23.Nov.2010 Do you want your directories back?
What happens when you try to deliver unwanted directories back to Yellow Pages headquarters:
“It’s is a fire hazard that you’re creating here”, said the Yellow Pages Montreal spokeswoman. You couldn’t make it up!
Meanwhile, two directory publishers sued Seattle because they didn’t want to let residents decide if they wanted to receive business phone directories (read the [...]
12.Nov.2010 The USA leads the way in binning the book
Acknowledging the inefficiency and environmental cost of mass-produced phone books, US regulators are granting permission for telecoms companies to stop mass producing residential white pages.
Below are edited extracts from a November 11 AP dispatch written by reporters Michel Felberbaum, Samantha Gross and Peter Svensson:
In the past month , New York, Florida and Pennsylvania approved Verizon [...]
06.Jul.2010 Should directory publishers pay for the cost of recycling?
On the day that the Local Government Association (LGA) kicks off its annual conference, with cost cutting in this ‘age of austerity’ no doubt one of the highest priorities, news comes from the US that Seattle City Council is weighing up its options to address ‘wasteful phone book distribution’.
From implementing a centralised opt-out facility to [...]
21.Jun.2010 Yellow Pages: Please stop wasting stuff!
Americans are rebelling against the totally unnecessary waste created by phonebooks, so why aren’t we??? We might not see mountains of directories like the one below in the UK but you do see them piling up at the entrance to flats and strewn down streets.
The directory publishers in the UK argue that people can opt-out if they want [...]
20.May.2010 75 million directories for only 6 million users – the numbers don’t add up!
Today BT became the second major directory in the UK to announce it will reduce the size of its phonebooks. Another victory for the ‘Say No To Phonebooks’ campaign? Of course! But there is more to this announcement.
The article goes on to explain that 6 million people in the UK don’t have access to the internet. Is that who [...]
26.Mar.2010 Say No To Phone Bawks
In the same week that we announced the results of a competition and survey we ran with school children about unwanted phonebooks (75% think they should be delivered on request only, by the way) we received an email with some excellent creative work from St Mary’s school in Folkestone. They did a brilliant job of finding an use for unwanted [...]
15.Mar.2010 Small change, Big impact
On Friday, Generous.org.uk covered the news that we’ve exceeded 10,000 signatures on our ePetition. It’s great to get recognition from a site that says its about ‘finding small ways to change the world in a big way’. We couldn’t think of a better way to describe the ‘Say No To Phonebooks’ campaign!
Drilling down a little deeper on [...]
08.Mar.2010 International Momentum Grows
As the number of signatures on our Downing St ePetition climbs to almost 8,000, its worth pointing out that unwanted phonebooks aren’t just causing waste problems in the UK.
In Australia, green bloggers are claiming, “Phonebooks are heavy, thick, and mostly unwanted due to the arrival of the on-line phone directory and mobile phones! When was the last [...]
01.Mar.2010 Councils wage war on pointless phonebooks
The Local Government Association (LGA) has called on householders across the country to wage a war on needless phone directories as they take note of the ‘Say No To Phonebooks’ campaign analysis that revealed it costs £7.5m a year for taxpayers to clear up the mess of phonebooks. You can read the full release here where the LGA explains that the ’£7.5m [...]
25.Feb.2010 Going, going, gone
Earlier this month, Yellow Pages announced it was going to reduce the size of its directory for the first time in 40 years. A result of reduced listings and increased environmental concerns no doubt. Yell also claims that ‘its reduced height and width means it will be small enough to fit through standard size letter [...]
