Beacon Press completes third edition of Hard Rain

• Hard Rain is a collection of powerful pictures by Mark Edwards illustrating Bob Dylan’s lyric for “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall”
• Beacon Press has printed 10,000 copies of the third edition of the 192-page perfect bound book using pureprint® environmental print technology
• Mark Edwards impressed with the environmental ethos and quality of the Beacon Press team

28th September 2007 – Beacon Press, part of Pureprint Group, has printed 10,000 copies of the third edition of Mark Edwards’ Hard Rain: Our Headlong Collision with Nature. The book, first printed in 2006, makes a meaningful statement about climate change and the detrimental effect that humans have had on the planet, through a flawless combination of Mark Edwards’ powerful pictures, taken in 150 countries during the last 38 years, and Bob Dylan’s lyric for “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall”.

As with previous editions which have instigated response by many world leaders, the book will be sent to prime ministers and presidents, as well as business and religious leaders worldwide. Replies will be displayed alongside the Hard Rain exhibition in the United Nations Headquarters in New York in May 2008 and at other venues around the world.

The latest edition is printed in a larger format of 225mm x235mm with an additional 56 pages and features an 8-page throw-out cover. It has been enriched with a selection of commentaries by James Lovelock and Lloyd Timberlake amongst others, in addition to three essays by Robert May, John Elkington, Geoff Lye and Jonathon Porritt. It also features an extract from David Bohm’s Changing Consciousness. The essays look at the steps that should be taken by governments and humans alike to “prevent global collapse”. Many comments contributed by readers on the debate about climate change and the future of our planet have also been included.

The book was printed using the pureprint® environmental print technology that minimizes the negative environmental impacts of the printing process. Vegetable based inks were used throughout while 90% of the dry waste and 95% of the cleaning solvents produced as a result were recycled. The 8-page book cover was laminated with purelam biodegradable lamination. The paper used was revive 50:50 silk, a recycled stock containing 50% recovered waste and 50% virgin fibre.

Kevin Smith, Sales Executive at Beacon Press comments: “With a project like this, having strong environmental credentials was a given. As one of the most widely published editorial photographers in the world, Mark Edwards wanted the best possible image reproduction and quality. We worked very closely with Mark and his associates to ensure that the images were reproduced vividly enough to help with the delivery of the book’s poignant message.”

Commenting on the reasons why he chose Beacon Press to bring Hard Rain to life, Mark Edwards says: “It was important for me to work with a printer that had an impeccable environmental record. I have worked with Beacon before and I knew their sales and production teams are of the very best quality. I am grateful to them for pulling out all the stops to produce such a visually stunning book.”

The book is published on the 1st October and will be available for purchase through info@stillpictures.com (tel 020 8858 8307) at the pre-publication price of £10.00+P&P.

For more details please visit www.hardrainproject.com