WEST CONSHOHOCKEN, PA--(Marketwire - June 15, 2010) - Infinity Publishing, a pioneer in author-originated book publishing, has introduced the first in a series of programs designed to "give back" by making contributions to important causes related to the book publishing industry.
The company's first program -- Infinity's "100 Tree Project" -- was kicked off this week with a corporate donation from Infinity Publishing to Eco-Libris, which will fund the planting of 1,000 trees in areas that have been deforested. Eco-Libris administers the project by working with partners in developing countries who make sure that the trees are planted where they provide significant value for both the environment and the local communities. Infinity Publishing is the first company in the self-publishing category to make available to its authors a program of this nature.
The program is now being rolled out to new Infinity authors who publish with Infinity. Each author will be given the opportunity to make a $50 donation to plant 100 trees for the title they publish. In appreciation for their investment in the 100 Tree Project, Eco-Libris will authorize Infinity to incorporate into the author's book design an official Eco-Libris logo that reads "100 trees planted for this book" as a way to showcase their commitment to environmental sustainability.
"More than 30 million trees are cut down annually for virgin paper used for the production of books sold in the U.S. alone," said Raz Godelnik, chief executive officer of Eco-Libris. "By working with us, Infinity Publishing is offering a simple and affordable way for their authors to do something about deforestation through funding the planting of new trees for each title they publish. We strive for a world where reading books doesn't have adverse effects on the environment, and achieve our mission to make reading much more sustainable than it is today."
"This is a very simple and inexpensive thing that authors such as myself can do to help plant trees in forests that have been harvested for the production of books, as well as to promote environmental awareness among our readers," said Michael Kleiner, author of the award-winning book, Beyond The Cold: An American's Warm Portrait of Norway (published by Infinity Publishing), who has been collaborating with Eco-Libris and using their logos in his books since 2008. "Infinity's 100 Tree Project is a terrific initiative to promote 'book balance' in which we as a book publishing community work together to replenish the natural resources that we rely upon to print millions of books each year."
Infinity Publishing revolutionized the category of self-publishing by providing "author-originated book publishing" services for authors. Infinity now has more than 4,000 active authors who have collectively published more than 6,000 titles with the company.
Last month, Infinity announced the introduction of a comprehensive eBook publishing program for published authors and aspiring writers. Infinity eBooks will be compatible with Amazon's Kindle, Apple's iPad, Sony's eReader, HP's iSlat, Barnes and Noble's nook, Borders' Kobo, Google's upcoming eBook platform, and other future hand-held electronic reading devices. Although eBooks are the fastest-growing segment of the book publishing industry, print books still account for more than 90 percent of all books produced in the U.S. market.
About Eco-Libris
Founded in 2007, Eco-Libris is a green company working with book lovers, bookstores, publishers and authors worldwide to green up the book industry by promoting the adoption of green practices, balancing out books by planting trees, and supporting green books. For more information, please go to www.ecolibris.net.
About Infinity Publishing
Founded in 1997, Infinity Publishing's industry leading, author-originated book publishing model puts authors in control of the publishing process to carry out their vision for their books. Infinity's authors retain all rights to their books, earn royalties paid monthly, and benefit from an extensive distribution network that is backed-up by Infinity's liberal return policy for bookstores. The company's unique print on demand book publishing system was designed to support all authors with a story to tell, who have ever thought about writing a book, or who have been on an endless journey to find an agent or publisher. For more information, please go to www.infinitypublishing.com.
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