Alternatives to paper made from wood fibers
Paper, unfortunately, is made primarily from wood fibers from trees. More than 50% of the world's deforested forests are processed into books, newspapers, cartons, cardboard, or even, quite simply, toilet paper. The "tree wear" of each individual can even be converted into a yearly calculation. In Germany, for example , in 2010, each person "used" an average of about three trees. Everyone. Even small children! Therefore, every few seconds, an unimaginable area of forest disappears worldwide.
Too much deforestation is taking place!
While some of the processed wood comes from the forestry industry, i.e., from areas where so-called commercial forests are cultivated, "forests" are artificial-looking forests in which all trees are the same size and thickness and are lined up in regular sections like toy soldiers. But elsewhere, in Canada, Scandinavia, and Southeast Asia, for example, natural forests are being felled, including trees several hundred years old. Forests that (still) represent intact ecosystems and provide a home for endangered species such as grizzly bears, lynx, orangutans, and many other species. All this for a few sheets of paper that are consumed and often thrown away.
[ product-handles list="treewrap-allover, treenote-a6-bark-raw, treenote-a5, treewrap-allover-x-mas, treenote-a6"]
Trees produce oxygen
But trees aren't just important for wildlife; they're also important for us. Here again for all city dwellers: Trees are those cool things that not only look beautifully green, but also give us the air we breathe. Literally. Because trees convert nitrogen into oxygen. Without trees, we'd run out of breath. Given current global paper consumption, sooner rather than later.
It is also possible without paper – at least with significantly less
However, everyone can and should do their bit to prevent this from happening. A very important step is to simply avoid using as much paper as possible. This works quite well at home, as you can even type your shopping list into your smartphone, and when shopping, you can make sure that there's little or no packaging.
Plus , not every email needs to be printed and filed! There are digital information management solutions in the cloud that not only make work paperless but also easier.
Of course, we can't live without paper entirely. Handwritten letters, greeting cards, and even stylish notebooks and journals never go out of style, and no one has to do without them. Because recycled or tree-free paper is available.
Make old things new - recycled paper
Recycled paper is anything that is (almost) entirely made from waste paper. This saves a lot of wood and protects forests, and significantly less water and energy are consumed during production. True, recycled paper used to be gray and ugly, and people felt quite virtuous about using it. Today, however, recycled waste paper is almost indistinguishable from conventional paper and looks great.
Tree-free paper – how does it work?
Yes, there are many plants whose fibers are suitable for papermaking. These include banana plants and hemp, kenafa and cotton, tobacco , bamboo, and coffee plant fibers, and so-called bagasse, the fiber of sugar cane. All of these raw materials can be used to make attractive eco-paper. Of course, it's not quite as cheap as conventionally produced paper, but that certainly encourages people to think about consumption. At NIKIN, for example, we only use copy paper made from bamboo, as well as bagasse paper for our tree certificates —unbleached and with zero tree content.
We sponsor trees. Worldwide. With your purchase!
Because preserving our planet's forests is extremely important, we are committed to ensuring their continued existence in the future. The principle is quite simple: for every NIKIN item sold, we transfer a certain amount at the end of each month to our partner organization OneTreePlanted, a globally active, non-profit, climate-protection organization based in the USA. "OTP" conducts professional plantings of regional tree species several times a year at over ten locations worldwide. The trees are planted by many volunteers from local communities and by "OTP" itself, in places where they had previously disappeared for various reasons, such as agriculture, the timber industry, or due to forest fires or droughts.
“Your” tree with us
Where "your" tree will eventually be located depends on where the next tree-planting event takes place. However, you can quickly find out where planting is currently taking place via the "OTP" website and our Instagram or Facebook pages. You won't know exactly which "your" tree is, or even where it is located, but you will know that you have sponsored a young tree for the future of the Earth! That's why with every order from us, you will receive a Tree Certificate issued in your name, officially making you a tree sponsor.
After all, we ourselves work largely digitally, so you'll receive your invoice from us via email. If you're interested in using tree-free paper, you'll find some links here that provide information and also introduce you to the types of paper available for purchase!
> http://www.conservatree.org/treefree.html
> http://truegreenpaper.com/tree-free-paper/
> http://techalive.mtu.edu/meec/module17/bleachedpaper2.htm
> https://www.ecomall.com/greenshopping/etreefree.htm
