There are so many ways and opportunities for offices to incorporate a more sustainable work- environment for their employees and staff. It is super important for these changes to be made in order to become more sustainable and greener in order to have a long-lasting future for our planet.
The green movement has been approaching for a while, and it is time for the workplace to adapt these new policies to help create a more environmentally friendly change.
Going green in the office isn’t costly or difficult and can easily be switched too with a few simple tips and changes. There are many benefits for the company and office when slight changes are made including overall costs. When you change out appliances and light bulbs, the company will in total use less power and cost the company less in utilities. These changes will also increase customers and clients for the company when it is noted they are promoting an environmentally friendly office.
Here are 10 tips on how to make your office more green.
- Start a sustainability team for your office
- This will create awareness of how sustainability and making changes for the office can help make a change. They can create monthly goals for the staff, and help promote green awareness for everyone.
- Place recycling bins around the office
- This will start promoting everyone to recycle more
- Encourage staff to use more dishes in the office
- Using mugs, glasses, dishes and cutlery at the office rather than disposables will help promote plastic from entering the office
- Promote no plastic water bottles in the office
- Put out water coolers around the office for the staff, and promote everyone to bring reusable water bottles every day
- Try to go paperless in the office
- Try making everything digital, and only printing documents if necessary. This is really important and hopefully soon the world will become paperless forever.
- Try using mobile devices and overhead projectors for meetings to display slideshows and information instead of printing out everything out
- Getting plants for the office
- Getting plants around the office will help produce more oxygen, offsetting any chemicals that are released in the air, and making it a cleaner, happier space for everyone to work in.
- Promote everyone to get a desk plant
- Make sure office is being cleaned with only green products
- It is important that whoever is cleaning the office daily is using environmentally friendly chemicals and products that aren’t damaging to the environment
- Try and save electricity around the office
- Turn off computer monitor when not in use
- Turn off lights in rooms when not in use
- Replace standard bulbs with compact fluorescent lamps or LED bulbs ( They use 75% less energy then regular bulbs)
- Try using motion censored lights in bathrooms
- Embrace renewable energy
- Rooftop solar installations
- Washroom sustainability
- Try to get rid of paper towels in washrooms and incorporating more hand dryers
- Make sure products in washrooms are environmentally friendly
- Make sure you turn off the sink when not in use
- Laying off the thermostat
- Try and find a comfortable temperature in the office in the winter and summers. Adjusting the thermostat too much and blasting the heat and AC causes so much energy to be wasted. By finding a comfortable temperature this will help you save and reduce energy use