Sustainability and Going Green for Businesses

Sustainability and Going Green for Businesses

There is a lot of talk about going green in the business world.  Going green, or creating a sustainable business is based on reducing your impact on the environment.  The basis of a green business is to use resources that are eco-friendly and have sustainable business policies. 

Businesses of all sizes can begin to go green in a variety of ways. From small changes to larger go-green strategies, it is fairly easy for businesses to become more environmentally friendly and incorporate sustainability practices.

What Can Your Business do to Go Green?

·         Use LED light bulbs – they are more energy-efficient

·         Replace older equipment with newer, more energy-efficient equipment for the office and kitchen

·         Change power settings on computers so that they “sleep” when not in use

·         Turn lights off in rooms that are not being used or use motion light sensors

·         Encourage the use of reusable cups and cutlery and rely less on plastic bottles and single-use plates/cutlery/straws

·         Look for fair-trade coffee and tea options

·         Avoid buying individually wrapped office snacks

·         Switch to reusable K-Cup pods to avoid the single-use coffee pods if you have a K-cup coffee maker

·         Use Recycle bins and have an office/business Recycle program

·         Switch to environmentally friendly cleaning products

·         Use recycled paper

·         Make bill payments online

·         Use an electronics recycle program instead of throwing old electronics away 

·         Create a paperless environment and utilize cloud technology or servers to go paperless

Your business can incorporate solutions that are long-term as well.   Using renewable energy, installing bike racks and encouraging car-pooling for your employees are some solutions.

Going green helps your business save money and creates a better work environment for your employees. Small changes are the way that any business can start to become more sustainable and incorporate green business practices.