The international organization for Standardization (ISO) has updated its guide (ISO Guide 64: 2008 Guide for addressing environmental issues in product standard).

The guide is intended for product standard drafters. Moreover, the drafters would be encouraged to understand environmental aspects and impacts related to products, and to determine which impacts can be addressed within product standards.

» Continue reading "ISO updates guide to greening product standards"

The governments of EU countries are planning to work together to better enforce the RoHS regulations in Europe.

Since RoHS laws came into effect in July 2006, A question has been brought up to Government that a lack of effective monitoring to enforce compliance with the laws, encouraging some companies to continue selling products with hazardous substances over allowable limits.

About this matter, EU governments are planning to improve the effectiveness of their RoHS monitoring and resources dedicated to it by adopting a cross-border model, following successful efforts by Nordic countries. The Nordic countries now have united their RoHS programmes and increased the depth of monitoring and reporting of non-compliances by sharing data cross-border and dividing the industries and products covered by RoHS between them.

The reporting of non-compliances by EU governments is also increasing and new cross-border RoHS monitoring collaborations are likely seeing more reporting on the outcome of their activities annually.

For further information, visit the Evertiq web site

More and more people are planning for a natural funeral as they plan their final journey.

The first natural burial site was opened in 1994 in Carlisle, northwest England, and now there are more than 200 natural burial grounds in the UK. Moreover it would seem that more sites are going to open.

Currently, most natural burial sites are simply green corners in traditional cemeteries managed by council authorities.

But increasingly landowners and farmers are realising the economic and environmental potential of transforming part of a forest or an unused field into a plot for those seeking to be eternally at one with nature.

For further information visit the Yahoo! web site

The United States government statistics show that consumer spending is falling sharply, and the retail sector is reducing jobs faster than other industries.

While consumers are, increasingly, factoring the environmental friendliness of products into buying decisions, green products nearly face a tough road to broader acceptability as the United States slides toward economic depression.

The declining economy will likely encourage companies to adjust their strategies to focus on cost savings inherent in their green products, whether through energy or water savings or improved gasoline mileage.

Companies are also facing difficulty to gain recognition for brands associated with the green products they market.

According to a recent survey, companies could do better by focusing their marketing on creating an emotional connection between consumers and eco-friendly brands.

For further information, visit the WBCSD web site

The new shop will use an estimated 45 per cent less energy than a comparable supermarket, and will deliver new jobs more than 90.

The eco store at Ballycarnane in Tramore will save 420 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year, resulting in a 30 per cent annual reduction.

The store will feature the highest levels of insulation in the building and recycle more than 70 per cent of the heat used in the store’s ventilation system.

Moreover, The building will feature a wooden frame with timber earned from sustainable forests.

There will be skylights to increase the level of natural light entering the store, while solar panels contribute towards powering the bank of cash registers. Also, an environmentally friendly carbon dioxide refrigeration system will be adapted to all refrigerators.

For further information visit the Irish Times web site

Efforts to tackle climate change could result in the creation of millions of new “green jobs” in the coming decades.

Changing patterns of employment and investment resulting from efforts to reduce climate change and its effects are already generating new jobs in many sectors and economies, and could create more in both developed and developing countries.

However, workers and their families, especially those whose livelihoods depend on agriculture and tourism would go on having negative effects by the process of climate change. Therefore, action to deal with climate change and its effects is urgent, and need to be designed to generate decent jobs.

For further information visit the UNEP web site

Sales of energy-guzzling light bulbs such as incandescent lamps for domestic use could be banned in Europe from 2010. France is expecting the resolution to be adopted by the EU energy ministers at the meeting next month.

The resolution will not have a legislative effect but is intended to give political momentum to the implementation of EU laws on energy labelling and energy using products (EuPs), and to speed up the adoption of energy-efficiency standards for range of appliances.

» Continue reading "Ministers to back EU incandescent lamp ban from 2010"

The findings of green brands surveys in China and their comparison with the results of similar surveys this year in the United States and Britain were presented at the Economist Conferences' Fifth China Branding Roundtable in Beijing.

» Continue reading "Chinese consumers rate the environment a higher priority than the Americans or the British"

Fashion trends come and go, but ‘green’ is here to stay, say designers and sponsors at New York’s fashion shows. Environmentally conscious fashion is becoming a megatrend today and companies and designers are banking that the sustainable approach to style has staying power. Margaret Jacob, sustainability director at Invista, which owns Lycra says “it’s a mentality, a way of thinking about business”.

