Model Letter of Commitment

What follows is our Press's commitment to implement policies that, among other things, help phase out the supply of old-growth forest products and phase in recycled paper. Interested parties should feel free to adopt or modify this letter to fit their own needs. There are hundreds of businesses (including 3M Corp., Home Depot, Mother Jones Magazine, Dell Computer Corp., Ikea, Levi Strauss & Co., Patagonia, and more) in Canada, the United States, Europe, and Japan that have developed similar wood and paper purchasing policies. For further information, please contact the Production Manager at Cornell University Press.

August 2001

To Whom It May Concern:

University presses are concerned about the future of the world’s remaining ancient forests. Logging is the leading cause of deforestation, and the United States is disproportionately responsible due to our voracious rate of consumption. With only five percent of the world’s population, we consume twenty percent of the world’s wood products. Sadly, no more than six percent of America’s old-growth forests still remain and eighty-five percent of these remaining stands are threatened by on-going or planned human activities (such as logging, agricultural clearing, and mining).

As a result, university presses are making a group commitment to implement policies that will facilitate the global conservation of old-growth forests and ensure that presses are not contributing to the destruction of these irreplaceable natural treasures.

As part of this initiative, we are writing to inform specific suppliers and printers of the purchasing preferences of Cornell University Press. The Press procurement policies must be fully implemented by May 1, 2003 and will be based on the following guidelines.

1. Purchasing preferences will be given to post-consumer recycled products and products made from agricultural fibers.
2. For any papers that contain virgin wood, purchasing preference will be given to paper that has been independently certified by the Forest Stewardship Council according to strict ecological criteria.
3. Out of concern for the long-term health impacts of dioxins and persistent organic pollutants, purchasing preference will be given to chlorine-free products.
4. Strategies aimed at conservation and efficiency (such as e-mail, dual-sided copying, recycling, etc.) will be implemented to minimize overall office consumption of fiber by 25 percent.

In support of the need to protect ancient forests, university presses also commit to encouraging other publishers and printers to develop similar strategies and policies. Preserving ancient forests requires a commitment from all companies. 

If you have any questions about this initiative, please call the Press's Production Manager at 607-277-2338, ext 235, or Erin Johnson, Green Press Initiative, at 301-438-3927. Cornell University Press is one of the leaders in environmentally responsible printing among the university press community. 

Sincerely,

Cornell University Press