More than a 20 million trees are cut each year to make new books. Imagine what that means for conservation and carbon capture through the planet!
More than ever before before, it is time that students realized the value of renting and reusing textbooks. Chegg.com, an online textbook rental company, has built a brand that encourages students to help replenish and protect the environment by renting, reusing and recycling their textbooks. Since 2007 when the partnership with American Forests began, Chegg has planted more than 3,000 acres of forests.
Another unique approach to follow a zero waste program involves downloading text books from the internet.
With more e-readers hitting the U.S. market, analysts are predicting a strong surge in the popularity of electronic textbooks used in high schools and colleges in time for school in the fall of 2011.
As major publishers like McGraw Hill and Prentice Hall begin to offer e text books, teachers are slowly beginning to make he transition too.
Online shops such as shmoop.com sell a variety of e-books for the Amazon Kindle as well as e-book and study guide applications for the IPOD touch.
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Universities should definitely help students buying e-readers. This technology will help a lot in the future
Getting students to re-use textbooks only works if the professors do not require a “new edition” every year. Since they (the professors) get paid a royalty on the books that are sold (for which they are the author), they have the incentive to update every year and require new books every year. More than 50% of my new texts were deemed worthless each year as I tried to sell them back to bookstores.
I know this, but I love books! there is nothing better like reading from a text book, i feel so bad about these trees!!
damn i will have to control myself and be more practical!!
Cheryl
Give the Amazon Kindle or similar e-reader a try, they take a bit of getting used to at first but even my die-hard paper book loving wife has been converted.
Its all about money, publishers and retailers make more money when the book is in an electronic format. Electronic books have their advantages, but they do more harm to the environment then printed books. Around 10%-30% greater impact. “M Enroth, Environmental impact of printed and electronic teaching aids. Vol 36 2009″