However, Susan Scafidi, a Fordham University fashion law professor, says the consumer needs to be convinced it’s not only good for the environment but also for her. The focus on green manufacturing and recycled materials is galvanizing the fashion trade but will not last unless the industry sets specific standards or until consumers believe green materials will noticeably improve their lives.

For more information, visit Reuters web site.

IGPN issues a statement to call on world leaders, including those meeting at the Hokkaido Toyako Summit to immediately implement Green Purchasing around the world.

» Continue reading "Statement for the G8 summit 2008"

The G8 leaders gathered at the Hokkaido Toyako Summit agreed to encourage the practice of Green Purchasing by enhancing efforts in the WTO negotiations to eliminate tariffs and non-tariff barriers to environmental goods and services with a view to disseminating clean technology and skills.

For further information, read the article 34 of the Document of Environment and Climate Change.

In 2007, 12.7 TWh of renewable electricity was produced under the electricity certificate system in Sweden. This is equivalent to the annual consumption of around half a million electrically heated detached houses. Biofuels are the dominant source of energy for electricity production in the system. But the sharpest increase is for wind power, up 45 per cent on 2006.
For more information, please visit Sweden Energy Agency.

IGPN and GPN India have completed the development of the Green Purchasing & Green Public Procurement Starter Kit in Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese and English.

The CD version will be available from GPN India, China GPN, Thai GPN, Vietnam Productivity Centre (VPC) and IGPN. Web version will soon be uploaded to the web sites of the respective organisations.

At the workshop on Green Purchasing and Greening Supply Chain, held on 3 March 2008 during the EPIF2008 at the National Convention Center in Hanoi, Vietnam, Ms Nguyen Thi Bich Hang, General Director of Vietnam Eco Paradise, announced the plan to set up the Green Purchasing Network in Vietnam.

For further information, please contact the IGPN Secretariat.

A university research group has created a toolkit to encourage greener business travel.
Omega, a government funded research group comprised of nine universities, government departments and members of the Aviation Environment Federation, released details of the toolkit.

» Continue reading "New toolkit to promote green business travel"

European Union agriculture ministers reached political agreement on a new regulation on organic production and labelling, which will be simpler for both farmers and consumers.

» Continue reading "EU unifies rules for organic food"

GPN Japan’s Chairman, Prof Hideki Nakahara, has received the Tower Person Award for Consumer Educators International 2007 from the Consumer Citizenship Network (CNN).

» Continue reading "GPN Japan’s Chairman recognised for his work in consumer education."

At the C40 Large Cities Climate Summit, Toronto's mayor, David Miller, announced that his city would take advantage of a new tool to measure and reduce Toronto's greenhouse gas emissions.

» Continue reading "Toronto Mayor Makes Zero Footprint Pledge at C40 Summit"

Concern for the environment has prompted one of the most complete and speedy revolutions in consumer attitudes ever seen, according to new research, although most people surveyed had an incomplete grasp of what exactly makes a company green.

» Continue reading "U.K. Consumers Place a Premium on Sustainability"

The government of Ontario(Canada) announced its plan to ban the sale of inefficient light bulbs by 2012.

» Continue reading "Ontario Government to Ban Incandescent Lights by 2012"

New energy efficiency standards for large household appliances should be set through binding legislation and not voluntary agreements, EU white goods industry association Ceced declared.

» Continue reading "White goods industry ditches voluntary accords"

The US and the European Community have agreed to renew their agreement on the energy efficiency labeling of office equipment products using EPA's ENERGY STAR.

» Continue reading "US and the European Union renew ENERGY STAR Agreement"

DuPont has been recognized by the Coalition for Government Procurement for its overall commitment to the environment.

» Continue reading "DuPont wins U.S. Government Green contractor Award."

The UK 's top 13 grocery retailers have reported on their progress against the Courtauld Commitment, which aims to reduce the amount of packaging and food waste that ends up in everyone's bins.

» Continue reading "UK major retailers report progress on reducing packaging and food waste."

