You can go Green at work just as easily as you can go Green at home and there are very simple ways to do so by influencing the other people at work for good, towards contributing to a greener environment for the benefit of not only the self solely but also the company altogether. Wondering as to how your place of work can be tuned into an environment friendly zone free of Green house toxicity?
Here’s how:
RECYCLE
Recycling is the best possible way to save energy, resources, space and go green. While all of us are already aware of it, not many of us put this technique to application.
Conserve energy and add to a healthy work environment by using recyclable items in office. There are items that can be recycled while there are items that cannot be recycled. For instance special plastic bags made out of plant sap, utensils made out of dried leaves and so on. Know where to dump your waste. There should be a particular waste bin for biodegradable wastes and another one for non-biodegradable wastes. However, most plastic materials are non recyclable.
If your place of work doesn’t offer recyclable containers then you can take the initiative towards launching the use of such containers. What you can do is to approach your supervisor regarding your concern either personally or by writing to them and also forwarding it to the regular staffs on a whole. At least you can try your luck at making Earth a better place to live in.
BIKE/ WALK/ CARPOOL TO WORK
According to The Union of Concerned Scientists cars are responsible for 1 out of 5 of the total greenhouse gas emissions. So the lesser the number of cars on the street the lesser the amount of pollution will be.
Instead of travelling in your own car and adding to the already polluted environment, resort to travelling in sharing. That means that a couple of you could travel in a single person’s car for a week and rotate every week, and provided not all of you own cars then you can travel in carpools instead of getting single cars each.
However if your place of work is not too far from your home and you only resort to driving because you almost often get late then it’s time to reschedule your routine, wake up early to have enough time to walk the distance down.
MAKE USE OF TUPPERWARE
According to a research in 2014 up to 40 per cent of business waste includes paper. Hence while paper can indeed be used as a substitute for plastic, one should make sure that paper must not be used in excess and wasted when an alternative option is available.
It is always a good idea to carry lunchboxes and have a layup of reusable utensils at office made out of good quality Tupperware, steel, or glass which wouldn’t require to be thrown away after one use but can rather be reutilised for good.
USE SCRATCH PAPER
Don’t waste paper. Use it wisely. If you have the habit of taking down notes during presentations or meetings then you can use rough papers to jot down whatever you have to.
While printing at office, suggest using both the sides of the paper. This will save the paper cost at work. Also tear out remaining pages from a copy, club them together, if provided bind them and use it as a separate notebook. These are simple ways to reuse wisely without excessive wastage.
GO PAPERLESS
Or go completely paperless. Have paperless meeting and presentation. With the digital world thriving at the moment, this shouldn’t be much of a difficulty.
Use your tabs or phone notebooks to jot down notes during meetings and presentations. Don’t unnecessarily take print outs of the power point and other presentations in order to distribute them out the meeting heads. Instead send a copy of the presentation to concerned people through an email.
SAY NO TO PLASTIC UTENSILS
But what about the times when you’re getting food from outside parcelled?
Instead of taking plastic containers from them, get your own utensils and ask them to fill the containers in with the food that you’re going to carry back to office.
Most plastics cannot be recycled and hence you are creating more waste each time you are using a new one.
BRING YOUR OWN FLASK AND THERMOS
At office or elsewhere where they serve coffee or tea in paper cups, carry your own mugs for when you’re out on a coffee run.
This will not only help save paper but in a lot of places like Starbucks, you will actually get a discount for bringing your own mug.
SET REMINDERS FOR THE OTHERS
By passing on the idea of contributing to a Greener environment you will be able to function better towards a toxic less work atmosphere. You could paste little notes next to the switchboards reminding people to switch off the light bulbs and fans when leaving the room. Or you could ask people to print double-sided in order to save paper and prevent too much of waste emission.
Provided you don’t have the authority to have others obey, then approach the management directly with your concern. The management must comply because these initiatives are not going to be taken in your favour alone but in favour of the whole of the company of which you are only a part.
POWER DOWN
According to research our electronic devices even when turned on and not in use can consume energy equal to 50 large power plant’s worth of electricity which is up to 500 megawatts of energy.
In order to go Green and conserve energy put your computer and phone on sleep mode when not in use, minimize applications, lower the brightness of the screen, close the tabs that aren’t in use, unplug your charger once it has been used are simple but efficient ways of saving power and contributing to Greener workspace environment.
ADD AS MUCH GREENERY AS POSSIBLE
Adding greenery to your workplace will not only improve the appeal of the floor/desk you work in but will make it a healthier environment on a whole.
Plants emit oxygen and also make you more productive. So there is no downside to adding a small plant to your desk or several to your office floor, which is a great way to restore a healthier environment.
BE CAREFUL WITH YOUR OWN HABITS
Last but not the least – practice what you preach. You must make sure that you are putting to application the ideas mentioned above in order to contribute to a Greener environment, by whether reducing the use of plastic and resorting to the use of reusable materials or by conserving power and adding greenery to your workspace environment.
Small changes can bring in big differences. Opt for these changes and incorporate them in your own lives not only when you are at work but also when you are outside work in order to contribute well to a Greener and healthier environment in general.
I certainly hope that these suggestions will help you in contributing to a Greener environment at work without putting extraordinary efforts and taking elaborate measurements.
