Free Notes Paper

I have figured out how to reduce the use of white paper and even how to have plenty of note taking paper, some of it free. Here are some of my thoughts about it, what I am doing and how to get the free notes paper:

Even though we are using computers for more and more things in our day to day lives, at work and for entertainment, to store information, paying our bills, conducting business, staying in touch and many, many more things, one of the promises of this technology was to reduce the amount of paper we will need to be using. This went so far to talk about a paperless office or society. You might have experienced that this is true in some cases to some extend, but in many cases it might be the opposite. This might be because of habits, the “feel” of an actual piece of material to hold in ones hands instead of looking at a screen straining ones eyes or due to the need of creating a paper trail.

Even at home, sometimes I need to print quite a bit and until it is right, even several times copies of the same thing. This made me wonder if, instead of throwing all this paper out there is something I can to about it.

Here are some of things one can do:

Print as little as possible. Even if using 100% post consumer recycled paper, the amount of energy going into its production, shipping, etc. is still large. If I have to print something often I do not all the pages of a document, so I just print the pages I really need.
Instead of printing out forms to fill in, see if you have or can get a version that can be filled in on the computer and sent by email or uploaded to a shared document space on the internet.
Keep two stacks of paper at your printer. One for new and one for used. Often only one side of a piece of paper gets used and printed on and eventually gets discarded, because it is a draft or there was some mistake. I have a tray for paper I can use for print outs for which it doesn’t matter if anything is printed on the back side. If you print a financial report and need to discard it, it would not go there, but gets shredded. When I know I print something that falls in that category, I just fill the printer with that paper. Make sure the right side up, which is different from printer to printer. Collecting the paper to be used that way stack them all with the blank side up.
Another nifty thing to do. One of my habits is to take notes, when I am on the phone, some ideas or making a list. Instead of using sticky notes, pads or similar I use paper that I can’t use in the printer anymore or that is printed on one side. I take a few of them, fold them in half and tear them right on the folding line. It so happens that the little desk cage has shelves that are exactly half letter size. That is where I stack them, all with the blank side up! This is also possible with notepad paper when only one side has been used.
Finally the free note paper as promised: Adding to your stack of note paper one can use junk mail. Many times white paper letter sized pages are printed only on one side. Instead of tossing it into garbage, I tear it apart as described above and stack it with the rest.

Besides reducing the use of paper in general and virgin paper specifically, some of these techniques also save on ink for the printer and the wear and tear to the printer. And, there is more uses of junk mail, if you get any at all. I’ll reveal that at another time. And, do you know how to reduce your junk mail? Well, one day I might just right a post about that.

Regardless, please be creative for reusing paper, for re-purposing it, like for gift wrapping, art projects, packing material, etc, and recycle anything left over.

What are your ideas!