12 Ways to Go Green at Work
If you’re like most of us, you spend more of your waking time at work than at home. You might have taken the time to go green at home, but you might not have given work a second thought. But why shouldn’t your work environment be healthier and greener too?
There are many benefits for organizations to implement green practices, some of which I’ve addressed in past blogs. These include:
Attract new customers – especially Millennials and GenZers
Grow sales and generate cash flow
However, there are also many benefits to personally going green at work. These include better indoor air quality, increased productivity, and decreased sick days, not to mention helping the planet.
No matter what type of job you have, there are actions that you can take to make your work place more eco-friendly and environmentally sustainable.
Below are 12 to get you started. Once you read through them, be sure to think of other ways that are specific to you and your workplace that you could implement.
1. Recycle. Get in the habit of recycling, and be sure to recycle at a minimum, glass, plastic and aluminum. If there aren’t recycling bins in your work space, ask the facilities manager if they can get some and clearly label them. You’ll also want to contact your local recycling center to find out what they take – and share that info with your colleagues (because it’s always easier to recycle when others are doing it too). Also, be sure to check out earth911 for places that take other items that are tougher to recycle and your organization’s recycling company might not accept.
2. Get a plant or two. Plants filter the air and some species can even remove compounds such as formaldehyde, benzene, and hexane in the range of 50 to 75 percent of the total volatile organic compounds. Not only that, but plants have been shown to reduce stress and increase productivity – so be sure to add a plant or two to your workspace – or somewhere within eyesight.
3. Telecommute when possible. If you are in a position where working remotely once a week or more is possible, check with your direct manager and get that set up. Working remotely not only saves you the commute time – and the related emissions that come with it – but it can also enable you to get more done with less interruptions. Not to mention that it’s more comfortable to work in your slippers!
4. Carpool, take the train or metro, bike or walk to work. Transportation accounts for up to 30 percent of greenhouse gas emissions. If you do need to be physically present at work, look into alternative ways of getting to work aside from taking your car. If you do take your car, see if you can give others a lift as well, or opt for public transit if available in your area.
5. Use reusable plates, cups and utensils. If your workplace doesn’t offer reusable plates, cups, and utensils, consider bringing some in from home and keeping them at work. Using reusable dinnerware will significantly cut down on the plastic and paper waste used during your lunch break.
6. Bring lunch in reusable containers. Instead of a microwave lunch, which not only uses a lot of packaging but also is not as healthy for you, consider making your lunch at home and bringing it to work in a tupperware. If you don’t have the time or inclination to cook for yourself, choose premade lunch alternatives in packaging that is easy to recycle, such as a can of soup, or food packed in plastic-free containers, such as this one.
7. Bring your own bottle and/or mug. If your workplace doesn’t offer reusable dinnerware, be sure to bring in your own and opt out of using plastic bottles or cups for water and coffee, tea and other drinks.
8. Reuse office supplies. Most businesses – even those that are not office-based – tend to use a fair amount of pens, paper, folders, binders and other office supplies. Consider setting up a reuse center and reusing items such as folder and binders that would otherwise be thrown out.
9. Say no to printing paper. More than 45 percent of paper is printed out and thrown out within the same day. Think twice – or thrice – before printing anything out. If you do opt to print something, be sure to set your printer to print double-sided, and recycle the document after it is no longer needed. If one side of the paper is blank, you can use it as scrap paper.
10. Turn off electricity when not in use – including electronics and lights. Electronics include monitors, computers, copiers and printers. These items can account for up to 30 percent of electricity use in an office building. Be sure to check with your IT department first to make sure that this does not interfere with upgrades and other tech work that is being performed in the background while you are not using your devices. Lighting is another big electricity sink if not turned off. Be sure to flip the switch in rooms that are not being used if your workplace does not have light sensors.
11. Use natural light when possible. According to the US Energy Information Administration, artificial lighting accounts for 44 percent of electricity use in office buildings – and in retail and other establishments, it can be even higher. If taking advantage of natural lighting is not an option in your workplace, consider using task lighting instead of overhead lights. Specifically, use LED light bulbs. LED lights use up to 90 percent less energy than incandescent bulbs and waste only about 5 percent of the energy on heat.
12. Take the stairs. If you use an elevator to get to your workplace, consider taking the stairs instead. Not only is this good for you health-wise, but it also reduces the amount of energy that is consumed. While the energy saved varies, if everyone were to take the stairs, your building would see significant energy savings.
Congratulations! If you’ve implemented even half of the above steps, you are well on your way to a greener and healthier workplace.
If you are looking for ways to green your entire organization, be sure to download our FREE Beginner’s Guide to Going Green, which includes 50+ projects to start greening your organization.