More and more people are turning to sustainable practices to lead an environmentally friendly lifestyle. Most people think that these practices can only be done at home. However, bringing eco-friendly solutions to your office is also possible. You can do a lot of things to maintain a sustainable workplace — from saving resources, turning to clean power sources, and following the three Rs. By looking for sustainable solutions, your business will not only reduce its carbon footprint but will also let you save costs. Below are some ideas you can start with if you want to create a more sustainable workplace.
Implement the Three Rs
The first step to sustainability lies in practicing the three Rs. Learning how to reduce, reuse, and recycle will allow you to save resources, letting you allot the extra money to other projects that will benefit your company and employees. By simply encouraging the use of reusable items, such as cutlery, plates, and mugs, in your kitchen area, switching to whiteboards, or going completely digital in your conference rooms and other office transactions, you can minimize the amount of waste your company generates. It’s better to lead an environmentally friendly workplace if you’re only dealing with small amounts of waste. For leftovers, you can label trash bins to keep waste segregated. Sorting waste can help you determine which items can be recycled and which ones can be turned into compost.
Go Paperless
For the paper used for documents and other printouts to arrive in your office, hundreds of trees must first be cut, which results in the degradation of forests. With huge amounts of paper waste from all industries, waste management facilities are forced to dig up new landfills or resort to burning piles and piles of it, creating millions of air pollutants. Paper also contains toxins that will cause ecological damage to the soil it’s buried in. To make your organization eco-friendly, maximizing your paper use by printing or writing on both sides will significantly reduce your paper usage. A more sustainable option is by completely eliminating the use of paper. By going digital, you also reduce the need to buy writing paraphernalia and actually maintain organized file storage by using cloud systems.
Do Business with Sustainable Enterprises
Thanks to the global call to implement eco-friendly ways to battle the effects of climate change, people are now more inclined to purchase products or services from brands that do business sustainably. When selecting a venture or getting franchise, you also have to look at the partners you will be making. For instance, when determining the cost of a burger joint franchise, you should also consider certain aspects, such as whether this business offers earth-friendly, plant-based alternatives on their food menu or whether they use sustainable packaging. Meanwhile, if you have your own office, you can switch to energy-saving equipment and ensure that your supplies come from environmentally friendly sources.
Consider Transportation Alternatives
One of the largest contributors to carbon dioxide emissions is vehicles. Cars produce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that trap heat in the atmosphere, thus causing global warming. For your company to do its part in saving the planet, you should consider green driving options for you and your employees. You can promote carpooling or even offer a shuttle service as part of your company’s employee benefits. Providing your staff with transportation allowance to be used for public transit will help reduce the effects of car pollution on the environment and let your employees save money on gas. Another solution is to give your personnel the freedom to work flexibly by offering remote work options two to three times a week. This option is extremely viable since it will also keep your employees safe from the pandemic.
Save Energy
With all the machines and office equipment that need to be plugged in, the expenses paid for electricity is the largest contributor to a company’s overall operation cost. Considering the heating and cooling systems, lights, computers, and other equipment, the bill could easily amount to thousands of money per month. Excessive use of electricity is also a source of greenhouse emissions, which leads to global warming. To achieve a sustainably powered workplace, using clean power sources, such as solar, hydro, and wind energy, will let you operate on sustainably sourced power as well as reduce your electricity bills. You can also adapt power-saving practices, such as putting computers in sleep mode instead of using a screen saver, installing motion-activated lights, and unplugging unused appliances.
To create a bigger impact and mitigate climate change, everyone must work together and exert huge efforts in changing practices. You will gain excellent results if you implement sustainable ways to run their operations.
