How should OLIKA reduce its emissions?
In our climate report, we have identified five ways in which we must work. We have already made changes within our own business, such as switching to fossil-free electricity, sorting rubbish, avoiding paper prints, only traveling by train and the like (see the full list of what we have done below). What remains for us is to work with our partners and reduce emissions together with them. It is about everything from illustrators and authors to printers and distributors. It is not as easy as we ourselves do not have direct control over their emissions.
Which climate measures does OLIKA work with?
Our goal is to follow what is known as the "Carbon Law" and halve the climate impact of our operations by 2025 and reach net zero by 2030. A first stage goal is to reduce the climate impact by 20% by 2023. To achieve this, we have identified the following five areas .
1. Replace new paper in printed books.
From 2022, we only print on recycled paper and every time we reprint titles, we replace them. Now we have more than half of our books in recycled paper.
2. Map and set requirements for subcontractors in book production
In this point, it is about placing increased demands on printers, on transport companies and on distributors. It is not the easiest, but we hope that we will soon have more actors to choose from, actors who also want to reach net zero as quickly as possible.
3. Map and set requirements for subcontractors in the creative process
This is about freelancers and collaboration partners, such as photographers, filmmakers, writers, illustrators and designers. It's not the easiest either, but we work to inform and encourage change.
4. Mapping and environmental class requirements for transport
This is what we are working on, and it is both about transports from printing shops to warehouses and from warehouses to the end customer. Here, more and more good alternatives have appeared that put the renewable fuel in focus.
5. Climate compensation and annual climate analysis and follow-up
We must do our climate analysis together with an independent party every year and compare with previous years. We must also be transparent with our results and report our measures and challenges. The more of us who want to change, the faster it will go.
What has OLIKA implemented so far?
We have been working with climate measures for many years, here is the list of what we have done in 2022, since we did our climate analysis.
We are switching to a greener alternative across the Baltic Sea!
We switch to DHL GO Green Solutions when we ship our books from the printer across the Baltic Sea to our warehouse.
We are switching to recycled paper!
Oddly enough, doing it right costs more; recycled paper is about 20% more expensive than new paper from felled trees, why is that?
We tell you in each book where the paper comes from!
What is the company, the paper mill, and the country and city where the paper is made? We want to lift all paper mills that, like us, want to change. It also makes it easier for you, as we want to choose sustainably, to find the books.
We are working to make the Swan renewable (and fossil-free)!
If a book is Swan-labelled, we want it to be included that it was printed with fossil-free energy. The Swan is not there yet, but we hope it will be soon. So that it becomes even easier to know why one should buy a Swan-labelled children's book.
We produce a checklist for a GREEN and sustainable book
We want to help everyone who borrows and reads books to ask questions that drive change in the right direction. The more people who ask questions, the faster the industry will change. Knowledge is power!
We work to produce recycled paper that is also Nordic Ecolabelled
FSC is about traceability, and that a paper comes from sustainable forestry. But that is not enough, it says nothing about how production takes place, how timber or paper is transported, or what energy is used.
We work to ensure that the printing houses have 100% renewable energy
We are not there today, but we continue to work towards it. Today, our print has a distribution of 60% renewable and 40% fossil. That has to change.
We are developing an education in climate analysis
We collaborate with close to 200 different authors and illustrators and other freelancers who also need to change together with us. More knowledge about how a business is analyzed and which measures lead the fastest forward.
We ensure that our distributors use fossil-free energy
They do that today, but they can push even more so that the transports also become fossil-free, we are not quite there today.
We are increasing the number of partners for fossil-free deliveries
In our store, we want to offer all customers the option of fossil-free delivery.
Electricity, waste sorting and minimal printing
The electricity in our offices comes from renewable energy sources. We only use Nordic Ecolabelled paper and only print on paper when necessary. We happily sort waste!
OLIKA loves vego
We always offer vegetarian food in our books. We have been doing that ever since the start in 2007 and here we are unique! When we offer food or organize trainings and events, we also serve vegan food and encourage our partners to do the same.
Travel and transport
We are fly-free and stay on the ground and we encourage those we partner with to do the same. Trains, buses and taxis with renewable energy if we use a car.
How can our books be recycled?
In each book there is a text that encourages giving away or recycling. Read it with the children and they will also learn how a book can be recycled or recycled.
"A book has a long life! The best way to recycle a book is to give it away! Preschool, school, friend, neighbor, local library or second hand - the possibilities are many. If you still want to throw the book away, there are two different ways. If the book is Nordic Ecolabelled, you sort it as a newspaper. If the book is not Nordic Ecolabelled, remove the cover and sort it as combustible. The pages that remain are sorted as newspaper.
