A Weekly Column
Environmental Interest is Growing —And Your Readers are Information HungryAccording to a 2007 Gallup Poll, 77 percent of Americans say they
worry "a great deal" about the environment. And the average
citizen is not only concerned, but actually takes action in support
of those beliefs. Ninety percent recycle, 83 percent have taken concrete
steps to reduce energy use, and 83 percent are trying to use less
water. That same 83 percent consciously avoids environmentally harmful products,
and 73 percent have bought environmentally beneficial products. Forty
percent of Americans have donated money to an environmental group,
31 percent have signed petitions, and 20 percent have attended meetings. People are interested in the environment, and are even willing to
go out of their way to support it. But in many cases they lack the
basic information about the environment, or about how to make green
lifestyle changes. A joint Hamilton College/Zogby International poll
in 2007 found that, despite An Inconvenient Truth, average
American high school students think that climate change will have
no consequences for them in their lifetime, and are unable to pass
a simple quiz on its causes and consequences. A 2007 Yale poll found that 96 percent of Americans agree that it
is important for homeowners to use energy-efficient appliances and
94 percent think that auto manufacturers should be required to make
more fuel-efficient cars. But these same citizens say they're unsure
how to transform their commitments into action. According to the BBC, Americans recently interviewed on the streets of Washington, D.C. expressed frustration at how to better the environment, saying they felt there was little they could do." Indeed, people aren't always able to grasp the impact of their personal choices; some 44 percent of those surveyed agreed with the statement, "What I do does not impact the health of natural habitats."
EarthTalk Can Help EarthTalk, begun in 1996 in E - The Environmental
Magazine, answers readers' burning questions on a wide range
of environmental topics -- from rainforests to recycling, and "from
the global village to our own backyards":
Public demand for environmental information is growing right alongside
the booming market for green products. Readers want the issues sorted
out for them -- the facts presented succinctly, in plain language,
and with clear action items. EarthTalk provides thoughtful, concise answers that give readers solid and balanced environmental information -- plus contact information for relevant environmental organizations, companies, websites and government departments-so readers can research topics further if they so choose. EarthTalk also provides insights, ideas and tips on how one can "green up" his or her own lifestyle-and helps people plug into broader efforts to safeguard the global environment. Your Advertising ConnectionEarthTalk will also help you attract a very strong
group of advertisers, both from your local market and from
national buys. The environmental marketplace is one of the fastest
growing consumer markets in the world. EarthTalk will
appeal strongly to the growing number of people interested in natural
foods and personal care products, hybrid vehicles, organic gardening,
"eco-travel," energy-efficient appliances, alternative medicine,
nature books and other environmentally friendly products and services. According to The New York Times, when taken together these
categories account for a $230 billion market. And Natural Foods
Merchandiser reports that natural food and personal care products
sales grew 9.7 percent in 2006 to reach $56.7 billion. Organic produce
sales topped $3 billion in sales in 2006, up 11.5 percent from 2005.
Natural personal-care product sales grew 18.4 percent, and organic
personal care 21.1 percent. Organic pet food and treats is now an
$85 million market, up 31.2 percent over 2005. Nationally, the number of like-minded advertisers with substantial budgets to penetrate these local markets is growing. Let EarthTalk help create a draw for you for these ready advertisers.
How to Begin Receiving EarthTalk There are several ways that EarthTalk
can be received:
About E - The Environmental MagazineE - The Environmental Magazine is a bimonthly "clearinghouse"
of information, news and commentary on environmental topics and concerns.
E reports on all the key and emerging issues: water
and air quality, food safety, energy choices, toxic health threats,
waste recycling, climate change, the impacts of development and sprawl,
the state of our oceans and fisheries, and much more -- all with contact
information so people can investigate topics further or get involved
in environmental protection efforts. E also provides practical information on a range
of "Green Living" topics-healthy and eco-friendly food choices,
the environment and personal health, "eco-travel" trends
and destinations, environmental "house & home" topics,
personal finance "with the Earth in mind," and green consumer
product trends-as a service to readers who seek ways to "green
up" their personal lifestyles and habits. E has drawn considerable recognition for its style
and content. E has garnered 14 Independent Press
awards and nominations for editorial excellence, and three citations
for covering top issues "overlooked or underreported" by
the mainstream media. E's articles are also widely syndicated to the national
media. In calendar year 2007, over 100 articles from E's
pages were selected for republication in other newspapers, magazines
and on-line services. Distributed primarily through featurewell.com,
E articles achieve ample syndication and significant
readership numbers well outside E's core readership. E also publishes the website, emagazine.com,
which now enjoys between 600,000 and 800,000 visitors per month. Along
with E content, emagazine.com features
weekly environmental news and commentary. E has also published two books and is working on
a third. Feeling the Heat: Dispatches from the Frontlines of Climate
Change (Routledge) profiles actual world "hot spots"
where people are already coping with the consequences of climatic
disruption. The book was an expansion of an earlier E Magazine
cover story and was favorably reviewed in many venues, including The
New York Review of Books. You can read about it and/or order
a copy for yourself here: www.emagazine.com/feelingtheheat. E's third book, a question-and-answer book based
on its popular EarthTalk column, will be
published in 2008, again by Plume. To view our current issue, visit E online at: www.emagazine.com.
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