Happy Birthday - Eco-Libris is two years old!

Last weekend when the United States celebrated Independence Day, Eco-Libris had its own birthday celebration - we have just turned two years old!

Yes, another year passed and let me tell you - it wasn't an easy one. Like many others we had to cope with difficult economy and work hard to keep our heads above the water. At the same time, we try to look at these difficulties as an opportunity to improve, innovate, develop new programs and explore more ways to pursue our mission more effectively.

Still it was a year of progress - we managed to create more partnerships, enhance our educational work, tighten our relationships with our planting partners, contribute to the discussion about green issues in the book industry and of course plant more trees!

I am proud to report that Eco-Libris balanced out so far 98,066 books, which resulted in 111,390 new trees, of which 45,525 are the result of our operations on the second year.


















Here's a reminder of some of things we did on this year, month by month:

July 2008
The UConn co-op joins Eco-Libris bookstores program

Madeline Kaplan, author of "Planet Earth Gets Well" is collaborating with Eco-Libris

Subscription option is becoming available on Eco-Libris website

August 2008
BlogHer's first book "Sleep is for the Weak" is going green with Eco-Libris

Tania Hershman, author of "The White Road and Other Stories" is collaborating with Eco-Libris

New collaboration with Bookworm Baskets, which sells book-themed gift baskets

September 2008
GreetQ, an online greeting card retailer, is collaborating with Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris is contributing to a demonstration of a green campus residence hall

A collaboration with Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing in an educational contest for kids

October 2008
New partnership with the Norwegian publisher Flux starts with a book on Arne Næss

Eco-Libris is collaborating with Dutch author Annet Struik

"The Legend of Ninja Cowboy Bear" is going green with Eco-Libris

November 2008
A new collaboration with Aaspirations Publishing, a proud green publisher

We have a monthly newsletter with special offers to our subscribers

Eco-Libris is collaborating with BookSwim in an holiday campaign

December 2008
We publish the annual assessments of our planting partners

An interview on Treehugger.com

Publishing the Green Collar Holiday Gift Guide for Book Lovers

January 2009
Collaboration with eBook publisher, Wyrdwood Publications, starts with "The Mouse in the Viking's Beard"

Publishing an interview with Greg Barber, an eco-friendly printer

Celebrating a new year with a new series - My green resolution for 2009

February 2009
Eco-Libris is available now at Hooray for Books! in Old Alexandria, Virginia

Celebrating another successful planting season of our planting partner RIPPLE Africa with photos from Malawi

We report on our blog on a green publisher that bits the recession - Chelsea Green Publishing

March 2009
The publisher and the author of "Sammy and Sue Go Green Too!" is collaborating with Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris on the cover of Awareness Magazine

New collaboration with the authors of "Green Beginnings"

April 2009
Raincoast Books and Eco-Libris are collaborating in a green campaign "Buy a book, Plant a tree"

Eco-Libris is taking part in a green reading event of the Chicago Bulls in a local school

A green campaign on Facebook

May 2009
A joint campaign with Barefoot Books in celebration of their new book 'Earth Tales'

Partnering with Pilcrow Lit Fest in Chicago

Participating in BookExpo America

June 2009
In collaboration with Greg Barber, we start a new series on our blog of weekly green printing tips

New collaboration with Kathleen Wilson, the author of the new book 'Rumer & Qix: The Race to Terra Incognita'

Bambeco, an online retailer of eco-friendly and stylish products for the home, is collaborating now with Eco-Libris

And what's next? we already work on new programs that we believe will assist us in achieving our goals - greening up the book industry and making reading more sustainable.We'll have more details soon so stay tuned!

We would also like to take this opportunity and thank everyone involved in our efforts - from the dedicated eco-conscious readers that balance out their books with us, through our business partners that take action to support the environment all the way to our wonderful planting partners that are doing such a great job in planting the trees in developing countries.

Thank you all!

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

*photo is courtesy of RIPPLE Africa from the 2008/9 planting season - Makuzi Afforestation club

Green printing tip #5: How to avoid being greenwashed when buying printing services?

We have another great tip for you on our weekly series of green printing tips, where we bring you in collaboration with Greg Barber, an experienced eco-friendly printer.

Today Greg is providing very useful advice how customers can and should avoid one of the biggest hurdles they're facing while going green - greenwashing.

How can I avoid being green washed in being a green buyer of printing?

Tip #5

This is easier said than done. Buying printing takes a lot of education on the terminology. I suggest that you know the basic terminology. I have three examples of potential Green Washing.