In US, 145 businesses, environmental organizations, and other groups (representing 37 states) have released the "Sustainable Energy Blueprint" - a policy paper that outlines a "plausible strategy for achieving a no-nuclear, low-carbon, highly-efficient and sustainable energy future."

» Continue reading "145 Businesses, Groups Issue Sustainable Energy Blueprint"

Wells Fargo & Company joined EPA's top-25 green power purchasers as the top corporation on the list, edging out other big corporate names such as Whole Foods, Johnson & Johnson, and Starbucks. EPA announced its quarterly list of organizations that purchase electricity generated from clean, renewable resources such as solar, wind, geothermal, biogas, biomass and low-impact hydro.

British oil giant BP has launched a program that allows U.K. drivers to neutralize the carbon dioxide emissions caused by their driving.

» Continue reading "BP Launches Climate Neutral Driving for U.K. Drivers"

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has closed a deal making it the first federal agency to purchase renewable energy equivalent to 100 percent of its annual electricity needs.

» Continue reading "EPA Becomes First U.S. Agency to Be Powered 100% Green"

As a step in the Federal Biobased Products Preferred Procurement Program, The U.S. Agriculgure Department has released two proposed rules, designating 20 items that must receive special consideration by all federal agencies when making purchases.

» Continue reading "US Department of Agriculture Designates 20 Biobased Items for Federal Procurement"

The APO, SPRING Singapore and the Waste Management and Recycling Association of Singapore will host Eco-products International Fair 2006 from 31 October to 2 November at Suntec Singapore International Convention & Exhibition Centre.

» Continue reading "Eco-products International Fair 2006 will be held in Singapore"

Vail Resorts, the big Colorado ski and recreation company, said that it would make a huge investment in wind power, buying enough credits to offset all the power needed for its resorts, retail stores and office buildings.

» Continue reading "Vail Resorts Becomes Second Largest U.S. Corporate Wind Power Buyer"

Sony will cut CO2 emissions from both operations and its product range as part of a deal struck with WWF. As part of its commitment to join WWF's Climate Savers Program, Sony will cut its absolute CO2 emissions 7% by 2010, compared to 2000 emissions of 2,183,765 tons.

The Green Electronics Council has released the Electronic Products Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) database. More than 60 computers, laptops, and monitors that meet strict environmental criteria are listed in the database. The database is avairable EPEAT website.

» Continue reading "Green Electronics Council Offers Database to Large Volume Purchasers"

The UK government is to look into the idea of issuing citizens with personal carbon allowances to boost efforts to curb greenhouse gases emissions, environment minister David Miliband.said.

» Continue reading "UK government interests in personal carbon trading"

By installing on-site solar and wind power systems and purchasing renewable energy certificates, the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is employing renewable energy to offset not only the total energy use of its buildings, but the energy used by NREL vehicles, employee commuting, air travel and other "life cycle" energy consumption as well. For more information visit NREL.

To boost consumer confidence and facilitate the commercialisation of hydrogen powered vehicles, the Commission plans to set new safety requirements for such vehicles and incorporate them into the European type-approval framework. As a first step, the Commission is asking for the views of stakeholders and the general public on planed new rules to ensure the safe operation.

» Continue reading "European Commission seeks to promote hydrogen powered vehicles"

The Alliance to Save Energy has released a report offering world-class strategies for conducting effective energy assessments within manufacturing facilities.

» Continue reading "Alliance to save energy unveils 'World-Class Assessment Strategies'"

The report, titled Hot Climate, Cool Commerce: A Service Sector Guide to Greenhouse Gas Management (PDF), provides how to introduce energy-efficiency measures to improve building operations.

» Continue reading "World Resource Institute released new guidebook showing how to fight global warming for office workers."

AFP has reported that Planning laws in Britain could be changed to allow the installation of so-called micro-generation technologies -- the use of small-scale power generation sources like photovoltaics and wind micro-turbines --, a government minister reportedly said.

» Continue reading "London considering law change to promote 'green' power"

Toyota Motor announced that, as the company's mid-term project to enhance its environmental technologies and boost environmentally friendly vehicles, it hoped to increase the sales of hybrid cars four times from the current level by doubling the number of gasoline-electric hybrid models by the early 2010s.

» Continue reading "Toyota to double hybrid models"

Bank of America has introduced a pilot program that will reimburse $3,000 to bank associates purchasing a new hybrid vehicle.

