THE MAKING OF THE SEPTEMBER ISSUE
ELLE has dedicated its biggest issue of the year to sustainability. From paper stock to becoming more eco-aware as a team, here are just a few highlights
What went into creating our biggest issue of the year
RETHINKING THE PAGES
The September issue, always a calendar highlight, is traditionally the biggest of the 12 ELLE magazines we publish each year. That means a lot of spruce, pine and fir. An issue of this size would typically use 1,OOO trees’-worth of paper to print. We wanted to change this. So, in a first for ELLE, we’ve used 1OO% recycled waste paper to print this issue. To help us do this, we looked to German mill Leipa GmbH, which has an office in the UK and collects more than 1.2 million tonnes of paper waste each year to convert into materials for magazines and packaging.
WASTE NOT,WANT NOT
Championing the reduce, recycle, reuse mantra that’s served as a cornerstone of our sustainability ethos throughout the making of this issue, Leipa GmbH sorts and de-inks all the paper it collects on site, with very little going to waste: ink residue is processed into its power plant to generate electricity for the recycling process and surrounding area, while all water used is purified and returned to the river it came from.
LOOKING FORWARD
If hearing all that doesn’t fill you with hope for the future of the paper industry, it might also put you at ease to know that three trees are planted for every one cut down, and our forests are growing at a rate of about 1.5 million football pitches a year. Aiming to create a closed-loop economy, Leipa GmbH’s process ensures we get the most of resources that already exist – something we should all strive for.
SOUNDING BOARD
ELLE was helped on its journey towards becoming a more sustainability-minded team and business by the fashion authority Emelie Gintzburger Akerbrant (above right). With 15 years in the business, Emelie led public relations for brands including Lanvin, Dover Street Market and Saint Laurent before co-founding consultancy company Akerbrant, advising businesses on how to reduce their impact on the planet. She has worked with the London College of Fashion and Kering.