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Fall

Running head: TACTICS BEHIND EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ON


DEFORESTATION 1

Tactics Behind Educating The Public On Deforestation


Elliot T. Schwartz
Antioch University

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TACTICS ON EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ON DEFORESTATION

Every time I get a piece of mail, I get a stack of unwanted junk mail. I often find
myself wondering, Am I the only one that cant stand this and sees it as an egregious
waste of precious resources? Its estimated that 100 million trees are cut down each year
to create 4.5 million tons of junk mail. If one Googles How do you stop junk mail?
youll arrive at the website for the Better Paper Project. Theres no question that junk
mail is tied with deforestation. The information distributed throughout their website
focuses very little on the problem of junk mail however it is highly informative and
provides great insight on the problem of deforestation. The Better Paper Project
effectively uses ethos and logos to capture their main audience magazine publishers
as well as create a sense of urgency in their secondary audience the public to protect
the environment using a combination of ethos, pathos, and logos.
For this paper, I contacted Frank Locantore, the director of the Green America
Better Paper Project located in Denver, Colorado. Considering this was the first website
that pops up with the search I entered, I thought why not focus on his organization and
see what his thoughts were on educating the public on the environmental impact of junk
mail by using rhetoric. It turns out that Mr. Locantore doesnt work on junk mail issues,
(personal communication, Feb. 6, 2015) instead he leads the Better Paper Projects efforts
to sell recycled paper to magazine publishers and instill a sense that the loyal followers of
these magazines should be environmentally cautious and want to read issues that are only
printed on recycled to paper. Mr. Locantore knows his audience well therefor knows what
his businesses genre and conventions are.
First lets get a better understanding as to what genre and conventions are. These
two concepts are dependent upon one another and are at the foundation for tactical

TACTICS ON EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ON DEFORESTATION

writing to persuade audiences. According to Kerry Dirks Navigating Genres, genres


matter because they shape our everyday lives (2010). They allow us to categorize
subjects and focus on their conventions. Think of a genre like a motor for a car. The
motor is made up of many little pieces that have specific duties. These different duties or
characteristics are what make up the conventions of genres. Considering The Better Paper
Project empowers the magazine industry to go green, (Green America, 2015) Mr.
Locantore classified his organizations genre under social and environmental
responsibility and the conventions as a combination of economic strategies and consumer
education and organizing (2015). On the Better Paper Project of Americas website, the
mission statement is clearly stated on the About section, which clearly establishes their
genre and the method of their conventions:
The Better Paper Project empowers the magazine industry to go green. For over
ten years, we've helped magazine publishers choose sustainable papers (recycled
and certified) and give them a leg up in the green economy through our special
promotions and other benefits. Explore our partners who help us protect forests,
climate and communities. Join now to start enjoying the economic and
environmental rewards of participating in the Better Paper Project. Contact us
with questions or for more information.
So know that The Better Paper Projects genre and conventions are distinguished,
lets take a look at how this group focuses their efforts to end deforestation by using one
of the most prolific tools an informed person has language! To effectively persuade
someone that there is a problem, one must have an argument. Crediting Everythings an
Argument, to be most persuasive, evidence should match the time and place in which

TACTICS ON EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ON DEFORESTATION

you make your argument that is to say, your rhetorical situation (pg. 396). The Better
Paper Project focuses on a current problem and has made a business venture out of it.
They honed in on a problem and dont immerse their viewers with too much
information (Loch & Cannon, 2014, pg. 4). Instead of bombarding the reader with too
much information, the Better Paper Project uses carefully constructed statements to
persuade their different audiences to purchase their product. These statements are either
specifically one or a mixture of ethos, pathos, and logos. These are Aristotles building
blocks of an effective argument. Mr. Locantore elaborated on his interpretation of ethos,
pathos, and logos throughout our interview. Oddly enough he believes that logic rarely
has anything to do when profit motives are involved (personal communication, Feb. 6,
2015). Profits may be the end all goal however focusing your efforts to gain capital by
ending deforestation wouldnt one think that it should be a logical endeavor to end
deforestation and persuade the consumer to purchase their product? Since deforestation is
such a problem and affects us all, it seems logical to put it to an end. Ironically, the
writing artifacts that I received from Mr. Locantore displayed all three characteristics
including logic!
Mr. Locantore provided three writing artifacts that demonstrated the different
ways the Better Paper Project uses rhetoric and educational techniques to target their
main audiences magazine publishers and the general public to buy paper that was
manufactured in a environmentally friendly way. These artifacts used ethos, pathos, and
logos to solidify the consumers idea that Green Americas Better Paper Project is the best
sustainably printed paper to buy. The first artifact Mr. Locantore gave me was a threeminute YouTube video about the organizations recycled paper mill that is located outside

