Schaefer of Valley Books

Madeline Kaplan, author of "Planet Earth Gets Well"

Chris Flynn of Torpedo

Edain Duguay of Wyrdwood Publications

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Plant a tree for every book you read!

What is the most watched book trailer on 2008?

According to GalleyCat (on mediabistro.com), the most successful book trailer of the year (viewed over 30 million times on YouTube) is this amazing video (the original video was taken off YouTube so here's the closest one we found to the original):



GalleyCat reports that this is an homemade video about a nonfiction book called "A Lion Called Christian" by Anthony Bourke and John Rendall. What's even more interesting about this story is that this is an out-of print book and was according to the report the sixth most wanted out-of-print book of 2008.

So what this story is all about? here's a description of the book from its website:

The true story of a lion cub taken from his zoo-caged parents and sold in a London department store, and bought by two of the most understanding men a lion could hope to meet. Named "Christian", this remarkably gentle and intelligent lion became a British celebrity and professional model. As he reached maturity, his owners decided to give him something he was never destined for: freedom to live as a wild lion in Africa. A chance meeting with "Born Free" stars Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna led to an appeal to George Adamson to take Christian and teach him how to be a wild lion.

And it looks like the interest generated by this book trailer actually helped to get this book back to the print! I read on the book's website that the book will be reprinted in an expanded (224 pages) version in March, 2009! You can already pre-order it on Amazon.com.

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris
www.ecolibris.net

My Green Resolution for 2009 - Valley Books

Our journey to learn about our partners' green resolutions for 2009 takes us today to a little town in California named Sovlang (which means "Sunny field" in Danish). There you can find Valley Books, which is owned by Vonda Schaefer, our guest for today.

Opened in February 2008, Valley Books is a friendly new and used bookstore and cafe in the little Danish town of Solvang, California. Valley Books is participating in Eco-Libris' bookstores program, where customers at the store can plant a tree for every book they buy there and receive our sticker at the counter!

Hello Vonda. What is your green resolution for 2009?

Our green resolution is to become a certified green business through the county of Santa Barbara – this is a new program they have begun.

Valley Books has some other fun resolutions:

To promote our new Sunday Night Soup Nights (local, healthy soups and bakery-fresh bread). We are promoting: “Eat Healthy, Eat Local, Eat Together.” We will also be seeking out even more talented local musicians for our Saturday Nights “Beat’N’Treats.” This is live music and specialty desserts prepared by a local pastry chef.

Thanks, Vonda!

You can read more on Vonda and Valley Books on an article that was published few weeks ago on the Santa Ynez Valley Journal - http://www.santaynezvalleyjournal.com/archive/6/51/3465.

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Plant a tree for every book you read!

Green Festivals recommend on the 10 green books you should read on 2009

This week our ongoing series of Monday's green books is taking a week off, but we have a great alternative for you, and we're not talking about one green book, but 10 green books! Green Cotton (great blog by the way) presented last week Green Festivals’ top 10 green books that were published on 2008 and are to be read on 2009 (if you haven't read them yet).

So what's in the list? here it is:

1. "Hot, Flat, and Crowded: Why We Need a Green Revolution - And How It Can Renew America" by Thomas L. Friedman

2. "Hope on a Tightrope: Words and Wisdom" by Cornel West

3. "Natural Capitalism: Creating the Next Industrial Revolution" by Paul Hawken , Amory Lovins and L. Hunter Lovins

4. "The Green Collar Economy: How One Solution Can Fix Our Two Biggest Problems" by Van Jones

5. "Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things" by William McDonough and Michael Braungart

6. "Exposed: The Toxic Chemistry of Everyday Products and What's at Stake for American Power" by Mark Schapiro

7. "The Thrive Diet: The Whole Food Way to Lose Weight, Reduce Stress, and Stay Healthy for Life" by Brendan Brazier

8. "The Green Parent: A Kid-Friendly Guide to Earth-Friendly Living" by Jenn Savedge

9. "Go Green, Live Rich: 50 Simple Ways to Save the Earth and Get Rich Trying" by David Bach and Hillary Rosner

10. "My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist's Personal Journey" by Jill Bolte Taylor

This is a great list. It includes some many great books that we intend to cover and review on 2009, as well as one book ("The Green Parent") that we had the pleasure to work with and plant trees for the copies printed as you can see from its cover, where our logo is presented.

These books are available on Better World Books (as you can see from the links) under The Green Festival list, where you can also check out which book is the most popular (currently it's 'My Stroke of Insight).

For those of you who are not familiar yet with this great company, Better World Books collects and sells books online to fund literacy initiatives worldwide. With more than two million new and used titles in stock, they're a self-sustaining, triple-bottom-line company that creates social, economic and environmental value for all our stakeholders. You can learn more about them at http://www.betterworld.com.

Thanks again to Green Cotton for the information!

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Plant a tree for every book you read!

A special offer from Strand Book Store!

You think the holiday season is over? not at Strand Book Store, where you can get a free holiday tote bag with the purchase of two books.

We are very proud in our collaboration with Strand Book Store, New York's independent landmark book store. Strand are taking part in our bookstore program and customers at the store can plant a tree for every book they buy there and receive our sticker at the counter!

We have just received from Strand greetings for the New Year and information on this great (and green) offer:

The Strand Book Store wishes all Eco-Libris partners & readers a Happy 2009!

Our gift to you… a free holiday tote bag.

With purchase of two books, receive a FREE holiday tote bag, just click HERE to redeem your gift online or print the page and bring it to our 828 Broadway @ 12^th Street NYC store to redeem your gift in person.

Hurry! Offer expires January 15, 2009. Limit one tote bag per customer, please.

Thank you Strand for this great offer! You're welcome to check out their website at http://www.strandbooks.com to learn more about the books offered at their website. Also don't forget to take a look at their events list - http://www.strandbooks.com/app/www/p/calendar.

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris
www.ecolibris.net