7. Educate your clients.
Many companies today are concerned with producing print materials and packaging made with sustainable resources. IBM, Coca-Cola, and Mc-Donald’s are just a few major businesses making an effort to publish shareholder reports on 100-percent recycled post-consumer content. But not all clients are familiar with “green” design and printing processes. You may find that you need to act as an ecofriendly project advisor.

8. Practice what you preach.
Set a good example to convince others to follow your lead. Consider incorporating these methods:

• Conserve ink use by determining whether print projects need to be full color. Could a two-color design suffice instead?
• Maximize ink staying power by substituting a Pantone color for metallic inks, which tend to degrade. (This reduces VOC emissions, too.)
• Avoid wasting paper by designing to standard press sheet sizes (e.g., 23 x 35, 25 x 38, 26 x 40, 28 x 40). If a job is large enough, your printer can order a special sheet size from the mill. Since paper is sold by the pound, this approach can also save your client money.

9. Offset cost with creativity.
Some environmentally friendly products may be a bit more expensive. It’s important, however, not to view pricing issues as constraints. Instead, think creatively to help balance benefits with costs.

Design multifunctional projects—e.g., selfmailer/ program combos—to economize when using more expensive paper. Also, combining projects whenever possible is wise; one idea is to print business cards and postcards from the same recycled paper. In the long run your clients may save money, and they’ll also be honoring the environment.

10. Know industry standards.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) mandates that federal agencies must use uncoated printing and writing papers containing at least 30-percent post-consumer content. Coated and commodity papers must contain a minimum of 10 percent. Consider using these guidelines when selecting paper for your projects, too.

Become familiar with other industry-issued standards. Important stamps of approval include the emblems of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and Chlorine Free Product Association (CFPA). For these symbols to appear on products, they must meet specific standards determined by the International Standards Organization (ISO).

11. Evaluate projects individually.
The first priority in design is to create an appealing, functional piece of work. “It’s imperative to do good design from an aesthetic standpoint,” Scalin says. But he also urges designers to consider options that will leave behind less waste. “Lots of what’s designed is thrown in the trash. Using recycled materials is necessary because so much is thrown away.”

If a client won’t switch to paper with a higher percentage of post-consumer recycled content, try finding a way to reduce the number of pages used instead. You might also recommend different paper types for different sections. For example, some publications use high-quality coated paper for advertisements and uncoated paper with higher postconsumer content for editorial sections.

12. Stay informed.
Being environmentally responsible means staying current with new products and practices. Check out the following to see what others are doing to help keep our quality of life at a premium:

Conservation technology

• Waterless presses
  Water washable inks eliminate VOCs from the printing process. www.waterless.org
• Windmill energy
  This alternative energy source produces nonpolluting, wind-generated energy to manufacture 100- percent post-consumer paper. Mohawk Paper is a leader. www.mohawkpapers.com

Special interest groups

• Compostmodern
  This conference premiered in 2004 and is aimed at environmentally conscious designers/artists. www.aigasf.org/compostmodern/compost.html
• Business for Social Responsibility
  Annual conference where designers can meet, see, and hear from business leaders concerned with social responsibility issues. www.bsr.org/ bsrconferences/index.html
• Graphic Alliance
  Join a community of socially conscious designers. www.graphicalliance.org

Making a commitment to practice environmentally responsible design can be challenging, but it’s doable and highly rewarding. Starting today will help ensure a healthier quality of life for tomorrow.