Red Alert: Two new green titles hit SA shelves

Despite a climate that has seen quite a few magazines close, two environmental magazines launched simultaneously (in one week!), both with the intention of filling a gap in the market at a time when social responsibility, green issues and health are becoming mainstream news in South Africa - as it already has around the world.

The first issue of red - the green magazine (which although aimed at the general public, it's to have strong local community focus) focuses on recycling, energy, greening the workplace, organic and slow food and even has something for the kids. It's expected to appeal not just to the converted greenie, but also to the general reader with a focus on living a quality lifestyle.

To be published monthly by Ink Publishing, 20 000 copies will be distributed free of charge in the greater Cape Town metropolis as well as in areas such as Hermanus, Kleinmond, Betty's Bay, Gordon's Bay, Somerset West, Stellenbosch, Franschhoek, Paarl and Wellington.

If you are based in another part of the country or would like to have red sent to you by post, www.redgreen.co.za to subscribe.

Meanwhile, the new multi-niche bi-monthly title Simply Green - an independently owned print publication aimed at giving consumers and businesses practical steps to a cleaner, greener lifestyle - will also grace magazine racks soon.

The publishers promise a publication that will give consumers as well as business, solutions to reduce shopping basket costs and ways of reducing the human environmental impact through smarter consumer choices.

According to the publisher, Chris Erasmus, who also publishes Odyssey magazine, the idea to conceive a publication came into being because there wasn't a single publication dedicated to focusing on sustainable issues.

 

"There are some publications that make specific references to small gardens but no one is looking into green at the whole consumer spectrum. We then decided to do something before other people beat us to, it especially big publishing companies," says Erasmus.

"Greener is considered better for our health, our homes and families, and our world. Consumers want to hear about simple, eco-friendly solutions for their lives - solutions that not only leave a smaller footprint on the earth but also save money. Simply Green covers all this and more in a visually entertaining yet content rich package. From well-researched stories on the latest environmental issues and eco-products to celebrity interviews, food, nutrition and fashion," explains Erasmus.

"We do not believe that being green equates to a lifestyle of alternative abstinence but rather to improved product quality, lifestyle, enjoyment, and innovation - we strive for a fuller healthier life no doom, no gloom," adds Erasmus.

It's all about exploring new ways of thinking that will transform current environmental issues into entirely new ways of 'living' and 'being' in easily doable steps. "We strive to empower people to make positive lifestyle choices, hence our slogan is 'Choices for Life'," Erasmus concludes.

For more information on Simply Green go to: www.simplygreen.co.za.