Get Your Office Greener With These Ten Easy Tips

A lot of people, when they discuss the environment, tend to get heated and bogged down in minutiae. With terms like “saving the planet” and “creation care” and “eco-friendly”, etc. being thrown around like confetti at a victory parade, often, nothing gets done. Someone has to start the ball rolling and while we are mired in debate and the politicians argue back and forth about cost, the polar bears have less and less ice caps to hunt on, temperature changes become more noticeable and more and more species are on the brink of extinction.

What can we do, as an entrepreneur or as an individual, to help? I’ve thought of a few good ideas that you can institute personally, each and every workday — as well as at home. Make them a habit and you will be doing more than the majority of people are doing, to help with our Mother Earth

Kickstart Your Eco Efforts

Tip 1 – Reduce Your Office Supply Use

Only print your documents when you have to. Use E-storage instead of hard copies. Back up your computer data at the end of the day by using an external hard drive (if you have a lot), or a flash drive. Use recycled paper and recycled toner and recycled inks and then recycle those if you can, after use and when you don’t need them anymore. Do not simply scrunch up paper and throw it into the rubbish basket, keep it in a tray turn it over and you’ve got an endless supply of notepaper. Recycle your glass bottles, aluminum cans and plastic whenever you can. Empty them frequently so that they won’t smell. Nothing smells worse than a partially full soda can.

Tip 2 – Share Your Space With A Live Plant

They take in carbon dioxide and give off oxygen. Don’t get angry around them too often, or you’ll overload their bio-mechanism and they’ll wilt. Besides, all that hot air would only work for tropical plants! If you have low light in your office, a nice Dracaena or Peace Lily will work well.

Tip 3 – Use Curly Bulbs & Don’t Eat Curly Fries

LED clusters are best and they use very little energy. They are super bright so before you turn them on, warn other staffers to avert their eyes if they are sitting inches away. They last a long time as well. Some of those CFL bulbs contain mercury, so if you want to use those, then read the labels. Lower your office thermostat and unplug any equipment that you can, before leaving for the day because even machinery which is turned off, uses some electricity.

Tip 4 – Use Real Dishes & Cutlery

Wash your utensils and dishes instead of using disposables, and your food and drink will taste better, too. Take home to sterilize occasionally as those coffee mugs can get pretty nasty after sitting around for hours!

Tip 5 – Decorate With Abandon, But Use Green Products

Try and have management use bamboo flooring in the office (it grows super fast and is a giant grass, not a tree). Low or no VOC (volatile organic compounds) paint should be used so that people can breathe easier, and the air in general is sweeter. Office chairs can be made from natural fabrics and renewable wood. It may take a bit of searching, but they can be found and are they are not necessarily more expensive. Reuse and repair stuff when you can.

Tip 6 – Telecommute & Save Fuel Costs & Time

Use the computer to work from a home office, if you can. Carpool if you have to be physically in the office. You’ll have more time for the family at home, and far less stress. Set up your home office with recycled furniture such as a home office computer desk, and use those recycled supplies.

Tip 7 – Eat Food With Ingredients You Can Read Without a Masters Degree

Better yet, eat single ingredient foods and drink simple liquids such as water and tea and juices. Locally grown and organic food is better. Fair Trade coffee tastes far better and helps local growers in the various coffee-producing countries. Use a non-disposable coffee filter. Wash the latter with soap (try eco-friendly soap) and water because the filter holes get bunged up with coffee oils.

Tip 8 – Eco-Friendly Office Travel

Try and use a vehicle that’s a hybrid or electric, or a super-saver on other fuel. Reduce and consolidate all trips, whether inside or outside the office. Perhaps you can use a bicycle for short trips. This helps with exercise and saves on fuel.

Tip 9 – Office Equipment Tips

Make sure that all Energy Star Power Management features are optimized. Set a sleep mode for your monitors and other equipment as soon as after five minutes of inactivity. They will take only seconds to come back on. When you replace equipment put the energy saving fetures at the top of the list of priorities. Properly recycle the old stuff so that third world countries are not affected.

Tip 10 – Cut Browsing Time

Making a cup of tea produces as much carbon dioxide as two Google searches. Blow on hot tea near your live plants, so that they can suck up that carbon dioxide easier! Don’t let it make you become paralyzed, but try and think before starting a new task and see if you can do it in a more environmentally friendly way.

How On Earth Do You Start?

It’s not globe-shattering, and you don’t have to do everything the first day. Being exhausted and crabby will not help Mother Nature. She prefers a sunny disposition. Pick one item, start the ball rolling, then incorporate another one. You’ll no doubt think of more things you can do yourself, and recruit your fellow office workers, too. Do start soon though, because more and more of the world we live on is being frittered away and wasted. Do not expound on your new green methods because this turns others off. Set an example and others will follow.

Join The Eco Bandwagon

The future is bright if we can all chip in and do our part. As a business owner and entrepreneur remember that you are in the driving seat and that you can take a break whenever you feel like it. Take that break when you’re at work and go outside if you can. Breathe in the great air and look at some flowers. Watch a butterfly for a few moments. Smile when you go back inside. It’s contagious.

About the Author:Lloyd Burrell, formerly an auditor in the City of London, has learned a thing or two about office desks over his long and varied business career. He loves to put this knowledge to good use and provide detailed reviews of office desks, click here for details. He reviews everything from contemporary office desks built out of modern materials like glass and metal to more traditional models made out of wood. Lloyd particularly likes to review ergonomic office desks because comfort and posture are so important when spending long periods in one place. Lloyd lives on the charming Atlantic coast of France with his wife and two children.

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