Example 1 - Recycled paper is paper that has a minimum of 30% post-consumer content. 100% recycled paper is based on the post-consumer content of paper. So, when a printer says they are using 100% recycled paper, I ask how much post-consumer is in the paper.This is a potential green washing. To make a big deal about 100% recycled paper when in fact the paper is maybe 30% recycled.

Example 2 - Chlorine Free paper that is bleached with hydrogen peroxide or oxygen is considered Process Chlorine Free (PCF). Paper that was bleached with Chlorine Dioxide is considered Elementally Chlorine Free (ECF). Processed Chlorine Free is chlorine free. Elemental Chlorine Free is really not chlorine free and can cause Dioxins. if a printer says the paper is chlorine free, you need to ask is it Processed Chlorine Free. This is a potential for green washing - making an ECF bleached paper sound like it is chlorine free.

Example 3 - FSC and Soy inks for printing sounds good, but ask how much post-consumer waste does the paper have, and what is the name of the paper. A 14 PT coated paper that is advertised a lot on many printer websites, is probably not even a recycled paper, and certainly not chlorine free. You need to be 100% post-consumer to be processed chlorine free. If the 14 PT is even recycled, it is ECF, or Elementally Chlorine Free, and does contain chlorine dioxide, and can cause dioxins.

The biggest Green Washing: Making a non recycled paper sound terrific, by attaching the FSC emblem and the Soy ink emblem to the advertising.I have always said that when stating FSC paper, include the other emblems. 100% post-consumer recycled, 100% processed chlorine free, Green E, etc.FSC is only one small element in determining the paper is environmental. The other emblems mean more.

If you have any further questions following our tips, or you have a specific question you want us to address, please email us to info@ecolibris.net .

More links:

Green Printing Tip #4 - What does FSC Certified mean? Is it enough?

Green Printing Tip #3 - How you make sure everyone knows you're using green printing practices

Green Printing Tip #2 - How you can make money while printing on 100% recycled paper

Green Printing Tip #1 - Go for a digital job

You can also find further valuable information on Greg Barber Company's website - http://www.gregbarberco.com.

All the tips are archived and saved on http://www.ecolibris.net/greentips.asp (part of our green printing tools & resources page).

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

When saving your customers money and saving the planet at the same time is not enough

Is establishing a win-win model where customers save money and the environment at the same time enough to ensure your success as a business? Apparently not as demonstrates the case of GreenPrint Technologies.

The New York Times had a very interesting article on the Sunday Business section about this company, which developed a software that according to their website"makes it easy to print only the pages you want saving you around $100 a year on paper and ink, as well as helping to save millions of trees."

This software is a great idea and it definitely creates a win-win model for customers - who wouldn't like to buy a software that cost around $70 for a corporate user and start making money on it from the first year (as savings are around $100 a year for a typical employee printing 10,000 pages at 6 cents a page), not to mention the reduction of your carbon footprint, saving many many trees and supporting the environment in general.

According to the article there's one problem - the software still has some operational issues, such as working too slow or chocking on large documents such as PowerPoint. And the company is learning the lesson that is widely common in the green marketplace - customers don't like to tradeoff. In this case, giving up time to reduce paper consumption.

The company is working now on version 2 of its software which should solve these issues, working faster and offering network administrators more reports on who's printing what and how much money is save (savings' visibility is very important!).

I think GreenPrint is a great company and also their journey from a bright idea to a successful company is not over yet, I believe their model with an improved product will get them there and it's definitely recommended to follow them and of course to check out their product (there's a free version you can download at their website - http://www.printgreener.com/).

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: Promoting green printing

Did you see our planting partner SHI on Oprah Magazine?

Getting a mention on Oprah Magazine is the desire of many (including Eco-Libris!).

We haven't got there yet, but we're proud to have a planting partner who did - Sustainable Harvest International (SHI).

On the June Issue of Oprah Magazine you can a profile of 4 Hotels With an Edge On "Voluntourism", or in other words hotels that "are helping guests plug into charitable projects during their stays."

One of the hotels profiled on the magazine is Cotton Tree Lodge in Belize and you can read there also about their unique partnership with SHI. The magazine describes how you can volunteer:

"If you don't mind a little mud on your boots, join SHI for daylong projects in the surrounding villages, helping families plant vegetable gardens, build chicken coops, or construct eco-friendly wood-burning stoves."

You can read more about it here - http://www.oprah.com/slideshow/omagazine/200906-omag-volunteer-vacations/2

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: promoting green printing

My Summer Reading with Jennifer Taylor of GreetQ

This week it's on our series My Summer Reading we have a dear guest from Seattle - 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.

