Reconsidering the life cycle of paper: A new approach to the wasted paper in our daily practices

By Ana María López, BFA Communication Design:In the last 20 years, the usage of paper products has increased 126%. It is impressive how we keep wasting and the system only loops. However, all of this can change if we start becoming more aware of the products we use and how we use them. What first made an impact on me, was a short film from Cockerell and Son Paper Marbling Firm. It inspired me to start coming up with ideas for the use of paper, ink, and paint. Then, I started taking a silkscreen class and realized that it is really a non-sustainable approach to print due to all the steps you have to go through to get the final result. This process led me to come up with the idea of using the scraps to make recycled paper and use this to make my own prints. Throughout the process, I determined that we also waste a lot of paper in our daily practices, for this reason, I also started collecting any paper that came across during my day.I divided the general journey of paper in three categories: the natural process, activities that are done by humans and the new approach I am proposing. It reminded me of how the world is hugely industrialized that only keeps consuming and without thinking in the future. Also, I learned that every little thing matters in order to make a change in the world. For instance, reusing the paper in our daily routines to recycle will contribute to making less waste to the world.The approach that has had impact me the most is the use of maps to learn the cycle of products and their components. This is all because this process can let you become more aware of the different disciplines and elements could impact to a product. It would help you to recognize the things that work and the one that does not. For example, this project started with scraps from silkscreen printing; but throughout the practice, I identified that the use regular use of paper and its waste in our routines. In this way, using this category of paper will have an impact on more people because more than a half of the world does not know how to silkscreen.