Sustainability Network Meeting

A free, networking, social event for members of our new Society of Authors’ Sustainability Network.

The issue of sustainability in publishing can sometimes feel overwhelming. From deforestation to create paper and packaging, to book pulping, transportation, water usage, the use of foils and toxic inks, and questions of fossil fuel investment (to name a few), publishing can have a harmful environmental impact. But this doesn’t have to be the case. Working in partnership with the industry and by using their voices and engaging with readers, authors can play a key role in ensuring meaningful, measurable action on sustainability in the book sector.

This third online meeting is an opportunity for SoA members to learn more about the SoA’s Tree to Me campaign that launched in April 2023 to add authors’ voices to the drive to make publishing more sustainable. The ten questions highlight ten areas for sustainable change in the publishing industry. The campaign and its ten questions are designed to help authors, illustrators and translators to start a conversation with their publisher about their book’s sustainability, to reduce its environmental impact, in the materials it uses and the energy it consumes, in the publisher’s investments and emissions targets, and more. For authors who self-publish, where appropriate, these questions can be asked of the any contractor(s), service provider(s) or supplier(s).

In this online meeting, the Sustainability Network committee will dive deeper into each of these topics, guide members through some practical links and further reading to learn more about, and inform, their decisions for more sustainable choices.

After a short screen break, this presentation will be followed by small-group discussions in break-out rooms to explore these resources with members and have a more general free-flowing conversation around Tree To Me, sustainability and learning for change. The groups will then come back together to discuss and share feedback with the whole network.

Programme

• Welcome from Piers Torday – Chair, Sustainability Network (5 minutes)
• Introduction to the SoA’s Tree To Me campaign (50 minutes)
• Comfort break (5 minutes)
• Breakout rooms hosted by the Sustainability Network committee members for an informal, free-flowing discussion, networking and information sharing (20 minutes)
• Return to main room where we will discuss the topics and insights shared during the breakout groups (10 minutes)
• Closing words from Piers Torday – Chair, Sustainability Network

Send us your questions

If you would like to send any questions in advance, email publicaffairs@societyofauthors.org with ‘Sustainability Network’ in the subject header. We will prioritise questions sent in advance and answer as many as we can from the audience on the day.

The Line-up

Piers Torday (chair)

Piers Torday’s award-winning, best-selling Last Wild series examines themes of biodiversity loss for young readers, and his latest book, The Wild Before, was a showcase attempt at publishing a sustainable book commercially. His plays The Box of Delights (RSC), The Child in the Snow, and The Wind in the Wilton’s (Wilton’s Music Hall) were produced to the sustainable standards in the Theatre Green Book.

Piers is also the first Chair of the Society of Authors’ Sustainability Network steering committee, and was involved in launching the Society’s Tree to Me campaign on sustainability in publishing, a subject on which he writes, broadcasts and campaigns regularly.

Website: https://www.pierstorday.co.uk/ | Twitter: @PiersTorday | Instagram: @piers_torday

Holly Farrell

Holly Farrell Holly Farrell is an award-winning garden writer, and author of books including Healing with Plants: The Chelsea Physic Garden Herbal; Do Bees Need Weeds? (co-author); RHS Get Growing; RHS Plants from Pips; Growing Herbs (Kew Gardener’s Guides) and Garden Media Guild Award finalists RHS Gardening for Mindfulness and The Jam Maker’s Garden. Her most recent titles are The RHS Little Book of Wild Gardening; The Herb Almanac (for Chelsea Physic Garden) and The RHS Little Book of Cut Flower Growing. She is a frequent contributor to The Simple Things magazine and an RHS Wisley-trained horticulturalist.

Holly is the Administrator for the Guernsey Literary Festival and a volunteer librarian at a local primary school.

Instagram: @holly_farrell_books | Substack: @mudandink

Sophie Galleymore Bird

Sophie’s first published novel, Maneater, was a filthy feminist Frankenstein tale. Her second, To See The Light Return, was written as a response to Brexit and self-published. It has sold few copies but still bears the dubious distinction of having been scraped to train AI, without her permission. She is a communications consultant for ecological charities and businesses and is currently studying for an MA in Crime Writing Crime Fiction at the University of East Anglia.

Website: www.sophiegalleymorebird.co.uk | X: @OySophBird | Instagram: @sophiegorebirdnoveller

Charles Harris

Charles Harris is an author and award-winning writer-director for television and cinema, having traditionally published two novels (twice award-nominated) and three non-fiction books, as well as self-publishing a collection of short stories and a further non-fiction book.

Charles previously worked in the Film and TV industry in various roles, ranging from screenwriting and film editing to directing and producing.

He subsequently co-founded the London Screenwriters Workshop, the first screenwriters’ workshop in the world (now Euroscript), and was a co-chair of the New Producers’ Alliance for 3 years.

Website: www.charles-harris.co.uk

Philip Kavvadias

Philip is an author, engineer and sustainability expert. He is passionate about helping kids discover the pleasure of reading, and about inspiring the engineers, scientists and policy makers of the future.

X: @PhilipKavvadias | Instagram: @philipkavvadias

James McConnachie

James McConnachie is an author, critic and editor of the Society of Authors’ journal, The Author.

X: @j_mcconnachie

About the Sustainability Network

The Sustainability Network was set up as a working group in 2021 to explore ways to advocate for better industry standards, and to help authors influence positive change, both individually and as a union.

Since then, we have worked with industry partners and, in May 2022, became founding partners of the Sustainability Industry Forum – a collaboration with the Association of Authors’ Agents, Book Industry Communications, the Booksellers Association, Independent Publishers Guild and the Publishers Association. This is the first cross-industry initiative designed to tackle the negative environmental impact of the book business, opening essential lines of communication between authors, publishers and booksellers.

The SoA is also a signatory to Publishing Declares and we invite all members to sign up too.

The launch of the Sustainability Network to all members is an important part of this process, creating a space for illustrators, literary translators and writers to discuss concerns, industry insights, and share resources and general tips.

You can learn more about the SoA’s work on sustainability, and sign up to the Sustainability Network mailing list to receive updates from the Sustainability Network and future events.

You can also read more about the Tree to Me and hear from some of the authors we met with to hear about their experiences discussing their books’ sustainability with their publishers.

Need to know

Accessibility

• Attendees have the option to turn on the live transcript
• If you require BSL interpretation for this event, please email events@societyofauthors.org

Before the event

• Once registered, we will send you a confirmation email with the Zoom link
• If the confirmation email doesn’t arrive in your inbox, please check your junk/spam email folder
• Please add events@societyofauthors.orgto your Safe Senders list so you receive our confirmation and reminder emails

During the event

• This online event will take place on Zoom Meetings; you will have the option to turn your camera on or off; you will be muted on arrival
• This event will be recorded but you won’t be on screen
• Attendees have the option to turn on the live transcript
• This event is 120 minutes

Booking

Book your place by using the registration below.