Paper Because... - Paper In Our Lives

A lot of places worth going to don’t get a signal, and hopefully never will.

Even self-confessed technology junkies are starting to see the advantage of a bit of alone time away from their gadgets to reconnect with own imagination and achieve a bit of Zen.

All this social media might be making us less social.

Bringing in the mail is one of the few things we all still have in common.

Good design still matters.

Learning is more rewarding on paper.

Only tracking your finances online is a good way to lose track of your finances.

Over dependence on technology might be making us less intelligent.

The cloud can put all your files at your fingertips, just so long as you have a printer.

It's easier to learn on paper. With computers, smart phones and eReaders, many people are reading on-screen. And while there is no question about the convenience or scope of the information available online, experts are discovering that if you are trying to learn, in some cases it is easier to do so using paper.

Sometimes a paper trail is the only way to find what you're looking for. Paper is easier to mark up and review, two features that make paper significantly easier to organize and work with. Be that as it may, people are embracing the concept of paperless in various aspects of their lives. Some of the drawbacks are the lack of physical records and communication proof in the event there is a problem, and an increase in identity theft related to online information exchange.

It's one of the most recycled products on the planet. Mass acceptance has helped make paper the most recycled product on the planet. In fact, more than 63% of paper used in the U.S. was recovered from recycling in 2009 according to the American Forest & Paper Association. This was more than any other material: only 35% of metal, 23% of glass and 7% of plastic is recycled, according to the EPA.

Well-managed, FSC certified forests guarantee that future generations will be able to experience nature, not just read about it. Forests are one of the world's greatest resources. And, thanks in part to the adoption of responsible management practices by companies like Domtar, which understand there is a social component to good forest stewardship, this precious resource – and its inhabitants – will be around to be appreciated by generations to come.

No matter what color ink is printed on it, EarthChoice® paper is always green. Domtar EarthChoice® is the largest family of environmentally responsible papers ever assembled, it includes a range of papers certified to the standard of the Forest Stewardship Council™ (FSC®), the highest standard for responsible forest management in the world and designed for all kinds of end uses – from business and publishing to design and printing.

Opening a nice envelope is surprisingly exciting. In today's "e" dominated society, the fact that someone has taken the time to sit down and write a personal note to you is an experience like few others. Somehow, paper seems to make a sentiment more formal, more sincere, more real.

A résumé is a summary of your professional career, not a blog about what you had for breakfast. Despite all of the technology available to help you with your job search, most employment experts still recommend that you have a paper version of your résumé on hand. With paper, you get to choose everything interviewers see and how they see it.

Paper means that you mean business.

According to a recent poll conducted by Doremus and the Financial Times, 60% of the senior executives they surveyed across North America, Europe and Asia said that when they want in-depth analysis, they turn to print.¹

New customers are worth much more than the price of postage. Direct mail continues to be one of the most widely adopted and effective methods of generating new and repeat business in North America. Any type of company, small or large, can benefit from a direct mail piece, which can be as simple as a targeted letter printed in-house or as elaborate as a professional brochure, postcard or catalog.

The mail carrier is getting a little pudgy. Correspondence by mail may be traditional but that doesn't make it a bad thing. It remains an effective, reliable and often more official method of communicating than e-mail. Getting something in the mail elicits a tangible emotional reaction. In other words, we actually look forward to getting a pile of letters and flyers, and enjoy sorting through them to see what they have to offer. Not to mention, that nice mail carrier that drops by every day (who you might notice is getting a little thicker around the middle due to the lightness of his mail pouch).

You want more status, not status updates.

For all of their boundless possibilities, there is something missing in Facebook, Twitter & Co. that you can only get through a personal meeting. Your best marketing tool is always yourself.

Memories are more fond on paper. A memory is something you hold in your heart. But thanks to paper, you can also hold it in your hand. The tactile experience that comes with a memory on paper is part of the richness of that memory. And while the medium may become worn or damaged, and the ink on the page may fade over the years, handwritten letters, printed photographs or homemade crafts will never become obsolete, incompatible or inaccessible.

It'll be remembered longer on paper. A number of studies have been conducted on the efficacy of learning on screen compared to paper, and it has been proven that paper is a better tool for fully assimilating information; ranging from the ease of speed of visually/spatially locating content on a printed page compared to a screen, to the distractions of reading online, and the functionality of a screen-based document compared to a printed version.

Well-managed, FSC certified forests give wildlife more private places to "populate." The North American forest is home to thousands of species of animals, birds and insects. The best way to ensure they continue to thrive and do not join the growing endangered list is to protect their habitat. And the best way to do that is to engage in responsible forest management practices certified by independent third parties, such as the Forest Stewardship Council™(FSC®), whose mission is to safeguard the forest so it can continue to benefit all stakeholders for generations to come.

Underneath all our wireless streaming, hands-free technology, we're still people. Things on paper, whether it be a favorite book, a handmade birthday card or even our first ever pay check, can deliver some of the most definitive experiences in our lives. The fact they are printed lets us enjoy them for as long as we want to, even if it’s just to look at them one day and remember where we were back when.