TACTICS ON EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ON DEFORESTATION

of Chicago, Illinois. The video strong suits are its pathos and logos appeal. The credibility
has already been established by the organizations that back the Better Paper Project. The
description of the video provides insight to both the consumer as well as the publisher
that Better Paper Project is focused fully on supplying the public and private sector with
fully recycled paper to print on magazines and other paper products. The description on
YouTube video clearly states, This 3 min tour of a recycled paper mill outside of
Chicago, IL USA demonstrates some of the climate, water, and other environmental
savings by using recycled paper for magazines. Produced by the non profit Green
America's Better Paper Project (Better Paper Project, 2011). This allows both audiences
to rest assure, when theyre using the Better Paper Project Paper, it was produced in a
clean and sustainable fashion causing no damage to forests. The logic behind the idea
of using recycled paper to create more paper seems flawless and strengthens the nonprofit
Green Americas Better Paper Projects logos. According to Mr. Locantore, logic rarely
has anything to do when profit motives are involved, (personal communication, Feb. 6
2015) however when their secondary audience the consumer feels good about using
paper that causes little to no damage to the environment. Both audiences can appeal to
reason, and the idea of a well-thought-out and well structured position (Losh &
Cannon, 2014, p.44). Despite was Mr. Locantore says, Aristotles idea of logos is a very
valuable part to a strong argument. The video itself demonstrates other forms of
Aristotles ethos, pathos, and logos.
Throughout the video there is transcriptions on the bottom of the screen that
distinguish why their methods are so critical to sustainable paper making. The opening
sequence has a transcription that states the Better Paper Projects main business motive.

TACTICS ON EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ON DEFORESTATION

Recycled Paper For Magazines, (Better Paper Project, 2011) allows the viewer to
understand right off the bat what the goal is for this organization. The next slide is of their
product, the magazine Motorcycle, proudly states on their cover, This magazine is
printed on recycled paper. This mainly focuses on the general public. A monthly
subscriber to a magazine would feel better knowing that the damage that the magazine
they follow isnt harming the environment and further causing problems with
deforestation. In the background we hear Steve Smith, Vice President of Operations at
FuturMark (the paper mill) reading off of a script saying, you can feel good about
coming to work everyday and manufacturing recycled paper, (Better Paper Project,
2011) while a transcription runs along the bottom that reads Recycled Paper Protects the
Environment (Better Paper Project, 2011), solidifying the emotional tie with their
business model. Aristotles pathos perfectly ties in here. When the use of emotion in [an]
argument, (Losh & Cannon, 2014, p.44) is done, it builds human appeal focusing on
trigger emotions. As Losh and Cannon describe (2014), this works in visual arguments
and many online videos. The whole video continues to demonstrate different ways pathos
and logos appeals. Lets move on to the second artifact and see how ethos makes its ways
in to the argument.
The second writing artifact that Mr. Locantore provided me was a website that
was called the Environmental Paper Network, specifically the vision page for this group,
which elaborated on the efforts to end deforestation by using responsible tactics for the
pulp and paper industry. The website specifically states the Environmental Paper
Network began in 2002 as an unlikely alliance of organizations with very diverse
approaches to a common problem addressing the scale of the challenges and

TACTICS ON EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ON DEFORESTATION

opportunities for social justice and conservation presented by the expanding forest, pulp
and paper industry (Environmental Paper Network, 2015). This vision statement hits on
all levels of Aristotles rhetoric. Upon further research on the vision page I began to
notice that this filled the lack of ethos that the first artifact had. There is a direct
correlation between the Better Paper Project and the Environmental Paper Network in
fact the as Mr. Locantore declared, We created the Environmental Paper Network, to
build alliances and collaborations with other organizations and/or people that can help
augment our standing or fill in a gap where we may not have deep expertise (personal
communication, Feb. 6, 2015). This directly ties in with Aristotles concept of ethos. As
Losh and Cannon convey in Understanding Rhetoric certain kinds of peoplehave
[more] expertise, (2014, p.44) than others. This is why ethos is so important when
attempting to persuade a group or individual. Weve focused on the importance of the
Better Paper Project rhetoric to persuade their main audience the magazine publisher.
We see why when providing backing by other organizations it strengthens the readers
view on topic. In the pathos fashion we see how so many different groups care about this
problem. The website provides the names of these members. This connects them to the
public and makes them realize how important the problem is. The last artifact does that as
well.
The last artifact that Mr. Locantore gave me was an updated blog based of the
Environmental Paper Network website. This form of literature is updated weekly or even
as long as monthly that focuses on the problems related to deforestation. Photographs are
embedded on the website which provides an emotional tie-in. Photographs of monkeys
with saddened eyes stare in to the lens. These pictures help strengthen the emotional

