What paper-based publications could be eliminated in favour of online versions?

When it comes to conservation, the most important of the three Rs is 'reduce'. The Registrar's office is looking to reduce the volume of paper that gets consumed. Are other areas ripe for change?

Comments

[danielle]

Get rid of the Course Calendars. Other universities stopped printing these years ago.

I was dumbfounded to learn that Western wastes so many trees, not to mention money, releasing this info in print form.

[ProDryers]

see http://www.prodryers.com for more information on hand dryers vs paper towels. Many studies have been done on hand dryers vs. paper towels. However, most studies are outdated in comparison to today's hand dryer technology. Today's technology proves that with hand dryers vs. paper towels, the hand dryers are the clear winner in every way. Paper towels cannot be recycled, consume precious resources, and use excessive landfill space. 20,000 gallons of water are polluted to make one ton of paper towels. 17 trees are consumed to make one ton of paper towels. A company named American Dryer makes the following hand dryer that can help lead the way to saving the environment. EXTREMEAIR® Hand Dryer With its patent pending technology, the EXTREMEAIR® is 3X faster - it dries hands completely in 10-15 seconds. This is accomplished with a powerful blast of warm air that quickly breaks up the layer of surface water on a user’s hands for quick removal and evaporation. While all American hand dryers save trees and reduce landfill waste - The EXTREMEAIR® uses up to 80% less energy than conventional hand dryers. The new GXT EXTREMEAIR hand dryer has been GreenSpec® Listed. This is an unbiased list of the most environmentally friendly products published by the editors of Environmental Building News. The EXTREMEAIR met tough GreenSpec standards because it conserves energy and reduces maintenance and waste. The EXTREMEAIR helps facilities qualify for LEED® credits. LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. The EXTREMEAIR helps facilities qualify for LEED-NC, LEED-EB AND LEED-CI Credits in two categories: EA Credit 1– Optimize Energy Performance EA Prerequisite 2 – Minimum Energy Performance

[Michael]

I don't like e-books, I prefer to read from an actual book and find it is actually easier to learn when you can thumb through a real book. Also I like the western alumni publications, some people think it is a waste so let them opt out of it and make an online version optional to those people.

[S]

I think Western should stop sending out elaborate alumni publications complete with full page gloss and coloured pictures. If the goal is to get people to give western more money than why spend so much money on publications that barely anyone reads. Not to mention how bad it makes the institution look from an environmental stand point. In the last month I have received 2 unneccessary alumni publications one at my london residence and another at my hometown address...WHAT A WASTE!

[Nicky]

It's not a publication, but getting rid of the paper towels in the bathrooms, like the Health Science Addition, and just have the electric air hand dryers. I find that if there is paper, I will use it instead of the hand dryer, and I suspect I'm not the only one. It's just a waste of trees and is unnecessary.

[Beth]

I do not want to have e-books for course materials. I have to read my computer screen enough thank you!

[Joyce Peralta]

Hi Stacey - Yes, Western is currently in the process of selecting a new president. Visit the Presidential Search website for more information: http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/president_search/index.html

[Stacey]

Is UWO looking for a new President to replace Paul Davenport? I saw an advertisement in the Globe and Mail.

[Karen Marshall]

Just to let you all know that e-books are being fully embraced by the publishing community as a cheaper, more effective way of disseminating information and Western Libraries is fully engaged. We have recently purchased 12,000 Springer e-book titles that are now available in our catalogue! For more information on Western Libraries e-books, check out the Western Libraries News at http://www.lib.uwo.ca/news/view.php?id=910

[George Jacob]

I don't think publishers will be very eager on switching to e-books. I think publishers did experiment with the idea in the early 2000s with having e-textbooks, but that didn't last for too long. The problem? Unlicensed sharing of software. Students are the population demographic most likely to share software, and mp3s. E-books will follow suit if they were available. Unless piracy laws are changed, publishers will be very hesitant to make this move.

[Nicky]

I think the e-book idea is fantastic, (although I really do enjoy having a physical library!) I also think that printing on both sides of handouts would be ideal, using recycled paper, and maybe selling cd's or dvd's instead of books, or as an alternative to books.

[Kim]

E-books! The university or the Council of Ontario Universities should negotiate for a deal to get electronic books fopr all sourses offered. This not only reduce the number of trees cut down but should help in reducing the cost of education. These days books are over $100 each and usually only about 50% of the book is required for the course.