“It IS Easy Being Green”
There are many ways to create a greener workplace and make a strong impact on the environment. It is always good to start by taking some small steps to get a new plan into action. Here are a few ideas to get you going in the right direction.
Think About Your Commute
If your office is not within walking or biking, consider carpooling with two to three coworkers. Other alternatives are purchasing a hybrid or electric vehicle or switching from an eight-hour workday, five days a week to a 10-hour workday, four days a week. This will cut your daily commute time by at least 20 percent.
Go Digital
The greenest paper is no paper, and one of the most effective ways to be more eco-friendly in your office is to reduce paper waste. Keep things digital whenever possible. The more you do online, the less paper you need. Switch from a fax machine to a fax modem to send and receive paperless documents. Use electronic forms whenever possible, and e-mail letters and documents to be read online rather than printed out. (1-Stop Design provides electronic versions of letterhead to all our branding clients to promote a paperless office.) Have staff members take their laptops to meetings so they aren’t printing copy after copy of the same report. Make it a policy to post employee manuals and similar materials online, rather than distribute print copies. An added bonus: Storing files on your computer saves time, money and space. Don’t forget to backup regularly to an off-site data system or use compact flash drives.
Use Green Marketing Tools
In these tough economic times don’t stop marketing, think green marketing? Eblasts, Updating websites, social Media marketing, Search Engine Optimization are all examples of cost efficient marketing that are green too! Promote your company and do you part to save the environment. It is a win win solution!!!
Print Smarter
Think before you print. The average worker in the United States goes through 10,000 sheets of copy paper a year. Make it a habit to print on both sides and use the back side of old documents for faxes, scrap paper, or drafts. Avoid color printing and print in draft mode whenever possible.
Use Green Materials
At 1-Stop Design we do our best to match our clients printing budget with solutions that utilize environmentally friendly paper products. Some paper use can’t be avoided, so use recycled paper and envelopes that have been processed and colored using eco-friendly methods.
Buy chlorine-free paper with a higher percentage of post-consumer recycled content. Also consider switching to a lighter stock of paper or alternatives made from bamboo, hemp, organic cotton. Pens and pencils can also be made of recycled materials, and refillable pens and markers are better for the environment than disposable ones. Buy in bulk so that shipping and packaging waste are reduced, and reuse the shipping boxes. Recycling printer cartridges is often free, and recycled replacements are cheaper than new ones. According to Office Depot, each remanufactured toner cartridge “keeps approximately 2.5 pounds of metal and plastic out of landfills.
Green your PC.
Make your computer more efficient and environmentally friendly. Start by putting computers on “standby” or in “hibernation” mode when they haven’t been accessed for more than 10 minutes. Turn them off when you’re finished working for the day. When replacing a computer, switch to a laptop for more efficiency. Laptops use 80 percent less energy.
Get Others in on the Act.
Share eco-friendly tips with your coworkers. Ask the office manager to make sure everyone has a small recycling bin so that recycling is just as easy as throwing paper away.
All of these eco-friendly tips are simple and easy to implement today. So, yes, it IS easy to be green.
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