"Green paper" supports the use of recycled magazine stock and debunks myths

The folks at Canopy, the people who brought you the Eco Paper Database to make it easy to find green paper solutions, have alerted us to a "green paper" called Green in All Grades, produced by one of their U.S. counterparts, Green America and its Better Paper Project. 

The hefty (40-page) report aims at dissecting the key arguments made against use of recycled paper to print magazines and showing how it can be the best choice for the environment. 

It argues, for instance, that there is no shortage of waste paper for recovery, that recycled paper bests the same grades of virgin paper and that the biggest environmental impact comes from using recovered paper for writing and printing paper (such as magazine stock). In a release, Frank Locantore, the director of the Better Paper Project says

“Over the past few years, we’ve heard a lot of misinformation and unsubstantiated claims that recycled paper is a poor environmental choice for magazine paper, so we wanted to clear up confusion and present science-based facts to support magazines that want to do the right thing for the planet by using recycled paper.”

Quarto Communications in good company in environmental awards

Quarto Communications Ltd. of Toronto, the publishers of Cottage Life and explore magazines, has been cited as a finalist and "long time leader" in the annual Aveda Environmental Awards for Magazines, presented in Minnesota.

The 2009 awards for environmental leadership, sponsored by the beauty products firm and Green America, a non-profit organization promoting responsible paper and production practices, gave top honours to Mother Earth News, Audubon and Boho magazines.

“As an advertiser, Aveda encourages all publishers to adopt environmentally responsible paper and production practices," the company said.

“In an industry where less than two percent of all North American magazines are printed on recycled paper, the message from this year's winners is 'Yes We Can,’ ” says Frank Locantore, director, Green America Better Paper Project, a non-profit that assists magazine publishers in identifying and implementing  environmentally responsible paper and production practices.

“In a  tough economy and facing serious climate change challenges, Mother Earth News, Audubon, Boho and all the other entries are saying 'Yes We Can' to using recycled paper and producing beautiful and financially sound magazines."

Quarto's Cottage Life and explore and its recently acquired Canadian Home Workshop are among the some 200 North American magazines which use sustainable "green paper" with a significant amount of recycled content. (Probably fewer than 30 Canadian magazines so far use such paper.)

Since its launch in 1970, the awards team said in a release, Mother Earth News uses 100 per cent recycled paper of which 90 percent is post-consumer recyled to serve its paid circulation of 475,000 copies.

Audubon, a photo heavy magazine for nature enthusiasts, outdoor adventurers and socially conscious consumers, is nevertheless printed on 90 percent post-consumer recycled paper. Heidi DeVos, production director said

“We began with 10 percent post consumer recycled content in our body stock in 1993, switched to 30 percent post in 2004, and to 90 percent post in 2009. We consistently win photography and design awards, whichjust goes to show that good color reproduction can be maintained on paper with a high level of post-consumer recycled fiber.”

Boho, a green fashion-lifestyle magazine that launched in 2008, is the first and only US fashion and beauty magazine to use 100 percent recycled post-consumer paper; the awards program pointed out that a fashion magazine using the same amount of paper as Boho but not using any cycled material, requires 296 tons of virgin wood from a forest.

“We knew that the only way we would launch a print publication was if we never cut down a tree to do it,” says Gina La Morte, editor in chief/publisher. “Boho's commitment to using 100 percent recycled post-consumer waste paper is as much a part of our mission as is the gorgeous green content we put on its pages.”

Momentum building towards green paper

Magazines in the U.S. are being slow to convert to recycled paper, but momentum is building. Cost, misconceptions and general ignorance are among the reasons given in an item in Folio: magazine's online site. [see earlier posts about ancient forest friendly paper.]

There are about 100 magazines currently printing on recycled paper, says Frank Locantore, director of the Magazine Paper Project for Co-Op America. Locantore says cost, misconceptions about cost and general ignorance of publishers have contributed to the lack of conversion.

