unconsumption:

“Chris Ryan, a publisher of outdoor recreation and guide books, has a love for maps and that passion led him to an unusual side business. Walking on the campus of a local university, he saw a foot-high stack of out-of-date U.S. government topographic maps and charts being thrown out. ‘Something clicked,’ Ryan said. He rescued them and found someone to transform them into envelopes, which he used to ship his books. He was surprised, though, when clients began requesting his unique envelopes as well as his publications. The demand kept growing and he soon began manufacturing stationery and envelopes in all sizes. Now he buys up to 15 tons of outdated maps at a time to meet his market’s demands.”

(via eco-artware.com)

Other ideas for the reuse of outdated maps here and here.