Well-managed, FSC certified forests help protect plant species, wildlife, and the increasingly endangered North American manufacturing job. Domtar, with its commitment to sustainability, actively contributes to safeguarding our natural heritage while helping protect an equally important and dwindling resource – the U.S. and Canadian manufacturing job. There are currently over two million people working in the forest products paper and printing industries in North America. These jobs rely on a healthy, thriving forest, one that will be able to continue providing trees for raw material to make paper for years to come.

If the Rainforest Alliance is comfortable supporting Domtar EarthChoice® Office Paper, you should be really comfortable. The Rainforest Alliance is one of the leading environmental organizations in the world, dedicated to conserving biodiversity and ensuring sustainable livelihoods by transforming land-use practices, business practices and consumer behavior. Domtar is proud to have Rainforest Alliance support for the forest management practices that are used to make the Domtar EarthChoice® line of papers, the largest family of environmentally responsible paper on the market today.

This post is a bit of rant, really, about the impermanence of our information, today, and it considers the paperless myth and the hidden costs to our society. As a historian, my work depends on archives and libraries; as a teacher, adopting the Iroquois proverb about taking care unto the seventh generation, I want to see that future historians are able to continue to delve into the past, our past. Speaking of the seventh generation, it really is a myth that the paper industry will destroy the planet’s green by wiping forests from the face of the earth–quite the opposite, in fact. And, finally, shunning paper creates a real problem and inequity in our society–even cheap technology costs more to purchase and operate than paper! Furthermore, our youth and society at large lose something when they do not slow down long enough to take the time to read and write with paper. It effects our brain and our thinking.
Read more, here: http://erikafranz.wordpress.com/2011/03/22/a-paper-vs-digital-rant/

Erika Franz, 2/8/2012 7:02:53 PM

Today I went to an estate sale and bought a 95 year old 4th printing copy of "Mr Britling sees it through" by H.G. Wells. It's in pretty good condition, it has that old book smell, and it was once owned by an actual robber baron. Electronic books don't get as cool as that!

Elliot Murray, 10/23/2011 10:55:37 PM

At the end of each day while on overseas missions working with teacher organizations, I would recount the day's events in a Moleskine journal. Written in pen to start with, some words and phrases scratched out and written over, this pleasant task would often accompany my evening meal. The journals of these voyages have all been transcribed by way of computer but the results are printed and kept on paper in binders. The next step will be incorporating all of the stories, along with photographs, into a self-made book, perhaps by way of Blurb. The computer is very helpful in all of this but the origins and the end product are or will be produced on paper.

Tim, 10/6/2011 1:12:01 PM

Tim, 10/6/2011 1:10:49 PM

I am a watercolour artist and I paint on Paper. I also write letters to friends that I love and little children paper chins, so much fun!

Smooth as silk, white as milk, bumpy and rough, there is never enough...paper.
Paper for painting on, singing out a song, shouting with joy, an origami toy, all for the love of paper.
Cutting paper snowflakes, paper lanterns and paper chains, so much fun we've just begun, all because of paper!

Bev, 9/22/2011 9:27:15 AM

O R A G A M I

lisbeth koelker, 9/4/2011 9:04:14 AM

There is nothing more precious than to receive a hand written note, letter and home made card ending with I Love You. As time have passed, I bring out those letters, home made cards and notes--I hold in my hands those who I cherish, all because of paper.

Koren

Koren, 7/18/2011 9:54:42 AM

With my fellow calligraphers, we celebrate the written word...ON PAPER! Our personal histories, our memories are often captured on paper. Letters are treasured...who will treasure emails or hard drives in the future to 'remember' past events? Yet the hand written letter, the personal note, the greeting cards signed with love...we all have a collection of them. Keep the paper love flowing...write a note this weekend...on paper! by hand!!

Nan DeLuca, 6/10/2011 8:58:43 AM

Paper is white gold. It has a figure of nature and we have to preserve it for our later generations.
Rahman, 9/06/2011 12:30PM

seyedrahman, 6/9/2011 2:57:28 AM

I love paper too, especially paper that feels good and that moves with you when you're reading and lets you shift position.

Conversely, after working zombie-like due to the rigidity of digital screens, and being constantly exposed not only to plastic but to whatever else emanates from computers, e-readers, and digital screens over the last 26 years, I can barely drag myself to anything remotely digital if it isn't a necessity.

Thanks for helping educate me and others about some benefits of paper. Now can you access research about the relative health benefits and deficits of paper and electronic devices?

Kitty, 3/31/2011 10:37:17 AM

Would like to know if there is such a material as a flower pot made out of paper that will absorb water and still hold moisture without disintegrating?

stephanie, 2/18/2011 12:55:50 PM

The smell of paper when you open a book you can't wait to loose yourself in, the feel of it when you are lost in thought and caressing it's surface, the brilliant pigments that pop from it, the expressions shared on it when you write with your favourite pen sweet somethings, it's all priceless to me.