Even a large number of “green issues” aren’t printed on sustainable paper (see: Vanity Fair’s 2006 “green issue” for a case study on just how disappointing not following through can be to the green community), something Locantore says is the ultimate irony. And even when they do, most magazine publishers don’t continue the practice for their non-green issues. Nonetheless, he says, there’s a momentum building for magazines to continue to demand green alternatives from their paper suppliers.

When Mansueto Ventures started to look at recycled paper, said Kristine Kern, general manager, “You could see the garbage—literally, you could see the garbage in the paper.”

Now, Mansueto’s magazines—Fast Company and Inc.—are printed on 100-percent recycled paper that is 85 percent post-consumer waste. And Kern says the company pays less than it would to print on regular paper.

“Price and quality don’t have to be sacrificed to make the switch,” says Locantore.

Going green is the good news for beleagured paper producers, report says

Research by Markets Initiative, the Vancouver-based environmental group, has found that more than 520 Canadian book publishers, magazines, newspapers and printers are now implementing eco-paper purchasing policies, according to Nicole Rycroft, executive director.

She told the Montreal Gazette that an ''unparalleled environmental momentum'' points to profits for green printers and paper producers despite an industry downturn, the Markets Initiative report says. "This represents a 300-per-cent increase over last year.''

(Last week, Markets Initiative released a Pollara study that said consumers are not fooled by companies that pretend to be green and carbon-neutral but really carry on business as usual.)

The report released at an international forestry industries event in Montreal - is filled with examples of how going greener has translated into dollars for the innovators while lessening industry impact on the environment.

• Quebec-based Cascades has seen 2007 sales of its 100-per-cent recycled and ''ancient forest friendly'' paper jump by 235 per cent over 2006 figures.

• Leipa Georg Leinfelder GMBH has seen 2007 Canadian sales of its green magazine paper jump by more than 70 per cent over 2006. And its Canadian sales are expected to double in 2008, the report said.

Key among the big players driving the demand for environment-friendly papers is Transcontinental Inc., Canada's largest commercial printer and the producer of the largest number of consumer magazines in the country.

Last October, Montreal-based Transcontinental became the first major North American print-media conglomerate to implement a paper-purchasing policy that champions ''environmentally preferable'' papers.

It gives preference to third-party certified paper, in particular, the Forest Stewardship Council.

A year ago, Transcontinental met 17 existing paper suppliers - including AbitibiBowater, Kruger, Atlantic and Cascades - and ''laid our cards on the table,'' Jean Denault, vice-president of procurement and technology, said yesterday.

After rating suppliers' offerings, Transcontinental met with some suppliers individually and told them that it wants one of their greener papers, Denault said.

''This will be a work in progress for Transcontinental,'' he said. ''There is a limited supply of FSC paper for all our needs'' given the various grades required for various media.

The report noted that North America's newsprint market - largely fed by Canadian producers - has a long way to go to catch up with its British cousin.

About 13 years ago, the British market mirrored North America's with an industry average of 34-per-cent recycled content. In 2006, that industry average topped 80 per cent.

TVA Publications adopts eco-paper policy

The largest magazine publisher in Quebec, TVA Publications (a subsidiary of Quebecor) has announced concurrent with Earth Day that it is adopting an eco-paper policy. As a first step, according to a press release from Canopy, the campaigners for sustainable forest management and green publishing, TVA has switched 90% of its 52 magazines -- such as Clin D'Oeil and Tout Simplement Clodine -- to FSC-certified paper.

The change means that Canada's four major consumer magazine conglomerates have environmentally friendly paper policies in place, with a preference for FSC and recycled content, not fibre sourced from endangered or ancient forests.

“TVA Publications is excited to contribute to the conservation of our forests. Places like Quebec’s Boreal forests belong to future generations, making it imperative that we work with our suppliers to ensure the industry continue to strive towards more sustainable forest practices and conservation,” said Chrystal Healy, manager of environmental affairs at Quebecor.

“This is the result of both the publisher, printer and paper producers working together to reduce their impact on endangered forests such as the Boreal. I hope TVA Publications example will further inspire supply chain shifts throughout the North American magazine publishing industry,” observes Neva Murtha, magazine campaigner with Canopy.