Hi Jennifer, what are you reading now?
It's Not How Good You Are, It’s How Good You Want to Be: The World's Best Selling Book - I believe the target audience for this book is graphic designers and marketers. However it works as a sort of self-help book for creative types of all sorts, serving as cheerleader with the intention of convincing readers that they can accomplish the impossible. It's a brief read and I've actually completed it already but plan to carry it around in my summer tote, referring back to its more epiphanic sections all season.

What I’m planning to read + recommendations:
Points of View: An Anthology of Short Stories by Moffett and Mcelheny - The short story format is perfect for librophiles when on summer days everyone's pressuring you to put down the book and pick up a Frisbee. You can get your literary fix in 50 pages or less while still enjoying long sunny days.

I've been a long-time fan of this genre ever since it was introduced to me by one of its top purveyors, my college professor, who's also a brilliant prize-winning short story writer, Josip Novakovich. And although his work is still one of my favorites, I often find myself longing for the classics like Updike & Capote. Which is exactly why the "Points of View" anthology, loaned to me by a friend, is right up my literary alley. I have a lot of anthologies but this is the best collection I've seen thus far. And it includes one of my all time faves: The Lottery by Shirley Jackson.

The Bedside Baccalaureate - It's full title, "The Bedside Baccalaureate: A Handy Daily Cerebral Primer to Fill in the Gaps, Refresh Your Knowledge & Impress Yourself & Other Intellectuals," sounds a bit pretentious but you'll be thankful you bought it when at your 4th of July BBQ someone asks "Hey, who wrote the 1st draft of the Declaration of Independence again?"

Okay, maybe that won't happen but you'll feel great when by the end of the summer you've filled in all of those pesky knowledge gaps. And like the short-story anthology, the information in this book is given in brief, summer-sized bites on topics ranging from Environmental Science to Art History to Philosophy.

1984 - This is a must-read that I've passed over for far too long. Described as one of the best works of modern fiction of all time, I've decided to finally give it a go this summer.

Bitter is the New Black : Confessions of a Condescending, Egomaniacal, Self-Centered Smartass, Or, Why You Should Never Carry A Prada Bag to the Unemployment Office - Again, a book with a very long title but as intended, it certainly caught my attention. I'm not usually a fan of "chick-lit" but how can one pass up a read with a title like this? I may have to make a fake "War and Peace" bookcover to read it however. After all, this is Seattle.

What is your favorite place to read in the summer?

I don’t abandon my beloved coffee shops during the summer. They really are the perfect place to read year-round.

There aren’t enough coffee shops with outdoor seating here but the next best thing is shops with lots of natural sunlight and plenty of big windows. Like the Seattle’s Best Coffee shop across the street from Pike Place Market whose large storefront windows swing open. Or Zoka which also has huge windows, lots of wood paneling, big comfy leather chairs and sort of resembles a library. In the fall, you’d be hard pressed to find a seat, but come summer when all of the college students have headed home, it’s the perfect place to park with a book for an hour or two.

Thanks Jennifer!

More information on GreetQ can be found at http://www.greetq.com/

So far on My Summer Reading series:

Christian Valentiner of the Norwegian publisher Flux

Avrim Topel, co-author of 'My Green Beginnings'

Tania Hershman, author of 'The White Road and Other Stories'

Elisabeth Baines, author of the upcoming book 'Too Many Magpie'

Erica Caldwell of the bookstore Present Tense

Sue Schrader of the bookstore Sources of Hope

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: promoting green publishing

Planet Earth Gets Well is partnering with Earth Day Network in a new green contest for children

We have a great partnership with Madeline Kaplan, author of "Planet Earth Gets Wel". Madeline is planting a tree with us for every copy her wonderful children's book and is adding our sticker to the books sold.

Last April the book was involved in a program of the Chicago Bulls to promote green in a local school (you can see pictures from the Bull's event here), and today we're proud to report on a new environmental partnership of "Planet Earth Gets Well".

The book, which addresses environmental concerns in a child-friendly format, is partnering with Earth Day Network to promote the 2010 Student Climate Change Solutions Contest in schools across the country commencing August 1, 2009 and concluding on October 23, 2009. Two winners will be announced on November 2, 2009.

Targeted to children ages 4-9, a sector of the market where there is a void in materials which promote environmental awareness, the book will serve as the centerpiece of the contest helping Earth Day Network expand its reach to new audience members in preparation for the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, to be celebrated in April 2010. “As we approach the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, we are excited to share these educational opportunities with our younger audience to engage them in climate change solutions,” explains Brenna Holzhauer, Education Coordinator at Earth Day Network.

