Two Sides, an organisation that promotes facts about print media’s environmental sustainability, launched its Colombian division on Monday 27th October in Bogota.
‘In Colombia the paper industry generates more than 80000 jobs and is responsible for 5.7% of the national GDP, a significant contribution to the country,’ said Isabel Cristina Riveros, Director of the Chamber of Pulp, Paper and Cardboard of the National Association of Entrepreneurs of Colombia-ANDI and Country Manager for the new Two Sides campaign.
According to Riveros, in Colombia, ‘Programmes for the responsible use of natural resources such as water, energy and waste in the country, have resulted in 49% of the paper produced being recovered. In joining Two Sides, we recognise the value of being part of a global organisation which is dedicated to demonstrating the sustainability of the print and paper sector.’
Martyn Eustace, founder of Two Sides, expressed his thanks to the Colombian team and for their great efforts in bringing together so many important players within the print and paper value chain. He added, ‘South America is globally important in the sustainable use of forest products and we welcome the membership of Colombia which follows Brazil which joined in 2013. We look forward to welcoming other countries from this region.’
Two Sides brings together: the National Association of Colombia, ANDI, through its Chamber of Pulp, Paper and Cardboard, the printing organisation Andigraf; Andiarios, representing newspaper publishers; Fundalectura, a foundation which promotes reading skills; Asomedios, representing all media channels including magazines, radio and TV and the Colombian chamber for books.
‘The role of paper remains essential in the life of human beings. From the time we wake up in the morning until we go to bed at night we have almost constant contact with paper or one of its derivatives, such as cardboard, cartons or soft papers. This makes paper vital for human beings and furthermore we realise the importance of paper in the building of citizenship and in social, cultural and economic development,’ said Riveros.