The announcement complements another  one recently by Canopy, which published its Printer Leadership List of leading North American green printers who have gone beyond paper policies and become active in forest conservation and the development of eco-paper. 

Transcontinental Inc. pledges to promote "environmentally preferable" paper

It's too early to say if this is a tipping point, but the announcement yesterday by Transcontinental Inc., Canada's largest commercial printer, that it would champion "environmentally preferable" papers may be the breakthrough that the green paper movement has been working for. It is the first major North American printer to do so.

The company, which is also the largest publisher of consumer magazines in the country, will "promote the use of paper with maximized post-consumer and de-inked recycled fibre and encourages the use of paper made with pre-consumer recovered fibre or alternative fibres in preference to virgin wood fibre", according to a story in the Montreal Gazette.

"Our goal was to develop a paper-purchasing policy that would promote sustainable development in a tangible way by giving our clients clear choices," company president Luc Desjardins said.

The new policy was developed with input from environmental publishing advocate Markets Initiative.

"Transcontinental is the first major North American print-media conglomerate to take such a comprehensive step toward safeguarding our forests and our climate," said Nicole Rycroft, executive director of Markets Initiative.

In addition to such well-known consumer magazines as Canadian Living, Elle Canada and More, Transcontinental prints La Presse in Montreal and other Canadian and U.S. daily and community newspapers. At least one of Transcontinental Media's titles -- Outdoor Canada -- has made the switch. The announcement did not say that other Transcontinental titles would lead the way for their other printing customers, but that seems compelling and inevitable in light of the announcement.

(See our earlier posts)

Markets Initiative says that, currently, publishers of 74 Canadian magazines are working with them to shift away from papers that contain fibre from the world’s ancient and endangered forests. Less than 5% of magazine paper has any post consumer recycled content and every second, a tree is cut down for use in magazine paper. Canadian periodicals use about 110,000 tons of paper annually, while consumer magazines use an estimated 81,000 tons of paper every year.

The figures are even more dramatic for the newspaper industry: About 1.1 million metric tonnes of newsprint were consumed in Canada in 2004, equivalent to over 12 million trees used to produce Canada’s newspapers alone. Canada's total production of newsprint, including exports, uses almost 95 million trees.

Canadian Living goes seriously green

Canadian Living has gone "green" in a serious way. Its April issue, now on the news racks, is themed green, with stories about an 11-year-old crusader for polar bears, a profile of the small town of Craik, Saskatchewan that revitalized itself by going green and a story about the Spider Web Garden at Withrow Public School in Toronto. Editor Susan Antonacci says in her editor's letter:

What makes me particularly proud about this issue is that we’re the first major women’s magazine in North America to print on 100 per cent recycled paper.

This also makes Canadian Living the largest circulation magazine in Canada to be printed on ancient forest-friendly 100% recycled paper, joining the more than 20 titles that have already done so.

According to Markets Initiative, the organization that promotes AFF paper to Canadian magazines, the choice made for this one issue of Canadian Living saved 5,583 trees and forestalled enough greenhouse gases to be the equivalent of taking 104 cars off the road.

Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) said to have the best standard for green paper

Sometimes you can't see the forest for the acronyms and publishers who are considering doing the right thing when it comes to paper can become confused by the conflicting claims of the various certification bodies out there: FSC, CSA, PEFC, SFI.

Some clarity may be forthcoming (though there will be disagreement between the contending standards), with new research conducted by ÉEM Inc., a Montreal-based management consulting firm and released by environmental publishing advocates Markets Initiative. Markets Initiative commissioned the study and reported it released the study at an industry conference in September, so it is therefore not surprising that they're publicizing the results in which ÉEM concluded independently that Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) to be the most effective certification system for achieving sustainable forest management in Canada.

Unlike the other certification systems, namely CSA, SFI and PEFC, FSC is the only one that prohibits the use of genetically modified trees, prevents the conversion of natural forest to plantations and requires a precautionary approach to the management of areas with high conservation value, says the Markets Initiative release.

