Businesses urged to save environment with Christmas e-cards

It still feels a little early to be thinking of Christmas but that isn't stopping Envirowise from urging businesses to save the environment by sending their Christmas greetings online this year.

With a staggering 744 million Christmas cards delivered by the Royal Mail last year, Envirowise is calling on UK businesses to help cut the national Christmas card ‘mountain’ by sending their seasons greetings electronically.

Envirowise’s 2006 Christmas e-cards campaign follows last year's success when over 23,000 e-cards were sent via the website. Recent statistics show that one billion Christmas cards, weighing 20,000 tonnes, will end up as waste this Christmas.

Businesses wanting to support the environment this Christmas by sending their corporate compliments of the season electronically can use Envirowise’s free e-card service. Once registered, you can choose from 10 e-card designs and personalise the cards with an image, company logo and tailored message. The e-cards are free but businesses are encouraged to make a donation to a charity of their choice.

Dr Martin Gibson, Programme Director of Envirowise, explained: “We understand the importance and value for businesses to communicate with customers and suppliers at this time of year. However, an enormous amount of paper waste is generated. We wanted to give businesses an environmentally-friendly alternative without dampening the Christmas spirit!”

“The success of last year’s Envirowise Christmas card campaign shows that businesses are in favour of sending their seasonal greetings online – suggesting a more general shift towards electronic cards could be on the horizon.”

To take advantage of the e-card scheme you'll need to register om the Envirowise website by the end of November to make sure your Christmas e-cards are sent in early December.