By Rosie Mclelland, Graphic Designer at Genoa Black
This is a blog about paper, so I’ll try and keep it short (ish) and sweet (in abundance). I’m writing this as I’m surrounded by paper samples – some with a quilt-like emboss and some infused with cotton that is soft and velvety. Some may say my desk is messy…to me it’s a total visual feast!
I’ve often wondered why I gravitate to print, and I think it comes down to it standing still and taking on the wear and tear of time. It’s a direct archive of the time it was created, no software updates so it’s out of date and impossible to crash – although I suppose dropping it in a puddle might count? This sounds like I’m against change, I can totally rally with change, but I like the tangible record of version one, or two or three…
There’s an endless range of papers out there. And there’s a perception that paper with brown flecks in it is more sustainable, which can be the case, but let’s not eek onto the side of greenwashing. We should consciously make better choices and take the time to research because we care, not because we want to look good. Print works for brands; it makes an impact and literally puts you in the hands of your audience. If it works for brands, we should make it work harder for the environment.
Paper isn’t scary.
Deforestation, water usage and carbon emissions are hot topics on paper – and rightly so. It’s up to us to choose suppliers and partners who are responsible and transparent. For example, according to their website, Fedrigoni requires 100% FSC-certified pulp and aims to return 95% of water used, back to the environment. And, online GF Smith states they have a ‘zero waste to landfill policy’ and offer a paper where each standard sheet contains at least 5 upcycled coffee cups. And importantly, neither compromise on quality or creativity.
Not forgetting the designer (like me) has a big part to play too. Our role is to ensure we use just enough paper, no extra pages unless we have a very good reason. Eight extra blank pages for impact? Probably not, time to think again. It’s about choosing and using paper that does what we need with the benefit of reduced environmental impact, not picking paper for the street cred of being a greedy green goblin.
And sometimes, it can be a challenge to make the more sustainable choices when restricted by tight budgets and time frames. There are plenty of papers that are FSC certified which are very accessible, which is helpful when we can’t go as far as we’d like.
But it is easy. We can carbon offset paper or the whole print process, which allows us to track how much critically threatened forest has been protected – down to the metre! And the cost to do so, can be minimal.
By no means does carbon offsetting replace actual reductions, and it’s not to be used as a distraction. Realistically there are bigger contributors than a 28-page brochure, but if an agency (that’s us) in central Edinburgh can make a dent and offset the equivalent of the weight of a Lothian bus – why not? It’s the least we (and our clients) can do.
Paper is versatile, sustainable and creative – and it doesn’t have to be an environmental disaster.
And not forgetting digital, with the rise of AI and the water usage to cool down the computers, we are increasingly conscious of our digital environmental impact. Did you know you can measure the amount of carbon produced per view of each of your web pages? National Museums Scotland do this superbly.
But that’s a whole other article and something to research further…
