Green Tips For An Environmentally Friendly Office
By Rilind Elejaz
Employees and their employers spend about a third of their working days at the office and though there could be some oblivion about how their daily activities affect the environment, they do anyway. There are many ways an office can improve its sustainability action plan. It is not all about switching off all electrical appliances at the office or using power from renewable energy companies. There are many tweaks that can be achieved with a well-thought-out sustainability policy to make simple, inexpensive changes that will support the fight against climate change. Here are some green tips for an environmentally friendly office.
Use paperless notebooks
To create a more environmentally friendly office, there is a need to decrease the use of paper. So many trees die for paper to be produced and if we could find a reason not to use paper a lot, then we are doing the environment less harm. The average office worker generates about 2 pounds of paper waste every day. This can be reduced drastically by opting for paperless notebooks. Paper notebooks are usually discarded with most of their pages not even used. Using a paperless notebook can even help you easily sort through your note and find what you are looking for. An example is the rocketbook which is a wired notebook that can be erased and re-used several times. It is an environmentally friendly alternative.
Go for environmentally friendly coworking spaces
The coronavirus pandemic has forced companies and other business organizations to embrace other forms of working in a bid to curb the spread of the virus. So there are things like remote working and hybrid working these days even with the relaxation of the lockdown rules. The need to protect the environment has led to the establishment of many environmentally friendly coworking spaces for flexible and hybrid workplaces. As an employee, you can support this cause by researching the eco-friendly coworking spaces in your city and choosing them over the others. Quite a number of coworking spaces in Los Angeles and New York City are into the green business these days and you can check some of them out to make your choice if you live around that area. There are a host of others scattered around so you can get one close to where you live.
Have live plants around the office
Having real plants in the office in vases can help refresh the air in the office and extract some poisonous substances from it. They can do a lot in making an office space more exciting and cheerful. Depending on the type of plants you go for, they can also serve as beauty for the environment. You can also arrange some grow lights in your office for indoor plants. It is necessary for the office to have at least one or two large plants within the premises.
Choose renewable energy
Solar energy and wind energy are everywhere these days and if you wish to create a more environmentally friendly office, it will be good to embrace renewable energy sources like this. You can get rooftop solar installations and even large-scale wind farms. Most electricity suppliers offer green energy plans that are generated by renewable energy sources like wind and solar. The green plans are usually priced competitively in comparison to other electricity plans powered by natural gas or even coal. Choosing a renewable source of energy helps in protecting the environment and the planet and you still get your energy supplies in sufficient amounts in the office.
Use recycled printing paper
Another green tip for an environmentally friendly office is opting to use recycled printing papers made of recycled food and beverage containers instead of the conventional printing papers made from wood. So, instead of cutting more trees down to make printing paper, trees can be saved with this green tip for offices. The use of environmentally friendly printing paper is becoming very popular these days so depending on your budget, you can pick a choice out of the many options available.
Final word
The decision to opt for more green tips for your office is a good one and a measure to protect the environment and the planet. Going green is beneficial to us as humans in many ways. Apart from the fact that we get to save some money from going green, we are also keeping our health in good form. There are so many dangers we are exposed to every day that the green culture will help us to eradicate. Pollution is one of those things and though we can’t totally clear it out, we can definitely reduce it.