I'm in-love with paper!

Kellie, 2/17/2011 1:46:03 PM

Kellie, 2/17/2011 10:25:10 AM

Paper,

I first stumbled upon your website after viewing one of your e-commercials on Youtube, and nonetheless, I was intrigued. After perusing through, and gaining a better understanding of what your message is, I completely agree. It never dawned on me that throughout the years, with all of the new technology such as Blackberrys, I-Pod Touches, E-Readers, Scanners, and now as banks urge their customers to go "paperless", I see the severity of how important paper really is.

Paper is not something that can be deleted or destroyed in a power-out, it is something that can be read regardless of whether or not your computer LCD monitor will display it. Paper is a physical form which can be copied and stored in several physical locations, there is no worries of data loss or storage, you can store paper anywhere you want, free of megabyte use charges or risks of your personal documents being instantly copied and spread out via the wonders of the world wide web. So yes, that teenage hacker who decides to make his way into your email account and read all of your "paperless" bank statements, or even your heartfelt love emails to your wife, has absolutely no chance against the simple and effective means of something that can be delivered directly to your mailbox... paper.

Due to the widespread technology craze that has been going on, paper has now become one of the most personal means of media possible. This is actually indeed very good for the small population of paper users. When applying for a job, employers of companies both small and large are now even urging their potential future employees to email a resume or fill out an online application. So, when the rare paper user decides to mail in an envelope containing a fully equipped resume, with a cover letter and their business card attached, he or she will stand out far beyond all of the average Joe's who decide to Ctrl + C & Ctrl + V their MS Word Document. Even on a personal level, writing a good old fashioned love letter and taking the time to go to the post office and pay for postage to mail it to their spouse or partner will always surpass a run of the mill "I love you" text.

All in all, I love what you are doing here paper, and as I sit here in tears of hypocrisy writing a paperless post, let it be known that you have my full support. Support your fellow paper users before we crumple this old form of media for good.

Best,

Daniel Altuz

Daniel Altuz, 11/13/2010 10:54:06 AM

Paperdude,

I am exactly the same way. I didn't think people like me existed. So glad to meet you. Everyone thinks I am crazy for saving newspapers. They keep saying the news is not current after a day but I think the articles and information is valid years later. Newspapers are encyclopedias of information.

I am an architect who recently started my own line of greeting cards (www.tastement.com) because I feel there is still something so special about sharing a greeting/thought on paper.

Seema

Seema, 11/8/2010 1:38:16 PM

In a world filled with digitized memories PAPER is the one thing that will always be there. I wish I could write this note on paper and not on this website ....

Jake, 10/26/2010 6:20:54 PM

I've saved every newspaper I've ever received. I've built an addition to my house to store them all. Some people think I'm crazy, but I say, "crazy like a fox". When I need to check something out, none of those computers for me. I have newspapers. Same with all my bills and credit card statements. Store them all. I buy extra shoes just so that I have the proper archival storage tools (shoe boxes) to keep all those in. I buy old cars and stack them with the shoe boxes keeping all those wonderful paper receipts, need I say, "forever"? The comfort level of having "my friend paper" watching my back for over 30 years of telephone bills makes me sleep at night with a sleep people who get "e-statements" will never know.

I expect my grandchildren will continue to maintain this vast paper collection that I've acquired. It's part of my legacy to them. A vast, unsearchable, unsortable mound of data that can never be stolen from them.

Rock on Paper, because, you know, "paper covers rock"!

PaperDude, 10/26/2010 11:35:14 AM

I have been writing about a letter a week to my parents since I went college in the fall of 1972. They have saved every letter. Some day that written record will go to my three daughters - who will experience the events of childhood and so much more as I saw it -- as it all unfolded.

Doug, 10/14/2010 1:08:17 PM

To do lists & "Thank You" notes. My world would be chaos without them. LOVE LOVE LOVE PAPER!

Hillary, 10/7/2010 1:16:27 PM

Paper lasts! We're a conservation studio for fine art and historic works on paper and we have occasion to handle sheets more than five hundred years old - if it's important it should be on paper.

T.K. McClintock, 10/6/2010 9:28:52 AM

I like to make "to do" lists at the beginning of each day in a notebook to keep me on track and organized. It's right there in front of me and I don't have to close any windows on a computer to look at it!

April, 9/25/2010 1:24:14 PM

Paper keeps me organized - I've tried but don't like using the task list on my Blackberry to manage my to do's. I am sticking with paper!

Kathy, 9/25/2010 10:51:48 AM

We save our paper after it's been been printed for our kids to draw on, paint on, cut up, etc. We then save their "art" in a binder to look at later. All humans still have "wheels" for feet at this point - maybe they know something we don't!

We love paper in our home.

Christina, 9/24/2010 8:28:33 AM

In my 7 year old son box lunch... to wish him a nice day!

Marie, 9/23/2010 12:03:16 PM

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PAPER because