The 2010 Student Climate Change Solutions Contest will encourage teachers in grades K-4 to read Planet Earth Gets Well with their students and to utilize a related lesson plan to introduce age-appropriate concepts surrounding climate change. The book will be offered at a discount to teachers by visiting http://www.planetearthgetswell.com/ and lesson plans will be available for free download from the Earth Day Network’s Educators’ Network at http://www.earthday.net/node/12. There will also be a back-to-school poster contest for students aimed at resolving climate change which will be tied to the Earth Day 2010 theme, “The Green Generation™.”

Selected by the Earth Day Network’s Education Department, the two winners of the 2010 Student Climate Change Solutions Contest will be celebrated as exemplary members of The Green Generation™. The winning students will also receive a prize package including a signed copy of Planet Earth Gets Well, a t-shirt, a poster and a copy of the Planet Earth DVD set as well as an autographed Earth Day poster for the teacher’s classroom.

Winners will be announced through the Earth Day Network’s education page in the Earth Day Network’s Educators’ Network newsletter and on the Planet Earth Gets Well website (http://www.planetearthgetswell.com/), Facebook page and on Twitter (@planetearthwell). The winning students will receive a prize package including a signed copy of Planet Earth Gets Well, a t-shirt, a poster and a copy of the Planet Earth DVD set as well as an autographed Earth Day poster for the teacher’s classroom.

Planet Earth Gets Well is based on the author Madeline Kaplan’s understanding that future generations must be prepared to preserve their planet and its resources. Full-color illustrations garnish every other page of this creative metaphor in which Planet Earth has a fever—global warming—and to make him healthy again, his human friends must listen to the advice of Earth’s mother. Ms. Kaplan says that, “The relationship between the health of the planet and the people that live on it is clearly demonstrated for young readers, promoting this awareness as part of their earliest understanding of the world in which they live. I am extremely pleased to partner with Earth Day Network to further promote this awareness.”

Kudos to Madeline Kaplan and the Earth Day Network! This is great news and we're proud to be part of such an important educational initiative. We will keep you posted on the contest and in the meantime you're welcome to visit the book's website at and the Earth Day Network's website at http://www.earthday.net/.

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

Be a patriot and recycle - a special guest column for the 4th of July

Today Eco-Libris blog is happy to bring you a a special guest column of our friends at RecycleBank for the upcoming holiday. It presents you with an easy and important way to show your love for your country and not only on the 4th of July, but actually every day!

Recycling…as American as Apple Pie

What is patriotic? Fighting for one’s country is patriotic, flag-waving is patriotic, singing “The Star-Spangled Banner” is patriotic. Now, let’s think outside the bin (sorry, recycling humor) to something you do everyday. That’s right. Every time you reduce, reuse and recycle you’re celebrating your love for your country.

During World War II citizens were urged to recycle (or “salvage”) metal, rubber, paper and even kitchen fat to help in the war effort. Today’s soldiers don’t need recycled steel for guns, salvaged kitchen fat for explosives or scrap paper for packaging, but recycling is still patriotic.

By recycling, we show our love for our country by protecting our nation’s resources, reducing our dependence on the resources of other countries and boosting our economy.

Here’s how:

-Recycling plastic reduces the need for virgin plastic. Of course, virgin plastic isn’t a natural resource, but the petroleum used to make it is. In fact, approximately 4% of our annual oil consumption is used to make plastics. By recycling more plastic we reduce the need for the production of virgin plastic and that reduces our dependence on foreign oil.

-Manufacturing products using recycled materials instead of virgin materials requires a lot less energy. Making an aluminum can from recycled aluminum requires 95% less energy than making an aluminum can from virgin aluminum. In 2003, we reduced our oil usage by more than 15 million barrels by recycling 54 billion aluminum cans.

-Of course, oil isn’t our only source of energy. Recycling materials also reduces our need for coal—and that protects those purple mountains majesty.

-Using less energy also saves money. Saving money improves the national economy, but the recycling industry has given the national economy a real boost by creating over a million jobs. In fact, a recent report by the Pew Charitable Trusts found that jobs in conservation and pollution mitigation (including the recycling industry) make up 65% of the United States’ clean energy economy.

-Recycling reduces the amount of solid waste we need to dump in landfills, which in turn, reduces the need for landfills. By protecting our land from being “filled” with garbage, we’re helping to keep America beautiful.

-Recycling paper protects our forests by reducing the need for trees to produce paper. Recycling cars and other objects made of steel and iron reduces the amount of iron ore we must mine and recycling aluminum reduces the amount of aluminum we have to pull out of the ground.

There you have it. You love your country. You just have a different way of showing it. Now, gather your friends and family and enjoy your 4^th of July barbecue. Don’t forget to grab your recycled (and recyclable) plates (http://www.preserveproducts.com/products/tableware.html) and your recycled American flag (http://online-clothing-catalog.com/archives/238).