» Continue reading "Bank of America Pilot Program Pays Employees to Buy Hybrids"

Ford Motor Company and TerraPass have announced "Greener Miles, a program offering Ford vehicle owners the opportunity to offset the climate impact of their driving through the support of projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

» Continue reading "Ford Launches Customer Carbon Offset Program"

The Coca-Cola Company has completed the transition to HFC-free insulation for 98% of all new purchases of refrigerated sales and marketing equipment.

» Continue reading "Coca-Cola Turns to HFC-Free Insulation for Refrigeration Units"

The European Commission announced the European Business Awards for the Environment 2006 on 1 June. The award, conducted as a part of Green Week 2006, recognises outstanding corporate contributions to sustainable development. The German car maker Volkswagen and five companies won the awards this year.
Information about the winners is available here.

Eco-labels reflecting CO2 emissions became a legal requirement for all new cars sold in France as part of the country's climate change policy.

» Continue reading "France Introduces Compulsory Eco-Labels for New Cars"

ECO-Buy's annual awards was announced on April 27. ECO-Buy is an organization funded by the Victoria local government to encourage the purchasing of green products and services. The awards have presented to seven winning councils which stood out for green expenditure or program performance. These councils have actively purchased green products and promoted green purchasing in their organization in the last financial year. Imformation about winners is available here.

Environmental Finance has reported that Tesco is to invest £100 million ($179 million) in installing renewable energy systems in new stores and reducing its energy use.Where possible, stores will be fitted with wind turbines, solar panels, geothermal power, combined heat and power or trigeneration systems (where power, heat and cooling are produced at the same time). Tesco will also be trialling gasification (converting waste into energy) at its depots.

Leading US publisher Random House plans to invest millions of dollars to raise the proportion of recycled paper it uses to print books to at least 30 percent from under 3 percent at present.

» Continue reading "US Random House Vows to Use 30 Pct Recycled Paper"

ＵＳ.Office of the Federal Environmental Executive announced the recipients of the 2006 White House Closing the Circle (CTC) Awards.

» Continue reading "Office of The Federal Environmental Executive Announced 2006 White House Closing The Circle Awards Winners"

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, along with the Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers Standards Association, has announced a new voluntary environmental performance standard to help large computer buyers make environmentally sound purchases.

» Continue reading "New Standard Helps Purchasers Buy Greener Computers"

GE has released its 2005 ecomagination report, showing that revenues from the sale of energy efficient and environmentally advanced products and services hit $10.1 billion in 2005, up from $6.2 billion in 2004. GE's ecomagination report is available online.

Global Ecolabelling Network (GEN) have carried out a survey to provide information on the policies, measures and practices adopted by selected EU Member States to promote government green procurement (GGP), with particular emphasis on the use of ecolabelling schemes.

Since many EU Member States are known to have adopted non-mandatory measures to promote GGP, this information would be of particular comparative value to some countries in the Far East, which have adopted mandatory approaches to promote GGP.

The summary report can be downloaded from here.

Japan’s Green Purchasing Network (GPN) published new guidelines for toilet facilities (GL16). See GPN website for more information.

Use of organically grown cotton by retail titans, fashion designers and small and medium size companies resulted in a dramatic growth in global retail sales of products containing organic cotton between 2001 and 2005, according to a report recently published by Organic Exchange. During the four-year period, global organic cotton product sales increased an estimated 35 percent annually, from $245 million in 2001 to $583 million in 2005. In the US, such sales increased 55 percent per year, from $86 million in 2001 to $275 million in 2005.
http://www.organicexchange.org/Documents/spring_press_rep.doc

On April 28, 2006, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc.(IEEE) published IEEE 1680™, the first U.S. standard to supply environmental guidelines for institutional purchasing decisions involving desktop and laptop computers and monitors. The standard was initiated by and developed with support from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
IEEE 1680 and its product registration and verification system are part of the Electronic Products Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT), which is managed by the Green Electronics Council under a grant from the U.S. EPA. The council will maintain a registry of computer products that meet IEEE 1680 criteria at www.epeat.net starting in June 2006.

IGPN was set up a year ago, based on the Sendai declaration in October 2004 in Japan, to promote Green Purchasing around the world by coordinating those who take the initiative in implementing Green Purchasing toward sustainable consumption and production.