“Forest certification schemes have competed for recognition in the market place for years, but this research clearly shows FSC as being the ideal choice when it comes to sustainability,” said Nicole Rycroft, executive director of Vancouver-based Markets Initiative.

“Given the growth of green markets in Canada and around the world, this research can serve as a clear guide for the increasing number of customers looking for environmental solutions.”

Many magazines, including The Walrus, Cottage Life and explore, and NOW have adopted paper with maximized recycled and agricultural residue content, and virgin fibre from FSC- certified forests that helps safeguard ancient and endangered forests.

Because of the market demand created by these publishers, more than 50 new papers have been developed with ecological attributes and close to a million trees have been saved by publishers printing on Ancient Forest Friendly and eco-friendly papers. Building on this shift, in September, the Ontario government developed a paper purchasingpolicy that gives preference to recycled content and FSC virgin fibre, Markets Initiative said.

“Being the only forest certification comparison that looks at the four North American schemes as they apply in Canada, we hope those in the private and public sectors will use it as a resource as they move forward with environmental paper initiatives,” said Paul MacLean, President of ÉEM Inc. ÉEM’s findings also show the use of recycled content is paramount to any credible environmental solution.

Using recycled magazine paper protects the environment, study says

A recent study on behalf of National Geographic magazine in the U.S. to find out if it made environmental sense for them to use recycled paper in their magazine suggests that it most certainly does. Based on an independent evaluation, in 14 out of 14 environmental impact categories, the production of deinked pulp had substantially lower environmental impacts than using virgin fibre pulp. The results of the study were reported in a guest post on Dead Tree Edition by Frank Locantore, project director of the Green America Better Paper Project. 

While National Geographic hasn't yet acted on the results, it seems highly likely that it will  and join many other magazines such as Fast Company, Audubon and Ranger Rick in using green paper. In Canada, titles such as Cottage Life and Canadian Geographic have already done so. 

The long post notes that 9 million tons (!) of printing and writing paper remains uncollected and therefore is lost to the recycling process each year in the U.S. 

Recycled paper gets special displays for some U.S. magazines

Barnes & Noble stores in the U.S. are in the second year of featuring magazines that use recycled paper in special magazine racks in over 240 of their largest stores. The project is being done in partnership with Green America’s Better Paper Project. Since the project started, 46 magazines have taken part.

The ten magazines participating in this month’s promotion include: Tricycle, Mother Jones, Natural Home, Make, Miller-McCune, Mothering, VegNews, Grit, Stanford Social Innovation Review and The American Prospect.

“These unique promotions increase visibility and sales for magazines that have made the commitment to print on recycled paper. In tough economic times these magazines are testament that environmental and fiscal responsibility can go hand in hand,” says Máire Walsh, director of client services at Next Steps Marketing, and who runs the promotions on behalf of Green America’s Better Paper Project.

There's demand for Canadian eco-paper if only the mills would produce it

The Canadian publishing industry -- magazines, books and newspapers -- want at least 550,000 metric tonnes of eco-paper, worth something like $560 million, but no Canadian paper mills are so far prepared to supply it. According to a new report released by Markets Initiative, the ailing Canadian pulp and paper industry could be repositioned for success by adopting more environmentally sensitive technology and processes.

"There's no reason Canada's troubled pulp and paper industry can't take inspiration from the auto sector and start reinventing by producing a greener product," says Nicole Rycroft, executive director of Markets Initiative, which over the past ten years has worked with all of Canada's major publishers, printers and logging companies, developing and advising on green policies.

"The world's biggest publishers tell us time and time again they want more environmentally sound paper and more recycled paper. Why can't Canada be the one to supply it?"

Agreement will sustain boreal forest and protect endangered caribou

An agreement has been reached between 9 conservation groups and the 21 member companies of the Forest Products Association (FPAC) that may go a long way towards preservation of Canada's boreal forest and protecting the threatened woodland caribou. The agreement, which covers about 66% of commercial forests in Canada  in a band that stretches from coast to coast, will be of particular interest to publishers who pay close attention to the sourcing of the paper that they use to make their magazines.

