Natalia Gilewicz, Chris Kular

Abstract
In an effort to respond to consumer demands for more sustainable products, the packaging industry is constantly updating what constitutes a sustainable package. One of the fastest growing segments of consumer packaging is the bottled water industry. This area of packaging is under heavy scrutiny from the public in North America - especially in areas where water is safe to drink from the tap. Part of the problem is that consumers do not have enough information to make sustainable choices. This research investigated the package from a consumer perspective. A sample of bottles was subjected to a visual inspection and content analysis of environmental information on the package and the corresponding company website. Environmental claims were gathered and categorized using a typology developed by Carlson (1993). The results revealed physical characteristics that are identifiable to consumers (such as package weight or size of label). Further, it was found that very few packages carried any sustainable messages on the bottle but where they did, claims were supported with further information on the website. Lastly, the bottles that contained data on the package did not have the physical characteristics of a sustainable package. Thus, not only does the water bottle industry need to provide consumers with more information, package characteristics need to better showcase sustainability. This in turn will help consumers make educated and sustainable choices.

Keywords: Bottled water, Packaging, Sustainability
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PRESENTATION (PDF)

Marios K. Tsigonias, Anastasios E. Politis

Abstract
Environment and its protection, as well as increasing sustainability requirements from the society, “push” the industry to act towards new materials, production processes and management of industrial products. Printed matters and in particular packaging are among those industrial “products” which need to be designed, produced, distributed and recycled with the sustainable processes.

Printing substrates - in general materials used for printing and packaging, are among the important factors that influence sustainable concepts within the graphic arts and packaging printing industry. Sustainability within printing substrates as well as printing inks, concern mainly recycled or environmentally friendly materials, which are currently used by the graphic arts industry. Paper, board and vegetable-based inks are examples of such materials.

However, as the protection of the environment is becoming an increasingly demanding issue, new materials and in particular new printing substrates are being evolved. The most prominent development is naturally degradable materials, which do not affect the environment. There are also techniques used to convert common packaging materials (such as PE, PP, PVC, PS) into degradable ones. Another process is the transformation of degradable materials into composite degradable ones, with the addition of alginates -polymers produced by the sea algae- or other biomass materials.

The present study aims primarily to explore the behavior of the Greek consumers and their opinion on degradable materials future use and secondly, to investigate the processing of degradable materials and in particular the printing and finishing processes within the Greek graphic arts industry and production of these materials.

Keywords:
Degradable packaging materials, Packaging industry, Consumers’ Environmental attitude, Green printing
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Ivana Bolanca Mirkovic, Zvjezdana Vukic, Zdenka Bolanca

Abstract
Design for environment sustainability is promoting new qualitative criteria that at the same time are environmentally sustainable, socially and economically acceptable and culturally attractive.

In this work the investigation results are presented, which comprise the ecological approach to creation of the graphic product - poster, which has the role of promotional activity of the environment. In addition the optical characteristics of the digital print, i.e. the reproduction with the ecological message in the function of printing substrate choice and in context of the design sustainability are discussed.

The obtained results have proved the possibility of appreciation of the compact approach of integration creativity by incorporating the elements of visual arts, graphic and textual expression in the phase of poster design and propositions of the life cycle of the graphic product, appreciating the ecological responsibility of the design in the system of the sustainable development.

Keywords: Graphic design, Environmental sustainability, Substrate, Poster, Prints characteristics
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