Ecographik
A sustainable commitment
For a desirable communication
It is from now on essential for each company to strongly position itself in favour of the protection of our environment.
Your communication actions, if they are well controlled and advised, can play an effective part in this collective effort which must become a natural reflex.
We have created an ecological chart of commitment for a “sustainable” communication, which will also remain desirable.
Integrating this chart into a print project means making sure, without even having to think about it, that the approach is durable and respectful of the environment.
We called this commitment:
The Ecographik™ approach
A hybrid term, Ecographik™ combines 2 words that are the founders of any approach concerned with communications that take into account environmental considerations.
Integrating Ecographik™ into a production and reflection process means first of all asking the question about an alternative: is it possible to do this another way? And even more so, is it possible to do this better, in terms of supports, production costs, as well as in terms of ecological impact?
Ecographik™ raises the question of a useful and sustainable communication that is under control.
Ecographik™ raises the question of printing responsibly, from the effect of the printing industry with respect to CO2 emissions and including the rest of the process involved from an environmental point of view (paper, ink, manufacturing, delivery).
It is worthwhile considering these responsibilities on the scale of production.
What applies to paper can also be applied in part to the Web.
Ecographik™, Ecologik, Economik.
Ecographik™ methodology
Recommendations
According to the content of the support, the Ecographik™ commitment combines the choice of materials, the ethical questions and the requirements of the client.
These 3 criteria, from now on inseparable and complementary, make it possible to propose a responsible ecological answer that respects the requirements of the client.
Development of the supports
According to the needs and priorities of the communication strategy, it is a question of proposing solutions adapted across environmental concerns and economic constraints.
Contents and supports… Web and/or print…
An approach which guides our necessary reflection on the balance between “all paper” or “all Web”.
The Web as an alternative to print must integrate the parameter of accessibility and the right to information. The recurring but reasonable use of paper must guarantee the preservation and the maintenance of our forests.
From the client brief to the creative brief, the choice of supports, printing and techniques used are part of many strategic elements at the service of a sustainable communication.
Manufacture
Paper, format, printing… The technical expertise linked with printing make it possible to design communication actions and supports that are committed and enlightened.
This was the reason for the setting up in 1998 of the label Imprim’vert with its real commitment – certainly perfectible – to a shared desire to reduce the environmental impact related to printing activities.
Some of our criteria:
- Proper elimination of dangerous waste: fixers and of plate developers and films, cleaning solvents, used damping solutions, ink boxes and toner cartridges, etc…
- Storage of dangerous liquids outside and away from working areas
- Abandoning known toxic products for other less dangerous products
- Better use of paper during the imposition and formatting of the machine
- More effective and fast piloting of the drivers for a methodical checking of proof copies and an optimal setting of colors
The choice of inks
For many years, offset inks have been the subject of scientific research to make them more respectful of the environment, to mitigate the constraints related to the damping solution and to be less toxic.
Several solutions exist, such as UV inks, vegetable inks, “waterless” inks, monofluid inks or water-based ones.
Ink should nevertheless be analyzed as a whole and not simply in its composition.
Its manufacture, its use (drying, cleaning, damping solution) and its elimination (recycling of the printed paper, incineration) must also be taken into account.
Packing and transport
Delivering in cases made out of recycled paperboard as soon as it is possible to do without plastic film; printing as close as possible to the point of delivery - at equal competence and prices… Some actions which do their share to contribute to the protection of planet.
A skilful management of time-tables and a special relationship with French printers makes it possible to achieve these efforts without additional cost.
Conclusion
It is easy to get lost in today’s forest of green labels and pictos, full of good intentions but sometimes clumsy (what to think of recycled papers that require 200% more water or the use of optical brighteners to bleach the paper?). In this jungle, the studio be-pôles has chosen eco-responsible partners and with them has built a real know-how: Ecographik™.
A single and universal solution which quite simply demonstrates good sense.
Ecographik™ actions
1 - Tara Expéditions
be-pôles supports Tara Expéditions, the polar scientific sailing ship journeying around the Arctic for one and a half years. The expedition is part of International Polar Year 2007-2009, a major partner of Damocles, the European scientific program.
At the crossroads of science, technology, pedagogy and communication, Tara Arctic constitutes a great human adventure whose objective is to sensitize the citizens of the world to the importance of an ecological equilibrium for their planet.
Tara Expéditions, for which we created the internet site, the styling, the brochure and the bi-monthly magazines, was the first to have benefited from the Ecographik™ label.
www.taraexpeditions.org
2 - Foundation Nicolas Hulot
The Nicolas Hulot Foundation for Nature and Mankind was created in 1990, and was recognized for its public interest in1996. A non-political, non-denominational,
non-governmental organization, the foundation’s purpose is to develop education about the environment.
It is about an educational, scientific and cultural commitment in the service of humanity’s heritage.
be-pôles gave its support to the “Ecological pact for the presidential elections of 2007” and has been making available its skills in communication, web and print to the Foundation for over a year.
3 - Verture
Verture, a people transport company, has a fleet of Toyota Prius, the least polluting eco-car on the market thanks to its hybrid motorization technology (electricity-gasoline). So that your car journeys have a neutral impact on global warming, Verture offsets each journey by buying carbon credits from Climat Mundi, specialists in carbon assessments, who can thus finance projects to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Verture offsets not only the emissions related to the car journey, but also those related to the transport and refining of the gasoline and the manufacture of the car.
4 - Colette
For ten years, Colette has been selecting the best of the trends. Ethical fashion is part of this. The Beautiful and the Good can make a pretty marriage. At the request of Nadège Winter (Mme Communication chez Colette), be-pôles has interpreted its motto “Vive l’Environment by Entertainment!” in a fun and pedagogical way.
Through fixings paper, recycled paperboards, inspired by the 50 commands or ecological actions of the daily newspaper, illustrating the slogans of tee-shirts WWP, Colette and Be-poles affirm that “ Green is easy & funky” and GREEN IS IN.
5 - agnès b.
Concerned about its impact on the environment, agnès b. consulted be-pôles and integrated the Ecographik™ concept by reviewing all its printed elements, its stationary (Fedrigoni Freelife Vellum), of its packaging elements, from now on created using reclaimed fibres, and even corn starch for the bags of its Homme range.