TACTICS ON EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ON DEFORESTATION

connection by seeing the monkeys without homes. The classic polar bear on the melting
iceberg photo is the classic example of using this tactic to drive the problem home. This
is photographic though; it does not use words or literature to convey the message. Words
must hit home and be almost conversational and this last writing artifact fulfills that task.
As Lennie Irvin clearly describes in the 2010 essay What is Academic Writing, our
words on the page are silent, so we must use punctuation and word choice to
communicate our tone, (pg. 6) allowing a conversational backing. This is highly present
on the blog for the Environmental Paper Network. The audience for this blog is a
combination of consumer as well as publisher.
The blog not only informs people about the problems of deforestation but also
allows individuals to donate to the cause. Both individuals, publisher and consumer, can
rest assure when they donate to the Environmental Paper Network they are helping slow
and stop the evil ways of deforestation. The websites design is relatively simple. There
are six main categories at the top of the page. The largest category is donate. Its bold
green font stands out compared to the five. This method of writing attracts the readers
eye. Its hard not to notice the button. The individual might as why should I donate to
this cause? The credibility behind the Environmental Paper Network, is clearly stated
under the About section. Its tie is closely related to artifact two, which solidifies ethos by
crediting over 100 different organizations that back the Environmental Paper Network.
Pathos is fulfilled by the blog section, which provides different stories that are updated
frequently to keep the problem relevant. This blog is attached with different photos that
connect on an emotional level. Lastly, logos is fulfilled in this artifact by the know the

TACTICS ON EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ON DEFORESTATION

facts part. Logic fortification is established specifically by the fact sheets which has
three different PDF files that focus on:
1. Paper to protect the Plant understanding how recycled content in printing
and writing paper and all grades reduces energy, water, chemical use, pollution and
solid waste, while protecting forests. 2. Paper use Efficiency This EPN fact sheet
provides advice and real life examples of how to save money by reducing paper use. 3.
Social Impacts on the Paper Industry This EPN fact sheet focuses on the human impact
of fiber sourcing decisions, highlighting responsible and also controversial examples, and
provides recommendations to the industry, paper purchasers, and investors.
These facts are targeted to different audiences, although certain facts are more
inclined for others. For example the Social Impacts of the Paper Industry, provides
recommendations to the industry, paper purchasers, and investors, which would be the
target audience. Paper to Protect the Planet would be considered for everyone. The
everyday user of paper would want to focus on this logically. As we see here, the use of
rhetoric and language helps navigate the argument that the Environmental Paper Project,
which is a platform for the Better Paper Project, can stand upon to help strengthen their
argument.
The Better Paper Project uses rhetoric to establish an argument to their audiences
publishers and consumers however they are not extremists. Magazines, newspapers,
and other forms of paper media are going extinct. Many magazine publishers use online
or digital copies to get their issues to the public. This could bypass the purchase of paper
all together. The Better Paper Project isnt concerned with this currently; my assumption
is that paper will always be needed, not necessarily for magazines but in other forms. We

TACTICS ON EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ON DEFORESTATION

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might as well continue the trend using recycled paper. The Better Paper Project by Green
America will continue to use effective argumentative structure using Aristotles ethos,
pathos, and logos.

TACTICS ON EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ON DEFORESTATION

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Reference Page

Better Paper Project, (April 5 2011) Recycled Paper For Magazines: FutureMark. [Video
file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PyxlPRlsR8M

Dirk, Kerry (2010) Navigating Genres In C. Lowe & P. Zemliansky (Eds.), Writing
Spaces: Readings on Writing (pp. 249-262) In West Lafayette In: Parlor Press

Environmental Paper Network (2015) Environmental Paper Network. Retrieved March


10, 2015 from http://environmentalpaper.org/

Green America (2015) The Better Paper Project. Retrieved March 10, 2015, fro
http://betterpaper.ning.com/

Irvin, Lennie L. (2010) What is Academic Writing, In C. Lowe & P. Zemliansky (Eds.),
Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing (pp. 1-16) In West Lafayette In: Parlor Press

Losh, E. M., Alexander, J., Cannon, K., & Cannon, Z. (2014). Understanding rhetoric: A
graphic guide to writing.

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