Green Books 1: Sharing Books

Anyone who reads a lot must be aware of the amount of paper that is used in making books! How can we reduce this environmental impact?

The public library is perhaps the best known form of large scale book sharing. Libraries offer access to books for people who otherwise couldn’t afford them. Writers whose books are borrowed from public libraries in the UK are supported through the Public Lending Rights Scheme.

Bookcrossing is a fun way to share books. This international website and real-life project revolves around people leaving books in public places for other people to find. Each book has its own unique number and can then (theoretically at least!) be tracked as it travels the world! Bookcrossing Meet-Ups offer a chance for booklovers to discuss andshare books without the worry of them possibly disappearing without trace.

Many coffee shops, pubs and community centres have shelves of books that people can borrow, or buy for a very small price.

I often swap books with my Mum and with some of my friends, which always leads to good conversation even though we don’t always agree about what we like and dislike!

Charity second hand bookshops in the UK offer a cheaper alternative to the high street bookstores (and often a better choice for those of us with eclectic reading tastes!). Quality of the books can vary and where a public library would get rid of books that are too battered, some charity shops have no such concerns – but this can mean good bargains! It’s good to take your books back to the 2nd hand shop after you’ve finished them so someone else can enjoy them.

There are also a lot of second hand shops run on a business basis, including online. You can sell your books online at Green Metropolis, which offers you the option to either make a bit of money for yourself or to raise money for a variety of charities including the Woodland Trust.

So plenty of ideas there for sharing books to cut down on their carbon footprint (and to save a bit of money too!) Please feel free to share your ideas in the comments section!

The next post will look at how the publishing industry can reduce its carbon footprint!

(This series of posts is based on a similar series i wrote for Brighton Blogger in 2012).

As ever, bold text contains hyperlinks that take you to other webpages where you can read more.