In its first year, it held international conferences and workshop in Thailand, India and China. This year its planned activities include greater cooperation with the newly-established China GPN, assistance to establish India GPN as well as holding more conferences, workshops and the 2nd International Green Purchasing Conference in Spain.

IGPN Chairman, Prof Ryoichi Yamamoto, has the 1st anniversary message for everyone.

» Continue reading "IGPN’s first anniversary on 25th April 2006"

Japan’s Green Purchasing Network (GPN) held the 10th anniversary commemorative forum on 20 February 2006, attended by Ms Yuriko Koike, Minister of the Environment. See GPN website for more information.

The Green Power Partnership, a voluntary Partnership between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and organizations that are interested in buying green power, has released the most recent lists of the largest purchases of green power. These lists are current as of March 20, 2006 and will be updated quarterly.

- List of Overall top 25 partners
www.epa.gov/greenpower/partners/top25.htm

- List of Top 10 Retail partners
www.epa.gov/greenpower/partners/top10retail.htm

- List of Top 10 College and University partners
www.epa.gov/greenpower/partners/top10ed.htm

International Green Purchasing Network (IGPN) Conference took place at Overseas Student Pioneering Park, Suzhou Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone, Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province, China. The speakers were invited from China, Japan and Korea and over 100 participants attended the conference.

» Continue reading "International Green Purchasing Network (IGPN) Conference in China took place on 23-24 March 2006."

The Swedish instrument for ecologically sustainable procurement (the EKU-instrument) is to give the market an “easy to use” instrument for purchasing organisations, both public and private, who have an ambition to make environmental considerations when purchasing. The objective with the further development of the instrument is to help purchasers to identify “green” products without having negative effects on other important aspects of the purchase.

The latest issue of the EKU newsletter is now available. For further information on the instrument and the previous newsletters, please visit The Swedish Environmental Management Council (SEMC) web site.

Western Australian Local Government Association will host the third National Buying Green Conference from May 25-26, 2006 in Perth, Australia. This event will be relevant to those in the business, government or not-for-profit sector and will equip delegates with the "how and why" of green purchasing and ongoing sustainability. The keynote address "Driving Eco-Innovation by Green Purchasing" will be given by Prof. Ryoichi Yamamoto, the chair of the IGPN.
(www.walga.asn.au/events)

The ICLEI and the European Commission will hold a high level event on green public procurement on April 3-4, 2006, in Graz, Austria, hosted by the Austrian presidency. This conference will allow participants to gather an understanding on how to effectively implement green public procurement by way of many good practice examples. Purchasers and policy makers from local, regional and national government as well as business people from the private sector, consultancy firms and international networks are welcome. (http://www.iclei-europe.org/index.php?id=2308)

Between December 15 and 17, 2005, more than 140,000 people visited the Eco-Products 2005 - the largest eco-related exhibition in Japan - held at Tokyo Big Sight. The number of visitors was up by more than 10% from the previous year and this year attracted the largest-ever crowed since the EcoProducts 1999, the first exhibition of its kind, was held with 288 exhibitors. This year 502 companies/organizations exhibited and included more than 100 members of the Japan’s Green Purchasing Network (GPN). The Japan’s GPN organized several events focusing on Food-related products and they attracted a lot of students as well as business people. (http://www.gpn.jp/event/ecopro/2005/2005-report.html). Eco-Products 2006 will be held between December 14-16, 2006 with a larger exhibition space.

The LEAP Project Consortium, the International Green Purchasing Network (IGPN) and ICLEI to present EcoProcura 2006 in Barcelona, Spain. It will be jointly hosted by the Provincial and City Councils of Barcelona. The event will:

• Present of the results of the European LEAP Project on Local Environmental Management Systems and Procurement
• Bring together a range of international actors as part of the 2nd International Green Purchasing Conference
• Encourage the move from individual action by pioneers to promoting a strong international movement to achieve real market change towards sustainable product innovation.