According to a release about the Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement, FPAC member companies manage 2/3 of the certified forest lands in Canada. They have now agreed to suspend logging on nearly 29 million hectares of boreal forest (an area the size of Italy). In return, the conservation groups have agreed to suspend their "Do Not Buy" campaigns led by Canopy (formerly Markets Initiative), Forest Ethics and Greenpeace.

The logging and paper-making companies have won assurances that they will continue to have sufficient fibre for their businesses, using a plan (to be worked out) of comprehensive forest management and harvesting practices.Talks are continuing with provincial government and first nations communities, recognizing their rights, particularly aboriginal and treaty rights; the progress achieved in implementing the agreement will be monitored by an agreed-upon independent auditor.

Canopy points out that this is but the first step in a multi-year program, requiring the translation of principled agreement into specific reality on the ground. The organization -- which has been instrumental in coaxing Canadian printers and  publishers to switch to sustainable or "green" paper -- gave credit to those partners' support in achieving the agreement:

By providing the market incentive for green products and engaging suppliers on issues of conservation concern over the past 5-10 years, many of Canopy’s publishing and print partners have been key in helping secure today’s agreement. As we move forward with implementing the initiative, these large corporate paper consumers will play a critical role in ensuring we secure the ambitious conservation goals and is ultimately rewarded in the marketplace.

The parties to the agreement gave credit to the Pew Environment Group and the Ivey Foundation for bringing the two sides together and facilitating negotiations. 

“For years we have helped bring opposing parties together to conserve this global treasure, Canada’s boreal forest,” said Steve Kallick, director of the Pew Environment Group’s International Boreal Conservation Campaign. “We’re thrilled that this effort has led to the largest commercial forest conservation plan in history, which could not have happened without both sides looking beyond their differences. As important as today’s announcement is, our ultimate success will be measured by how we tackle the work ahead to put this plan into practice.”

Canadian Geographic prints environmental issue on "wheat sheet"

Canadian Geographic magazine and Markets Initiative, the green printing advocacy organization, have collaborated on a pilot project to use paper made from the byproduct of growing and harvesting wheat. The so called "wheat sheet" is hoped to give rise to a new industrial use for wheat straw, which, until now, has been regarded as a waste byproduct. The creators of the new paper say it rivals other glossy papers on the market.

The latest issue of Canadian Geographic, on newsstands today, uses the new paper that contains 20% wheat straw and 40% recycled pulp.

Nicole Rycroft, executive director of Markets Initiative, said the wheatsheet represents a great opportunity to turn agricultural waste products into an environmentally friendly paper. "We were looking for a creative way
to alleviate the stress on Canadian forests," she said.

Canada is the world's largest producer of commercial pulp, but the industry has shown little interest in wheat straw, which is used primarily in China. In fact, the wheat straw pulp used to create the wheat sheet was imported from China because there is no facility in North America able to process wheat into pulp.

Ms. Rycroft said the 15 million tonnes of cereal waste Canadian agriculture creates annually could be used to make 7.5 million tonnes of pulp, equivalent to about 80 per cent of all the newsprint used in Canada in a given year.
Can Geo editor Rick Boychuk's editor's letter in the current (annual environmental) issue says:
We’d like to convince the magazine industry and, ultimately, the pulp-and-paper industry that adding agricultural waste to the pulp mix is a step forward, that it will ease some of the demand for virgin pulp from the boreal forest and offer grain farmers a new source of revenue for what is now largely a waste by-product. The next time we print on a wheat sheet, we want the straw to be purchased from Canadian farmers and pulped in a Canadian mill. We’ll provide regular updates on how the mills respond to our challenge.

Sorting out the standards for eco-certified paper and wood products

Magazine publishers who want to be on the side of the angels are confronted by a variety of certifications being bandied about for paper from eco-certified wood pulp. So called "green" terms are tossed about like logs in a stream, but consumers and publishers alike could be forgiven for being baffled by the gab.

