In keeping with the aims of the Book Chain Project, we have created the Design Guide to help all actors involved in the design decision making process to make informed decisions about the materials and / or processes they are using. The Design Guide covers a number of different materials and processes and scores them based on their environmental and health & safety or labour impact, as well as their recyclability. In 2022, we updated the Design Guide to include emissions factor data for five key materials and processes.

January 2024 update: the The German Publishers and Booksellers Association (Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels) Sustainability Working Group (IG Nachhaltigkeit) asked the Book Chain Project for permission to translate the Design Guide into German. They have done so, and have made minor changes and edits where they feel it fits their German-speaking audience. We have made this version of the Design Guide available too.

In keeping with the aims of the Book Chain Project, we’ve produced this guide to help our publishers make informed decisions around the design, purchasing and production of their books, magazines and journals. It shares an overview of the situation today, looks at some of the common misconceptions, charts the new developments in this area, and presents good practice from other sectors.