The use of recycled newspaper as sustainable cellulose resource for the fabrication of green organic/inorganic hybrid photocatalytic membrane via phase inversion method was highlighted in this study. The incorporation of N-doped TiO2 nanorods as a nanocomposite in regenerated cellulose membrane matrix to great extent has altered its morphological and physicochemical properties, as revealed by FESEM, AFM, FTIR, XRD, XPS, and UV-visible spectroscopy analyses. FTIR analysis suggested that there is a strong interaction between the hydroxyl groups of regenerated cellulose (RC) and the TiO2 nanorods through hydrogen bonding interactions. The UV-visible spectroscopy and XPS analysis confirmed that the highly visible light absorption capability of the prepared RC/TiO2 nanocomposite membrane is due to the existence of nitrogen as dopant in the TiO2 lattice structure. The resultant membranes showed a significant photocatalytic performance in the degradation of phenol in aqueous solution under UV and visible light irradiation, respectively. It was found that 0.5 wt% of TiO2 nanorods was the best loading in the regenerated cellulose membrane (RCM) with desirable physicochemical and photocatalytic properties. This study promotes the use of RC/TiO2 nanocomposite membrane as a new and green portable photocatalyst in the field of wastewater treatment without leaving any photocatalyst in the reaction system. It is crucial to emphasize that the use of a non-toxic solvent-based system in this study provide a significant contribution towards the development of a green technology system. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.