Christopher Pollan, a contributing editor for The Tyee in Vancouver has written the first in a projected series of articles about the "war" over eco-certified wood and wood products. While his story covers everything from newsprint to building supplies, it's an interesting look at the two, largest rival forestry certification non-profit organizations* which put their stamp (literally and figuratively) on paper we use to print magazines: the forestry industry-created Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), and the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), which was conceived by a coalition of North American environmental activists.

What both certification programs have in common is that their respective logos -- appearing on books and 2x4s and everything between -- carry a promise of "sustainability;" both indicate that eco-conscious buyers can relax and know they are buying a product that they can feel good about.

What the rivals do not share, is a common vision of what sustainability looks like on the forest floor, and whether the differences between certification standards matter at all.

Pollan notes that the SFI has roots in the American Forestry and Paper Association (AF&PA), though now nominally independent and that it is waging an expensive and high level public relations and ad campaign across North America, designed to influence influential users . He reports that SFI is criticized for "greenwashing" unsustainable practices such as high-elevation clear-cutting and attempting to blur the differences between it and the tougher FSC standards.

"We consider SFI to be forest greenwash," says Jennifer Krill, Program Director at San Francisco's RAN, a founding member of the FSC. "The marketplace cannot trust the SFI to deliver the environmental and social standards that customers are demanding."

Krill says that SFI-labelled products can come from old growth forests, from huge clear cuts, and from tree plantations that were formerly ecologically-diverse forest -- and all the while, unwitting consumers and businesses buy the wood in an effort to be sustainable.

*Readers of this blog will know that there are other players such as Canopy (formerly Markets Initiative), a Vancouver-based environmental organization that advocates with publishers on behalf of eco-paper purchasing and use through a sustainable supply chain, thereby sparing the world's ancient forests. It endorses FSC standards.

Canadians not fooled by bogus carbon neutrality, study says

Canadians are apparently not fooled by companies who claim to be "carbon neutral" but carry on with usual, un-green practices. According to online research commissioned by Markets Initiative of Vancouver and conducted by Pollara Research, only one per cent of Canadians say they strongly trust companies’ claims that their products or practices are carbon neutral, while 57 per cent of Canadians say they do not.

The study (details of which are available on the MI website) is part of a larger report to be released in full next week, intended to reflect market trends and environmental integrity in the paper and publishing industries. Markets Initiatives is an advocacy organization the campaigns for environmental stewardship and has had a major role in encouraging Canadian magazines to adopt ancient forest friendly paper.

Nicole Rycroft, executive director of Markets Initiative, said in a release:

“A proliferation of companies are using ‘carbon neutral’ schemes to buy their way into consumers’ hearts without taking steps to actually reduce carbon, which is what the planet needs. The good news is that these big claims with little action are not convincing Canadian consumers.”

She added part of the consumer distrust arises because companies often pay for offsets but continue business as usual. Although there is a lot of conjecture about the term ‘carbon neutral’, it was the New Oxford American Dictionary’s Word of the Year for 2006. It refers to zero total carbon released by balancing the amount of carbon released with the amount sequestered or offset. However, there is no standard body governing carbon neutral claims, which makes
credible accounting difficult.

The release said companies like Air Canada and organizations like The Vatican have launched high profile marketing initiatives about their offsetting programs in tree planting with seemingly little other concrete action. The science is doubtful about the efficacy of tree planting offsets, as the carbon loss that results from logging carbon rich old growth forests such as Canada’s Boreal forest is not offset by planting seedlings, even after decades.

Likewise, Rolling Stone magazine announced in 2007 that it was the first magazine to use carbon neutral paper. This was in spite of the fact the paper itself lacked any low carbon features like recycled content and consisted only of 100 per cent virgin fibre. In this case, the claim of ‘carbon neutral’ accounted only for energy reduction measures at the mill and offsets purchased for the energy used to produce the paper.

The online research polled 2,271 Canadians aged 18 and over. The survey was conducted from November 9th to November 13th, 2007. Results are considered accurate to ±2.1%, nineteen times out of twenty.

Saving 36,000 trees

Nineteen Canadian magazines have now moved production over to ancient forest-friendly paper or eco-paper and soon there promises to be 20 and more.