Eco-Products 2005, the largest eco-related exhibition in Japan and expecting over 150,000 visitors, will be held at Tokyo Big Sight from December 15 - 17 2005 and more than 500 companies and organizations will exhibit. Japan's Green Purchasing Network (GPN) will organize various events under the title "Food Ecology and Green Purchasing" and offer a crossword quiz and a questionnaire survey as GPN is forming a new research group on food. For further information on Eco-Products 2005, please go to http://www.vcc.ne.jp/eco2005/english/

Bio-plastics, plastics made from plants, are increasingly used for IT and home electronic products. With improved quality and reduced costs, they are now seen as a viable alternative to conventional oil-derived plastics. While bio-plastics tend to be seen as environmentally friendly simply because they are not made from petroleum, their overall environmental impact still needs to be assessed comprehensively. Therefore GPN is launching a new research group on bio-plastics and recruiting participants from its members. The group will hold four meetings by March 2007 aiming at developing a guideline on how bio-plastics should be used.

With speakers from Asia and Europe, the symposium was enthusiastically attended by over 100 people. The presentations made in the morning were: global environmental issues and green purchasing; global activities on green purchasing; green purchasing in Sweden; green purchasing law in Japan; and Sustainable Procurement Task Force in the UK. In the afternoon, Panasonic, Siam Cement and Fuji Xerox presented reports on their green purchasing activities respectively. The audience showed keen interest in the topics and there were lively discussions between the speakers and the audience.
More detailed report and the presentation documents are available here.

The 5th Round Tripartite Roundtable Meeting on Environmental Industry was held in Tokyo on 13 and 14 September 2005 with 35 participants from China, Japan and Korea.
Delegates from the three countries agreed on the action plans for green procurement, EMS for SMEs and ecolabelling. In the Summary of the Chair, it is stated that the three countries will try to utilize the IGPN's network to coordinate timing and venue for Green Procurement Seminars.
(http://www.env.go.jp/press/file_view.php3?serial=7160&hou_id=6353)

The International Symposium on Green Purchasing will be held at IMPACT exhibition center, Bangkok, on Friday October 7. It will be co-organized by the Thailand Environment Institute(TEI), the Federation of Thai Industries(FTI), the Thailand Research Fund(TRF) and IGPN, and co-sponsored by the Asian Productivity Organization(APO). Global overview and several country reports including Sweden and Japan will be given, followed by case studies of companies such as Siam Cement and Matsushita(Panasonic), and presentation from the Thailand Green Purchasing Network. Free of charge. If you are interested to attend, please contact igpn@net.email.ne.jp.

China's SEPA (State Environmental Protection Administration) sponsored the International Symposium on Government Green Procurement, held in Beijing, China, June 28-29, organized by the Environmental Certification Center of SEPA. Prof. Ryoichi Yamamoto, chair of the IGPN, gave a special lecture on the IGPN and GPN's role in government green purchasing.
On June 30, the IGPN had a meeting with key persons of the SEPA there. They expressed a positive interest in launching the GPN China. The Chinese government is planning to develop a new legislative framework to promote green purchasing. The IGPN is planning to hold a workshop targeting both governmental and corporate people to promote green purchasing in Beijing.

UN-DESA(United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs) held the Third Expert Meeting on Sustainable Public Procurement on June 15-17, 2005 in New York. Speakers from various part of the world including Europe, North America, South America, Africa and Asia gave presentations on new development in sustainable public procurement, relevant tools and integration of social aspects.
One of the IGPN Advisory Board members, Mr. Christopher Browne of the Environment Agency of England and Wales, UK, demonstrated the training tool developed by the Agency. A presentation about the IGPN was given by Prof. Hideki Nakahara, Chair of Japan's GPN (Green Purchasing Network), tilted "the work of GPN as a network connecting a large number of stakeholders and the initiation of the IGPN". The complete agenda of the meeting and copies of presentations are available at the UN's website.

The IGPN participated in the exhibition at the Ministerial Conference on the 3R Initiative (http://www.env.go.jp/earth/3r/en) held with 20 countries and 4 international organizations from April 28 to 30, 2005 in Tokyo. The Japan’s Action Plan for a World-Wide Sound Material-Cycle Society through the 3R Initiative, published on April 28, 2005 mentions “Joint work with the IGPN” at the first dot for promotion of actions towards zero-waste societies through information sharing and networking. (http://www.env.go.jp/earth/3r/en/approach/01.pdf). A column on the launch of the IGPN is also included in “Japan’s Experience in Promotion of the 3Rs”, a brochure published for the Ministerial Conference available both in English and Japanese.