http://www.care2.com/greenliving/seeing-the-paper-for-the-trees.html
Seeing the Paper for the Trees
My nephew must have been just 3 when I told him paper was made of trees and he laughed at me. Well, maybe he didn’t laugh at me but he did giggle because I am his “silly” aunt. But in this instance, in a public restroom where I urged him to only use one paper towel to dry his tiny hands, I was totally serious. (And by the way, now that he’s 5 he can tell when I am being silly so we don’t have these kinds of mix-ups anymore.)
Paper is something near and dear to my heart because I spent the first major hunk of my career working in newspapers. As an avid recycler and general hater of waste, I could often be found trying to convince my fellow newspaper men and women to please recycle and by the way, please do not waste paper by printing out something that’s only four lines long. Or don’t print something out then leave it on the printer for hours, because obviously you didn’t really need it did you? Then there were the piles and piles of newspapers that stacked up on desks around the newsroom. And because I can tend to be sort of obnoxious sometimes, I’d usually say something if I saw one of those stacks of newspapers being dumped into a regular garbage can. If I had a quarter for every time someone said to me, “You’re in the wrong business for someone who’s so worried about wasting paper,” well I’d have a couple of bucks at least.
What made me think of this was that this week, after a little over a year working at Care2, I decided to empty the paper recycling bin under my desk. Considering that I used to empty my recycling bin every couple of days in my old job, the fact that it took me over a year to fill this one felt like something worth celebrating.
Obviously we don’t trade in a lot of paper at a Web site, but I do feel proud that I only generated one smallish box of paper in a whole year. One thing I almost never do is print things like e-mails or memos. I keep any documents I might need later on my hard drive with a digital copy backed up on a CD. I also use a notebook made of 100 percent recycled paper, and write on both sides. Much less wasteful and less messy than a bunch of pieces of paper strewn around my desk.
For tips on making your office more eco-friendly, read 7 Green Office Moves. But above all, remember what paper is made of. Even my nephew knows that a forest full of trees is preferable to a bunch of scattered paper in a landfill.
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5 comments
add your comment »I feel your frustration. I work in what is supposed to be a "green" office, and I'm probably only one of a handful of people who actually recycles (not just paper, but plastic and aluminum as well). Since I work at night, only the cleaning person sees me picking through garbage cans to pull out what is recyclable and put it in its proper container. Oh, if more people cared ...
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Thanks Nadya. I couldn't have explained it better myself.
But to whom do you give the credit for your desire to be a giver and not a taker?
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Our children certainly need to know where things come from & the cost to the environment for all that we use. Though aside from recycling, we all need to be more aware & proactive about what we choose to purchase. On top of the that we must let the various companies we buy from know that less is more when it comes to packaging products & that where-ever & whenever possible they should use recycled material for the packaging process. Beyond that I also make it a habit to call the catalog companies who send me their catalogs I don't want or need & tell them to take me off their mailing lists. Anything to save all those trees in anyway we can is crucial. Paying bills on line is yet another way to save them, plus the money on stamps & the gas to get the payment sent there too!
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As a teacher, even with the best efforts in place, I see lots of wasted paper. We recycle paper/cardboard in my class. I want to show the kids just how much their efforts mean. Does anyone know of a good website or source of translating a bag of paper to a part of a tree?
Thanks
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I support your cause and I feel your pain. Teaching our kids the truth about where things come from (not just paper and trees, but meat and cows for instance) might make the world of difference when it comes to the habits they keep and the future of this world.
When it comes to paper towels, I find them fairly useless and at home I always use a dishcloth that we simply rinse after use in the dish washing liquid or wash with the clothes when necessary.
When it comes to public restrooms, I don't dry my hands. I sometimes wipe them on my pants which is a little low-class, I know, but is saves trees and electricity either way and no one notices once your out the door anyway.
There are so many little ways to save the oldest souls on our planet...
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