Why We're Going Green

By Richard Stengel, Managing Editor

This is our third annual special issue on the environment but also a historic first: for this one issue, we've exchanged our trademarked Red Border for a green one. By doing so, we are sending a clear--and colorful--message to our readers about the importance of this subject, not just to Americans but to everyone else around the world as well.

In our environment issue two years ago, we declared that the debate on climate change was over and that the verdict was in: the world is irrefutably warming. Last year we showed how we all have a role in saving the planet, devoting our issue to 51 things that you can do to help alleviate climate change. This year, in an agenda-setting piece by Bryan Walsh, we roll up everything into one megaproposal, a kind of 21st century Manhattan Project, using carbon-trading, alternative energy and an efficiency surge to get the most out of every kilowatt we produce--all with the aim of winning the war on global warming.

We're following our own advice. Time Inc. is the industry leader in sustainable development, and we are the first U.S. publisher to measure the carbon footprint of our entire supply-and-disposal chain, from logging operations to landfill. We have increased the percentage of our paper that comes from sustainably managed forests, from 25% to 69%. We have asked our paper companies to reduce CO2 emissions at least 20% by the year 2012. And we're co-sponsoring a campaign called Remix to promote the recycling of our magazines. These efforts have been led by Time Inc. CEO Ann Moore and engineered by David Refkin, our director of sustainable development. We are also pleased to work with CNN's award-winning Planet in Peril series and Anderson Cooper 360DEG in our reporting on the environment.

This week's cover story was written by Bryan, our Going Green columnist and environment writer. He got a start on his beat when he was based in Hong Kong as a writer covering science for TIME Asia. After a stint as Tokyo bureau chief, he moved to the U.S. in 2007. His experience in Asia has made him particularly sensitive to the need to balance environmentalism with economic growth. Bryan's piece is our call to arms to make this challenge--perhaps the most important one facing the planet--a true national priority.

Richard Stengel, MANAGING EDITOR