Sustainability in the publishing industry: Digital catalogues on the rise at Budrich

Sustainability in the publishing industry

Sustainability in the publishing industry is often considered solely in terms of a few production factors, such as paper selection and environmental certifications. However, a crucial decision in the conceptual phase is whether products like books, magazines, or promotional materials like catalogues should be printed at all. A more sustainable alternative to the latter is the transition to a digital catalogues and marketing material.

This is evident in a recent study by the Organization for Rapid Climate Action (ORCA). They compared the carbon footprint of printed and digital publishing catalogues and concluded that, in terms of sustainability, the digital publishing preview clearly takes the lead.

At Budrich, we are also moving towards digital previews: For each catalogue, we carefully assess how many print copies are actually needed. As a result, we have reduced the print run of our current Spring Catalogue by 91% compared to the last autumn catalogue, opting to focus more on the digital marketing.

By the way, our digital catalogue is available on our webshop, whose server operates on 100% green energy.

 

Do you’ve any questions regarding sustainability in the publishing industry or sustainability at Verlag Barbara Budrich?

Don’t hesitate to get in touch with Daniela, responsible for our sustainability activities.

 

Header image: unsplash.com / quokkabottles