The White Road and Other Stories is No. 1 on Salt Publishing's bestsellers list!

We always like to brag about our partners' achievements and today we have great news to brag about: Tania's Hershman "The White Road and Other Stories" is No. 1 on Salt Publishing's Bestsellers list!

This great collection of short stories is balanced out by Hershman by planting a tree with Eco-Libris for every copy printed.

Kudos to Tania! This is a great book and it certainly deserves its first place on this list (you can find the list on the right side of Salt's homepage).

More about the book:What links a café in Antarctica, a factory for producing electronic tracking tags and a casino where gamblers can wager their shoes? They're among the multiple venues where Tania Hershman sets her unique tales in this spellbinding debut collection.

Fleeing from tragedy, a bereaved mother opens a cafe on the road to the South Pole. A town which has always suffered extreme cold enjoys sudden warmth. A stranger starts plaiting a young woman's hair. A rabbi comes face to face with an angel in a car park. An elderly woman explains to her young carer what pregnancy used to mean before science took over. A middle-aged housewife overcomes a fear of technology to save her best friend. A desperate childless woman resorts to extreme measures to adopt. A young man's potential is instantly snuffed out by Nature's whims. A lonely widow bakes cakes in the shape of test tubes and DNA.

A number of these stories are inspired by articles from science magazines, taking fact as their starting points and wondering what might happen if . . .? In these surreal, lyrical stories, many of which are only a few pages long, Tania Hershman allows her imagination free rein, as her characters navigate through love, death, friendship, spirituality, mental illness and the havoc wreaked by the weather.

About the author: Tania is a former science journalist and her award-winning short stories combine her two loves: fiction and science. Many of Tania’s stories, which have been broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and published in print and online, are inspired by articles from popular science magazines. In November 2007, she founded The Short Review, a unique website dedicated to reviewing short story collections. Tania, who was born in London, is living in Jerusalem, Israel. "The White Road and Other Stories" is her first book. For more on Tania's current projects,please visit TaniaHershman.com.

"The White Road and Other Stories" is available for sale in several bookstores - full information can be found at http://www.thewhiteroadandotherstories.com/buy.html

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: promoting green reading!

Greenpeace did it! Kimberly Clark is going green!

They did it again! We barely finished reading the news about their success to move Timebrland, Nike and Adidas to cease using leather imported from cattle raised on former Amazon rainforest lands, and we got another update from Greenpeace. This time it's about Kimberly-Clark and it's even more shocking.

So here is the update we just got over the email from Greenpeace:

Kimberly-Clark, the maker of Kleenex, Scott and Cottonelle brands, today announced stronger fiber sourcing standards that will increase conservation of forests globally and will make the company a leader for sustainably produced tissue products. In turn, Greenpeace, which worked with Kimberly-Clark on its revised standards, announced that it will end its "Kleercut" campaign, which focused on the company and its brands.

Kimberly-Clark has set a goal of obtaining 100 percent of the company's wood fiber for tissue products, including the Kleenex brand, from environmentally responsible sources. The revised standards will enhance the protection of Endangered Forests and increase the use of both Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified fiber and recycled fiber.

By 2011, Kimberly-Clark will ensure that 40 percent of its North American tissue fiber is either recycled or FSC certified -- a 71 percent increase from 2007 levels that represents 600,000 tones of fiber.

Also by the end of 2011, Kimberly-Clark will eliminate the purchase of any fiber from the Canadian Boreal Forest that is not FSC certified. This forest is North America's largest old growth forest, providing habitat for threatened wildlife such as woodland caribou and a sanctuary for more than one billion migratory birds. It is also the largest terrestrial storehouse of carbon on the planet, storing the equivalent of 27 years worth of global greenhouse gas emissions.

Furthermore, the revised standards reinforce Kimberly-Clark's long-standing ban on use of wood fiber from illegal sources; adds a preference for post-consumer recycled fiber; and supports expansion of recycling initiatives and the identification, mapping and protection of areas that have the potential to be designated as Endangered or High Conservation Value forests.

Kudos to Greenpeace! They started Kleercut campaign in 2004 and they did a great work in educating consumers and providing the facts, as well as the alternatives as we reported last February when they released their Recycled Tissue and Toilet Paper Guide..

Congrats also to Kimberly-Clark. I know these changes are not easy, but I am positive they will find eventually how you can actually do very well by doing good and how this move will not only protect the environment in general and ancient forests specifically, but will also assist them to generate more sales and revenues.

And last but not least - I love the guys in Greenpeace not only because they know how to make missions impossible possible, but also because they have great sense of humor. Check out this video showing how they're trying to figure out their new relationship with Kimberly-Clark.



Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: promoting green printing!

Green printing tip #9: What to look for when selecting a green print vendor?

