(San Luis Obispo, CA - September 22, 2008) With four months to go before the 2nd Annual The Business of Green Media sustainability conference at Cal Poly, event sponsors represent a broad range of the industry including printers, packaging companies, press manufacturers, and suppliers. The conference takes place on January 22, 2009 at Cal Poly's Performing Arts Center and is hosted by the Graphic Communication Institute at Cal Poly and produced by SustainCommWorld.

The graphic arts industry see this as the year that the printing press manufacturers, traditional and digital, have come to realize that 'sustainability' is a selling point when it comes to getting the attention of present and prospective customers. Customers want to know what their vendors are doing to support the environment and deliver sustainable solutions. Heidelberg, a sponsor of The Business of Green Media, conference is taking a leadership role in letting the industry know what the company is doing to help protect the environment. For example, 'Green printing' is the focus of the new Sustainability Report from Heidelberg for the 2007/2008 fiscal year. It underpins Heidelberg's long-term commitment to developing solutions that limit the depletion of resources, reduce emissions, and cut waste.

Quote from Jim Dunn, President, Heidelberg USA,

"Heidelberg believes that the best way to achieve environmentally sound printing is to design and build equipment that inherently reduces waste, cuts emissions, and minimizes energy consumption--equipment that operates, in other words, with the high degrees of precision and efficiency that have always characterized Heidelberg products. This isn't marketing-speak. It's a checklist of quantifiable results. One reason why Heidelberg is in the forefront of environmental protection is that we have embraced it as a corporate objective since 1992."

Quote from Harvey Levenson, Head of Cal Poly's Graphic Communication Department

"Hewlett Packard, another conference sponsor, exemplifies digital printing press manufacturers' concern for sustainability. The 2009 conference is also going to address toner-based printing (wet and dry) as well as issues of inkjet printing on both the commercial and consumer levels.

"Packaging companies have an equal stake in supporting sustainability because they are being scrutinized by print buyers and the public about what they are doing to support sustainability. A leading executive of a large packaging company stated that last year they landed a $7 million account based solely on what they are doing in the area of sustainability--not based on price, quality, or delivery, but based strictly on their sustainability practices."

Quote from Steve Keyser, VP, Sales & Sustainability for Utah Paperbox

"As a company that has sustained 95 years in the folding carton and rigid box business, it's only natural for Utah Paperbox to take up a prominent corporate stance of sustainability as it relates to today's issues. UPB is a member of the Sustainable Packaging Coalition and in the process of achieving FSC Chain of Custody certification. This conference will put us in touch with like-minded companies. We support Cal Poly's Graphic Communication Department's efforts to bring us together."

Utah Paperbox (UPB is one of the 2009 conference sponsors.)

Others sponsors to date along with Heidelberg, Hewlett Packard, and Utah Paperbox are AdMail, Kodak, and Cal Poly's College of Liberal Arts, with others awaiting corporate approval

For information on becoming a conference sponsor and on sponsor benefits, contact Lyndee Sing of the Graphic Communication Institute at Cal Poly at 805-756-2645 ([email protected]) or Harvey Levenson at 805-756-6151 ([email protected]).
Registration for the conference begins Oct. 15 at www.BusinessOfGreenMedia.com. For information regarding registrations, contact Kathleen Kaiser at SustainCommWorld, 805-524-6970 ([email protected]).