Ogden Publications' Green Initiatives

To date, here are the projects and initiatives that Ogden Publications has completed to save energy and waste less.

Paper

• Mother Earth News and Capper's use 100 percent postconsumer recycled paper. Natural Home uses 80 percent postconsumer recycled paper, and all other Ogden titles use 10-30 percent postconsumer recycled paper. We constantly look for ways to improve the percentage of recycled stock while maintaining high production quality.

Production

• All titles are printed using 28.7 percent soy-based inks.
• We use computer-to-plate (CTP) technology to eliminate film.
• All titles use a 'soft'-proofing process online versus traditional hard-copy proofs.
  • This reduces our carbon footprint from mailing proofs back and forth as well as what to do with unrecyclable proof pages.
• Instead of mailing CDs or DVDs to printers, we e-mail files and mailing labels.
• We predominantly use digital photos versus film and slides.

Distribution

• Our circulation manager has streamlined the amount of copies we print of each magazine so we waste less.
  • Mother Earth News has not recycled ANY copies from its last three issues.
• When we have leftover copies of old issues, we recycle them and/or shred them to use as packing material for products.
• We participate in Barnes & Noble's green promotion sponsored by Green America.

Physical

• We offset all electricity used at our Topeka and Minneapolis offices as well as the electricity used to print all 10 of our magazines with renewable energy credits (RECs). According to EPA, this purchase helps avoid carbon-dioxide emissions similar to that produced by nearly 158 average passenger vehicles or 120 average American homes for one year.
• We currently are undergoing a professional energy audit to see what other steps we can take to save energy.At our Topeka office, we upgraded lighting ballasts and lights to save energy; a bonus is that the building is brighter.
• Solar tubes supplement the lighting with natural light.
• We added insulation to the roof.
• Many of our employees live outside of Topeka and Minneapolis. We encourage carpooling and provide designated carpool parking spaces.

Supplies

• Both the Minneapolis and  Topeka offices use postconsumer-recycled copy paper, Post-Its, note pads and more.
• We reuse packing material and cardboard for shipping products and other items.
• We replaced all Styrofoam cups with glass mugs.
• Employees are encouraged to use "real" dishes and silverware, instead of disposable products, for their lunches and snacks.
• When new equipment is needed, our IT and fulfillment departments work to choose more energy-efficient models.

Around the office

• IT has changed the power settings on our computers to further reduce energy usage.
• The company provides each employee with a recycling bin at their desk for paper.
• We also have recycling bins throughout office for aluminum cans, cardboard, chipboard, paper, plastic, steel and glass.
• We compost coffee grounds and food waste from the break room. Gardeners can take home the compost for their personal gardens.
• We offer recycling drives for employees to bring in used home computers, tennis shoes, cell phones, other electronics, etc. to recycle. Ogden pays for any associated fees.

Marketing

• We have significantly reduced our direct mail efforts over the past two years. Instead, we use e-mail and online methods to promote subscriptions and merchandise.
• Our auto-renewal subscriptions allow readers to save even more on their subscriptions and reduce paper waste. The subscriber receives the discount when they subscribe online and use a credit card. Instead of receiving regular renewal notices in the mail, they will receive an e-mail reminding them that the subscription is coming due, and another one when the credit card is charged.
• We have consciously moved away from as much printed merchandise as possible. Popular new product offerings include e-books and e-plans devoted to specific topics.
• For any printed material, we send the artwork electronically versus mailing CDs/DVDs.
• When feasible and available, we use recycled paper for printed pieces.

Editorial

• The editors use a laptop and projector to display layouts on screen for the entire group to comment on/make changes, which reduces paper waste significantly.
• We use Adobe Acrobat’s PDF features to the fullest – the Commenting feature saves paper waste and allows for more accuracy/less confusion during the editorial proofing stages.
• For titles with off-site editors, we choose to teleconference versus have in-person meetings.
• For researching and fact-checking purposes, we now house information with direct links in databases versus keeping paper files.

Events

• We partner with “green” events, including speaking on sustainability issues. We also promote these events to our readers and online audience.
• We work to accurately forecast what merchandise and supplies are needed at each show so we are not shipping too much (and releasing unnecessary greenhouse gasses during shipping).
• When we travel to shows, we make group flight, hotel and rental car (if necessary) arrangements to get the most use out of a single, fuel-efficient rental car. Alternately, we try to stay as close to the event as possible so attendees can walk or take public transportation.