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Strollerderby
Uh Oh. Kids Books are Killing the Planet
You walk to the park. You buy the right toilet paper. You cut out meat. You don’t just recycle, you reduce and reuse. But your efforts to live green might come into conflict with a certain truism of raising smart kids. All those books you stock their shelves with — so that the grow up literate and smart and destined for college? Those books have got a carbon footprint worse than you could imagine.
Even the so-called “green” ones. And the ones about rainforest destruction!
The Rainforest Action Network released a study today implicating children’s books in the continued destruction of endangered rainforests in Indonesia. In fact, the study found that the majority of the top 10 children’s book publishers has released a title that tested positive for tree fibers from Indonesian rainforests including, tragically, a book on endangered rainforests!
RAN examined 30 books for the controversially fiber and found that 18 tested positive. Children’s book publishers, as well as those printing color coffee table books, have turned to printers in China to contain costs. Even those publishers that have made public commitments to more environmental practices turned out books that contained fibers connected with the rainforests.
There are workable printing alternatives, according to RAN. But unregulated industries and inconsistent screening efforts aren’t working.
Unfortunately, the report doesn’t name titles that tested positive for the fibers. I’d love to know who to pressure or boycott. Of course, the safest way is to buy books used and check them out from the library. But then there’s this study to parse and keep in mind. Kermit the Frog was so right about the ease with which it is not to be green.
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Photo: RAN.org
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7 Comments
[...] Children’s Books are Killing the Earth [...]
Women Forced to Birth Without Drugs | Strollerderby commented on May 24 10 at 6:25 pm[...] study was small, it has proven damning from the children’s books industry and has received backlash from many parents aiming to raise their children with eco-friendly principles. ▶ No Responses /* 0) [...]
Children’s literature may be destroying the rainforest « The Writer's Spot commented on May 24 10 at 7:22 pm[...] study was small, it has proven damning from the children’s books industry and has received backlash from many parents aiming to raise their children with eco-friendly principles. ▶ No Responses /* 0) [...]
Children’s literature may be destroying the rainforest « The Writer's Spot commented on May 24 10 at 7:22 pm[...] study was small, it has proven damning from the children’s books industry and has received backlash from many parents aiming to raise their children with eco-friendly principles. ▶ No Responses /* 0) [...]
Children’s literature may be destroying the rainforest « The Writer's Spot commented on May 24 10 at 7:22 pmEric commented on May 25 10 at 9:11 amI would think books would be high on the list of things that can be reused. As long as you don’t ‘need’ this month’s ‘it’ book I would think you could provide more books than kids could read cheaply, and without buying new.
LR commented on May 25 10 at 9:16 amNot surprised by this finding. EVERYTHING we do directly or indirectly affects the earth. Like my earthy crunchy teachers of yesteryears said, “Best thing we can do for the environment is to live simply by being self sufficient and to use what is REALLY necessary.” But with the boom of Martha Stewart’s “Domestic Perfection” and the desired “Dream Lifestyle”, this simple, wholesome teaching just doesn’t seem to pan out in flashy, big is better America.
ALT commented on May 28 10 at 4:45 pmI agree, there is an abundantly available supply of used books out there–and I am still a fan of the library. But for those of you who just have to own new copies of the Harry Potter books for your collection, I bought all those thousands of pages printed on recycled paper from a company in Canada called Raincoast Books. http://www.raincoast.com/
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