Big guys remain cautious because they are in the fashion and shelter categories and feel that it may require compromise on reproduction and image. But bit by bit, publishers are being won over and paper-makers and printers are getting onside. A couple of years ago, remember, nobody had made the switch; the brave first step was taken by explore (which, this week, won a major U.S. award for its courage).

And there seems to be some significant momentum. Look at this list:

• Yes mag
• Watershed Sentinel
• Know
• The New Quarterly
• explore
• Green Teacher
• Outpost
• HoBO
• Outdoor Canada
• Quill & Quire
• Canadian Home Workshop
• U of T magazine
• The Walrus
• Book Trade in Canada
• Canadian Publishers Directory
• Bio-Bulle
• Idea&s
• (Plus a large controlled magazine that prefers to remain unnamed for now)
  

There is also word that Cottage Life is considering making the switch in 2007.

Conservatively speaking, says Neva Murtha, the coordinator of Markets Initiative, almost 50 million magazine copies have been printed on Ancient Forest Friendly or eco paper (some portion recycled) in Canada this year. And had they all used virgin instead of recycled paper, 36,000 more trees would have been used.

University Affairs to relaunch in February with new look and feel

University Affairs magazine, which is published for faculty, administration, staff and graduate students at 95 universities and colleges across Canada, has for the past decade has had the same design (except for a cover change five years ago) is undergoing a metamorphosis with its forthcoming February issue.   Not only is the bilingual magazine (published by the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada) changing to a slightly oversize magazine format (think enRoute) from its accustomed tabloid size, but it is moving to glossy,  FSC-certified paper. A matching website redesign will be happening in parallel.  One notable change is that the three features in the magazine will not all be translated in full as in the past; two of the three will be summarized. Here are a few questions to editor Peggy Berkowitz and her answers about the changes. 

Q. Who did the redesign?

A. The design firm is Underline Studio in Toronto (partners are Fidel Pena and Claire Dawson. The firm also does UofT Magazine. They are continuing as art director for the magazine.

Q. You say in this month's issue you are moving to better quality recycled paper? glossy? green certified?  

A. Yes, the paper is forest friendly certified and glossy. It was actually revenue-neutral to make this change, because by going to a smaller format the paper savings were significant.

Q. Are there any features or presentations being changed/added?  

A. It is a radical redesign and will  be a shocking change to readers - hopefully pleasantly so, once they get used to it. We know from our readership surveys that readers find us trustworthy and important in keeping up with the university scene in Canada. Our goal was to make our outstanding editorial content more enjoyable to read, and a little more edgy to attract younger readers. We wanted to turn it into a must-read that you want to read. We also wanted it to look like a real magazine rather than a newspaper-magazine hybrid.

We've expanded the front-of-book and made high-quality photos an intrinsic part of this department. To make up for that (mostly staff resources),  we have cut the Book Review (it was just one review per issue and we didn't feel we had the resources to turn it into a stronger section). We have a new columnist, from the administrator side (Doug Owram, head of UBC Okanagen) who will alternate with our popular columnist on ethics, Christine Overall. 

The look and feel of our news section (called Nota Bene) and treatment of French copy is very different. We will continue to run three feature articles, one of them translated in full, the other two summarized. The classified ad section has been designed in keeping with the rest of the book.

Database tracks phenomenal growth of eco-paper availability

The number of eco-papers available to printers in North America has grown from 97 to 228 in just 18 months, according to information released by Canopy, the  non-profit organization working to improve the environmental performance of paper and wood companies.

"We're witnessing a phenomenal shift in the paper industry where sustained and growing green demand is steering paper production towards ecofriendly options, giving a life line to mills and a future for our endangered forests and species," said Nicole Rycroft, executive director of Canopy.

Canopy maintains a database that tracks the qualities of 350 different papers and the mills that provide them. 

Readers wade in about relevance of The United Church Observer magazine

The United Church's online forum wondercafe.ca carries a discussion  about the relevance of the United Church Observer magazine. The venerable Observer (founded in 1829 and the oldest continuously published magazine in North America) is struggling with declining circulation as the size of church's membership declines.  Its circulation is now about 60,000, down from about 82,500 in 2002. (Most of the magazine's circulation is qualified, paid for by individual congregations and then mailed individually to their members.)

