Recently Published
The Magazine Eco-Kit
In this kit we offer a collection of ideas and best practices that many publishers may adopt as their
own. Read more
Awards & Recognition
2008 | Nicole Rycroft named in Quill & Quire’s CanLit 30, recognizing the 30 most influential people in the Canadian publishing and writing community |
| Nicole Rycroft ranks #8 among Canada’s 50 Most Influential People in Graphic Communication by Print Action | |
| Nicole Rycroft wins Oustanding Contribution: Individual in Canadian Boreal Initiative's Best of the Boreal Awards | |
2007 | BENNY Award Nicole Rycroft wins Environmental Innovator Award at Print Action’s Environmental Printing Gala |
2007 | Nicole Rycroft named one of Canada’s 50 Most Influential People in Graphic Communication by Print Action |
2006 | Nicole Rycroft recipient of a Gold Medal, Sustainable Living at Canadian Geographic’s Canadian Environmental Awards. |
2003 | Nicole Rycroft awarded Ashoka Fellowship for Social Entrepreneurship |
on the weblog
2008/11/18 | Riding for the Coyotes!
I work with some hard core biking freaks at Markets Initiative! There is really no other way to describe them...
2008/11/06 | Scientists show chemical released by trees in Boreal climates helps block suns harmful rays
German and UK scientists have discovered that trees help cool the earth by virtue of releasing a chemical that reflects sunlight...
2008/11/06 | Nicole Rycroft Wins Boreal Award
At the National Art Gallery in Ottawa last night, executive director Nicole Rycroft won the Canadian Boreal Award for Outstanding Contribution by an Individual...
2008/10/24 | Canopy Club: Stephen Lewis' keynote speech
Now, more than at any other time in history, our planet is in need of powerful champions...
2008/10/24 | FPAC warns of paper revolt among magazine readers
The public is increasingly drawing the connection between the paper in their hands and the method in which it was produced, the land from which it comes and the links to global warming, warned, Avrim Lazar, President of the Forest Products Association of Canada, at the American Magazine Conference (sponsored by the Magazine Publishers of America) earlier this month...
“We are taking action in making the world a better place for future generations. Being recognized for our efforts makes us want to work even harder.
We are proof that sustainability is not only good for the environment, it is good for business. That is why we have woven our sustainability goals into our corporate strategy.”
—Dick Kouwenhoven, President & CEO, Hemlock Printers
In the News
Nicole Rycroft wins Boreal award!
At the National Art Gallery in Ottawa last night, executive director Nicole Rycroft won the Canadian Boreal Award for Outstanding Contribution by an Individual. Our book campaigner David Leonard accepted the award on her behalf. Congrats Nicole!
Canopy Club
Highlights from Stephen Lewis keynote: click here!
HRH: “rainforests are the world’s lifebelt”
Prince Charles Urges Market-Based Solutions
“We need to not give up and somehow imagine we can just ‘adapt’ to climate change—because, believe you me, that is merely a convenient pipe dream, pursued by those who take refuge in the ‘business as usual with little green knobs on’ approach to the crisis we face.” The Prince of Wales called for “a sense of wartime urgency” to motivate the financial community to provide market-based solutions and to encourage potential investors to join in the effort to find ways of making the rainforest a new asset class. Read more (external link)
Landmark Conservation in Ontario Boreal Forests
Ontario Government Announces Plans to Protect Forests the Size of the UK
In the largest conservation commitment in Canadian history, the Ontario Government announced on July 14th that it will protect an area at least half of the province’s vast Northern Boreal forest from industrial development. Read more in Protecting Ancient Forests.
Wheat waste paper promises conservation gains
The Wheat Sheet: the first paper ever made in North America with wheat straw waste!
The June issue of Canadian Geographic magazine shows the incredible potential we have in Canada to take pressure off our forests. The Wheat Sheet promises huge conservation gains, could spark a brand new resource industry in Canada and could develop a new revenue stream for farmers. It's a win-win-win for the North American paper industry, farming communities, and our climate.
It's the best thing for forests since sliced bread! Find out more about making paper from agricultural byproducts in Second Harvest.
Read the Canadian Geographic editorial on the Wheat Sheet
See our ad that appears in the June 2008 Canadian Geographic
Download the backgrounder (PDF, 980 KB)
Download the media release (PDF, 230 KB)
Media Coverage
05/30/08
Markets Initiative develops new wheat-pulp paper
May 30, 2008 | Quill and Quire — Environmental group Markets Initiative has developed a new paper made from wheat straw waste that could eventually serve as an alternative to the regular paper made of wood pulp fibre currently used by book and magazine publishers.
05/23/08
Magazine printed on wheat sheet
May 23, 2008 | Canwest News Service — The latest edition of Canadian Geographic magazine is printed on paper made from wheat-straw waste using technologies developed by the Alberta Research Council.
05/22/08
Glossy magazine wakes up on ‘wheat sheets’
May 22, 2008 | Globe and Mail — For the first time in North America, a glossy magazine will be published on paper made from the pulp of wheat straw, a development advocates say could herald the birth of a new resource industry that would alleviate some of the pressure on Canadian forests.
05/21/08
Canadian magazine makes history using special paper
May 21, 2008 | CBC News — A Canadian magazine will be making history Thursday — Canadian Geographic is publishing its annual environment issue on paper made from wheat, a first for a North American magazine.
JK Rowling Awarded Order of the Forest for “Greening” Harry Potter Series
JK Rowling asked her international publishers to find paper that was free of ancient or endangered forests. With millions of her books now printed on ‘green’ paper, she’s helped take the heat off of carbon storehouses like Canada’s Boreal Forest. Read more in Media Room.
Markets Initiative played a crucial role in the environmental legacy of the Harry Potter series. Read more in the Markets Initiative - Harry Potter Timeline.
Photo: JK Rowling receives the Order of the Forest from Markets Initiative Executive Director Nicole Rycroft.
Our Mission
To protect the world’s ancient and endangered forests and biodiversity by shifting corporate demand—and use— to ecologically sustainable paper products and reducing overall consumption.
