Booksellers Association launches £40k Sustainability Grant for booksellers
The Booksellers Association (BA) has launched the third phase of its Bookseller Sustainability Grant, with £40,000 available to booksellers for projects in the final tranche of the £100,000 the trade body has invested over two years.
The news comes amidst several initiatives by the BA, addressing sustainability in bookselling and offering support to booksellers who work on their own. As a part of this, Amber Harrison of FOLDE Dorset in Shaftesbury has been appointed the BA’s inaugural "sustainability mentor", while Debbie James, the owner of Kibworth Books in Leicester and vice president of the BA, has been named its "sustainability champion".
FOLDE Dorset was certified as a B Corporation (B Corp) earlier this year by the nonprofit B Lab, which measures a company’s social and environmental performance. Harrison, who runs the shop and has a background in sustainability, will be available to BA members as a mentor — as part of the BA Mentoring project.
Meanwhile, sustainability champion James will "help lead on opportunities for booksellers to be part of the sustainability conversation in the industry and beyond". She will also participate in the board-level conversations on sustainability issues within the BA.
“Sustainability has been a crucial point in our agenda for some time now, and in addition to the third batch of our Sustainability Grant, we’re delighted to appoint Amber and Debbie as sustainability mentor and champion respectively," said managing director Meryl Halls. "They’ll be able to offer additional advice and guidance to booksellers who want to take concrete steps towards making their shops more sustainable."
The BA is also reconvening its Sustainable Bookselling Group (SBG), which aims to drive the search for ways in which booksellers can identify relevant issues in this space, conduct research and gather data, solve problems collaboratively and source new ideas and initiatives. James and Harrison are both members of the SBG, which will meet throughout the year with the first meeting taking place in the summer.
Moreover, the BA is creating a Lone Working Group to support booksellers who "frequently work alone". According to the trade body, this will be a "self-help group" on Facebook, which will act as "a place for booksellers to communicate with others facing similar challenges".
The BA explained that booksellers are encouraged to "come to the group with questions, concerns, or just for a chat with like-minded booksellers". This has been set up in response to the "increasing number" of booksellers who are operating without the support of full-time staff and will provide the platform for them to share experiences and advice. The BA will also host monthly drop-in Zoom calls for the group and provide materials via the BA Learning Skills Hub, with further details to be announced in the coming weeks.
"In addition, with the Lone Working Group, we are keen to offer assistance to any bookseller who spends significant amounts of time working alone," Halls added. "The BA exists to create a network where booksellers can come together to share experiences and tips, and we believe that a dedicated group for booksellers working solo will help build a stronger sense of community.”
