Just thought I'd pass along three methods for improving the ecology that have worked for me and Gaiea. 1. You know all those wonderful little magazine subscription and product catalog cards that keep falling out of all your magazines? Or make it hard to read them? Well, I started the campaign to use those to do some good: we always hear about how there is an increasing supply of recycled paper, but not enough demand. Try taking all of those little postage-paid goodies and writing a feasable message on them, sending them back to the marketing firms or departments that might actually do a consumer preference survey. This only works with simple, short messages that don't cost the magazines or advertisers money (as recycled paper is cheaper to use than non-recycled paper for the cardstock), so don't add messages about cigarette ads, it won't get through. Some of the messages I and others have used (which were passed on to the Sierra Club & Greenpeace) are: (just use one) Please use Recycled Paper for these cards Why not use Recycled Paper for these? No Recycled Paper means No Business If you want my/our money, please use Recycled Paper for these cards We don't do busine$$ if you don't use Recycled Paper. Use Recycled Paper for these cards - it's cheaper. My company refuses to do business with firms that don't use Recycled Paper. USE RECYCLED PAPER USE CHLORINE-FREE RECYCLED PAPER <- less effective, two messages If you want our money. use recycled paper for these Remember, be polite but firm and send them in batches (save them up, get together with friends, use different inks of pens, crayons too (hey, kids!) ). This has worked with many national magazines in the US and Canada. 2. Same idea as 1. but for junk mail. Here, send back all non-recyclable materials and remove all identifying materials (names, zip code bars, anything typed or imprinted on that tells them where you're from). This also works quite well (the wierd thing is, I got the idea for this from the GOP, who for some reason sent me a donation request (yeah, right) with a mailing on recycled paper). I like to add the message: use recyclable cellulose windows if they have a plastic envelope window (write it on the offending piece). Remember, they pay the postage. 3. Get your local or large printer to do up stickers saying "Don't buy goods that use unnecessary packaging" and stick them on market shelves for the worst offenders. Give them to your Ecofemeinst friends. And follow their advice when considering what to buy. [This idea came from a guy on Compuserve] Remember, we all can change the world, it's not that hard, just spread out the work. :-) William Affleck-Asch | The above is my personal opinion and does not Seattle | necessarily reflect my opinions as Treasurer [EMAIL PROTECTED] | of Washington State NOW or other organizations.