The discussion was kicked off by a member of Zion United Church in Thessalon, Ontario who claims to be one half of the first gay marriage in the United Church in northern Ontario.

• I would love to hear folks impression of how relevant The Observer is in their lives, their congregational life, and the church at large.  Does it connect you with the national church or isolate you?   Who do you think reads the Observer?

 Some selected comments:

• I still find it to be thought provoking and that it cobbles together an interesting mix of world, big church little church issues.  Our congregation had stopped doing the group discount thing but our new minister revived it and there have been a number of new subscriptions....My guess is the average reader is over 50.

• I think it is essential, and am an advocate for everyone getting one as part of being a member of the church.

• The cover story this month is about an American town rebuilding after a tornado and being green. Most of the stories inside are about the troubles of the UCC. Relevant?

• Was it ever relevant, or does it just reflect a 'Toronto' view of the church?

• I read what I can on the web, when I remember. I do not get the Observer through my church, because I keep forgetting  to ask.   Also I am ambivalent about having more paper come through the mail. I never read anything but school text books from paper, almost  everything else I read is "online" on my computer or my iPod Touch.  It easier for me, and I do not have to worry about wasting paper. Paper is good for some, but not for me.

• ...the question is not what I like or don't like about it - it's whether The Observer is relevant, and I'm not sure how to define "relevant." It's still my main source of information for the United Church across the country, but to be perfectly honest I wouldn't pay for a subscription myself.

• Haven't seen it in a long time, but should pick it up again some day. It was one of my favorites of the various magazines my family was getting when I was in my teens and twenties. The coverage of both church issues and general issues from a UCC perspective was excellent at that time (80s, mostly).

• Does it do its job - yes - do I find it adds to my life - no - but that is not its job - the theological stuff is thin - but I don't go to it for that. Takes about an half hour to read it.  I am glad I get it -yes  Would I miss it -no

The Republic of East Vancouver may never be published again

It's a newspaper, sure, but we tend to think of it as an honourary magazine, if only because its editor and publisher, Kevin Potvin, was one of the best friends a newsstand magazine ever had. Now, apparently, after almost 10 years of serving the east side of Vancouver, The Republic of East Vancouver is going on hiatus...and the paper may never be published again.

Regular readers of this blog will recall we lamented the disappearance in April last year of the Magpie Gallery, one of the best independent magazine stores in Canada.

The lynchpin of that operation was Potvin, who had run the place for 15 years. He blamed changing public habits (staring off into space on the bus with iPods in their ears, rather than reading books, using laptops in coffee shops, staying home and surfing the web)and the consolidation of the distribution industry.

Parallel to, or in lockstep with, the Magpie, Potvin published The Republic of East Vancouver, a fortnightly paper as quirky and unusual as him and his late store. Now, he has written a note to his readers saying he is taking the summer off and may not come back. In part, he said:

There are a number of reasons. The chief one is, I can’t find anything to say with conviction anymore. I’ve lost the thrill, I guess. I certainly wouldn’t claim to have said everything that needs saying, but for the time being, I would claim to have at least said everything I am able to say.

I’m exhausted. In the nine-and-a-half years The Republic has been publishing, as near as I can figure I’ve written and published 2 million words. That’s the equivalent of 25 average-sized books. I’ve also printed and distributed 1 million copies of the paper. Another round number emerges: stacked up, the pile would reach pretty much exactly 1 mile high.

(Running out of gas may be understandable, given what Potvin has gone through in the past few years. At one point, he was planning to stand for the Green Party in 2007 against renegade Liberal David Emerson, but criticism of an article he wrote in The Republic in 19922002 about 9/11 accused him of celebrating the attacks as a deserved outcome of American imperialism. Potvin denied it, but a national storm of controversy blew up and the spooked leader of the Greens, Elizabeth May, refused to sign his nomination papers. His short electoral career was over.)