We're happy to bring you today a new tip 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 answering a question we received from one of our readers. We believe this is a question shared by many businesses and organizations that are looking for a green printer: how to identify one and how to compare between two or more printers with "green" practices.

What to look for when selecting a “green” print vendor?

Tip #9

Here are the questions you should ask:

1. Is the printer FSC certified? That will narrow your search. It takes a lot to be certified.

2. Does the printer stock Environmental paper, and if yes, what grades? If the house stock includes 100% post-consumer waste recycled, that is a strong indication of being environmental.

3. Does the printer use Soy Based or Vegetable Based Inks?

4. Does the printer use 100% non toxic toner for digital?

5. Ask the printer to show you jobs where the FSC emblem was added.

6. Ask the printer iF they are Carbon Neutral. Ask them if they know what that means.

7. Ask the printer if they are Green E certified. That certifies the plants use Wind, Solar or BioGas energy.

If you are not sure of their answers, please consider sending them to me. I am happy to help you pick the right environmental printer for your next job.

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 .

Links to the last three green printing tips:

Green Printing Tip #8 - Does it cost more to print my book on recycled paper?

Green Printing Tip #7 - What is the best alternative if you can't afford to buy Seed paper?

Green Printing Tip #6 - Is Spot Color printing environmentally friendly?

You can find links to all the tips we published so far on our green printing tips page, which is part of our green printing tools & resources.

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

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: promoting green printing

The Society of Graphic Designers of Canada adopted sustainability principles

Design is an important part in every work and especially in print productions. That's why I was happy to read good the news (on Environmental Leader) that the Society of Graphic Designers of Canada (GDC) adopted sustainability principles.

The GDC's website brings the details:

Unanimously endorsed at the annual general meeting of the Society of Graphic Designers of Canada (GDC) held from 24-25 April 2009 in Winnipeg, the working definition states:

Sustainable communication design is the application of sustainability principles to communication design practice. Practitioners consider the full life cycle of products and services, and commit to strategies, processes and materials that value environmental, cultural, social and economic responsibility.

The definition is supported by a statement of values and principles to guide the GDC and its members’ actions. If you go over these principles, you see the full commitment of the Canadian designers to change. I'm especially happy to see that they refer to all major aspects of their work - environmental, social, economic and cultural. I believe that this comprehensive approach is the key to succeed when developing a sustainable strategy and therefore I think the GDC is in the right direction.

I hope the GDC will follow its promise to "collaborating with other design organizations worldwide to promote and develop best practices for sustainable communications design", so this great initiative won't be limited only to Canada, but will inspire graphic designers worldwide to commit to sustainability.

I also hope the U.S. will be next. Actually there's a good chance for the adoption of these principles here if your think of the fact that, as we reported last month, the graphic arts trade association - Printing Industries of America is providing now its members with a new tool for those who wants to go green: The Green Guide for Graphic Communications. If they already encourage their members to go green, wouldn't it be only natural to go one step forward and encourage members to adopt a comprehensive sustainable practices?

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: promoting green printing!

The Regulator Book Shop is calling America: shop local and save the planet

Local independent bookstores are an endless source of creativity - last Friday we learned about the Kindle-paper book battle brought to you by Green Apple Books and today we have another great video, this time from the Regulator Book Shop at Durham, NC.

The creative people of the Regulator Book Shop (and thanks to Bookstore People for the link) produced a great video showing you why you should keep it local America when it comes to books (hint: better for you, much better for the environment!). This is not only a well-made and educational video but also a funny one, so check it out!



Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: promoting green reading!

You can still win a copy of "Easy to Be Green: Simple Things You Can Do to Save the Earth"

We just want to remind everyone that there's still time to participate in our giveaway of "Easy to Be Green: Simple Things You Can Do to Save the Earth".

How you can win a copy o this great children's book? just add a comment to the review post with an answer to this question: what's yours (or your kid's) favorite game?

Submissions are accepted until tomorrow, Monday, August 3, 12PM EST. The winner will be announced the following day.

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: promoting green reading

The Kindle-book battle: The Green Apple (funny!) version

Remember the imaginary battle David Pouge presented between the Kindle and paper books? Now the San Francisco bookstore, Green Apple Books, show their own version for this battle and it's even funnier!

The Green Apple presents 10 rounds between “The Book” and the Kindle in what they describe as a smack-down of the most literary sort (and thanks to Boing Boing for the link!).

They published already 3 rounds (every day there's a new video) on their blog. The first and the second episodes were funny but I found the third episode ("sharing") hilarious so here it is:



Kudos to Green Apple Books for this great video series! No matter if you agree with the results of their smack-down or not, I'm sure you'll agree that it's time for some more refreshing points of view, such the ones we have here, in this interesting and growing debate.

And don't forget to check Green Apple's blog for the next seven rounds!

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: promoting green reading