Thursday, February 14, 2013

Printing & Paper vs. E-Waste

The past few years, people have been trying to get the point of recycling across everyone's heads and being environmentally friendly. But not everyone really cares to follow it. We have so much stuff  made from recycled things nowadays but what about when it goes into the art world? As technology grows, we look to finding new ways to recycle everything. So in the design world, what about printing or doing everything electronically?

We often go for what's easy for us. For example, paper wise, we can either go buy a book or read it electronically. We still send out cheques or do online banking. We always send e-mails instead of letters now. Most things are available electronically rather than having it on the old fashion way of paper. But what's the cost of having things electronically? How do we recycle that? It's said that electronics are environmentally costly to make (with lead, mercury, arsenic, gold and silver), suck coal-fire-powered electricity to run and create a multi-ton and toxic waste. Are killing trees really worth poisoning the world? I would rather have things done with paper than everything be electronically. Also, it's personal preference as well. Whatever is easy is the first option. It kind of makes the society lazy too. I personally do online banking instead of wasting paper for monthly bills because its quicker and easier and more time efficient.

I think everyone could go on talking about being environmentally friendly on and on and on but we would all be stuck in the middle because there are cons and pros to both sides. One doesn't kill trees but make toxic waste and the other side kills trees but they are more recyclable to produce new products paper wise. Feel free to share opinion on this!

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