4 Sustainable Office Cleaning Tips For A Greener Business

Julie Starr • April 6, 2022



Office cleaning is a necessity for all businesses. 

You must keep your office as clean as possible to avoid a whole host of issues. Aside from the obvious hygiene and health problems, a dirty office can ward off customers and make it harder for you to earn money. 

Of course, office cleaning is also somewhat problematic from a sustainability perspective. If you’re not careful, you could end up doing things or using products that really aren’t eco-friendly at all. So, here are some sustainable office cleaning tips for a greener business : 

Check the cleaning chemicals

Ensure that you only use cleaning products that are approved as being sustainable and eco-friendly. In the US, Green Seal will be the approved logo to look for, while GECA is used in Australia. If you see these logos on the cleaning supplies, you know they are safe and don’t harm the environment. 

If you hire a cleaner to do your regular cleaning, be sure you check what products they use. Provide them with alternatives if they don’t have any sustainable ones themselves. 

Use reusable cleaning products

Likewise, try to avoid using things like disposable cleaning wipes. Where possible use cleaning products that can be used over and over again – like microfiber cloths . This minimizes the waste you create when cleaning, while also cutting down on things like plastic usage. 

If you have to use wipes – for whatever reason – find some that are biodegradable and compostable to reduce waste.

Implement a strict recycling regime

Part of office cleaning includes dealing with your office waste. Implement a regime that forces your employees to recycle as much as possible. 

In turn, this can keep your waste bins empty and ensure that most of your rubbish is sent away and recycled or repurposed, reducing your carbon footprint . Also, having multiple recycling bins can prevent waste bins from overflowing and make your office even filthier!

Deep clean your carpets with steam

Deep cleaning your office carpet is essential for a couple of reasons. Firstly, if you don’t clean the carpet, it will not last as long as it could. This might mean you have to rip up a dirty and worn down carpet, installing a new one – which isn’t a very sustainable thing to do if it’s happening every few years. Cleaning your carpet keeps it in excellent condition for longer, ensuring you don’t have to replace it. 

Secondly, you need a clean carpet for general hygiene reasons, which is why seeking out office cleaning services that provide carpet cleaning is a great idea. But, ensure that they provide steam cleaning. This is the key to making the whole process more sustainable. Steam cleans carpets extremely well and mitigates the need for any harmful chemicals. You’ll enjoy the benefits of a clean office carpet without any environmental concerns. 

Follow these sustainable cleaning tips to keep your office clean without increasing your carbon footprint. It’s all about making smarter and more eco-conscious decisions to ensure you aren’t hurting the environment while you clean.

5 Everyday Items That Can Quietly Boost Your Brand

By Julie Starr • July 17, 2025
The best branding doesn’t always come from big campaigns or expensive graphics. Sometimes it’s the smaller stuff that leaves the biggest impression. Things people actually use, touch, or carry with them. That’s where your brand can quietly make its mark without needing to shout about it. If you’re only focusing on social media and business cards, you’re leaving a lot on the table. Here are five overlooked ways to get your name out there that feel natural, useful, and more personal. Thank-you slips If you’re already sending out orders, there’s no reason not to include a short thank-you slip. You can easily get these made through any decent online print shop , and they’re usually pretty cheap to run off in small batches. Just a simple note that says thanks, maybe with a reminder to follow you online or a cheeky discount code for next time. It’s quick, thoughtful, and makes the whole order feel more finished. Customers notice that kind of detail, especially when everything else they buy online comes with zero personality. You don’t need a complicated design either. Just something clean with your logo, a message that sounds like you, and maybe a social handle. The point is to give them a reason to come back or remember your name without it feeling forced. Branded zip pouches If you sell physical products, offer services, or run events, small zip pouches are surprisingly effective. Think of the kind you’d use for stationery, receipts, or travel bits. You can get your brand printed on the side and hand them out with purchases or include them in welcome packs. People keep them because they’re actually useful. They get tossed in handbags, school bags, or glove boxes and your logo just keeps turning up. Cleaning cloths for glasses or screens This one works brilliantly if you’re in tech, health, beauty, or anything involving screens or eyewear. A simple microfibre cloth with your branding on it can go a long way. Everyone needs one. Whether they use it for glasses, a phone screen, or their laptop, it’s something they hang onto. It’s not the kind of thing people throw away, and that means your name sticks around too. Receipt envelopes You might already use little envelopes to hand over receipts or business cards. Branding those envelopes is a small change that makes a big difference. Instead of someone getting a scruffy bit of paper in a plain sleeve, they’re handed something that feels a bit more finished. You can even add a message inside. Doesn’t need to be anything dramatic. A simple “thanks for visiting” or “see you next time” is enough to add a personal touch. Wet wipes or mini hand gels If your business is in hospitality, food, or anything hands-on, branded wet wipes or pocket-sized hand gels are surprisingly popular. People actually use them, especially at festivals, food stalls, pop-ups, or kids’ events. They end up in handbags or cars and stick around longer than you think. They don’t scream “marketing” either. They’re practical, and when done right, they make your business feel thoughtful. That’s what good branding does, it shows you’ve thought ahead.

How Student-Led ‘Energy Audits’ Are Cutting School Costs (and Lighting the Way Forward)

By Julie Starr • July 14, 2025
What happens when students stop waiting for adults to fix things and start conducting their own energy audits? Money gets saved. The lights get switched off. Data gets analyzed. And a quiet revolution in sustainability begins—inside schools that once overlooked their own inefficiencies. Across the globe, student-led energy audits are proving that change doesn't always need to come from a policy shift or a major capital budget. Sometimes, it begins with a clipboard, a spreadsheet, and a group of curious minds asking: Why are the hallway lights on at noon when sunlight floods the building? The Energy Detectives These audits aren’t science fair projects. They’re rigorous investigations, often done in collaboration with facilities staff, local environmental nonprofits, or even engineering mentors. Students go from classroom to classroom measuring electricity usage, checking for phantom loads , and identifying where heat is escaping in winter or air conditioning is leaking in summer. One high school in Ontario saved over $12,000 a year after its Grade 11 physics students ran an energy audit and suggested simple changes—LED upgrades, motion sensors in bathrooms, and smarter heating schedules. They didn’t just propose ideas. They pitched them with spreadsheets, thermal images, and payback timelines. It worked. Learning That Pays Off—Literally Unlike textbook learning, these audits blend real-world math, environmental science, economics, and persuasive communication. Students aren’t just learning about sustainability. They’re doing it. And the savings add up. From dimming overlit hallways to reprogramming HVAC systems that run all weekend for empty buildings, students are surfacing blind spots that administrators often overlook. In some districts, their findings are influencing energy policy. Elsewhere, the audits have inspired school boards to hire sustainability coordinators—often alumni of the student programs themselves. There’s something poetic about a school funding new books or laptops from money saved by students who found out the vending machines didn’t need to be plugged in 24/7. Why This Matters More Than Ever With education budgets tightening and utility costs rising, every dollar saved is a dollar that can go back into classrooms. And here’s where it gets interesting from a family finance perspective, too. If you’re a parent setting aside money for post-secondary savings, every bit of school efficiency helps. Fewer energy costs might mean more programming, better STEM facilities, or even bursaries. That raises a broader point: when families save for their children’s future, they often look into RESPs (Registered Education Savings Plans). And many wonder—is a RESP deduction available on my taxes? While contributions themselves aren’t deductible, the gains grow tax-free, and students often pay little to no tax when they withdraw the funds during school. A Movement Worth Replicating These audits aren’t just an exercise in environmentalism. They’re leadership labs. Students learn how to spot inefficiencies, speak up in board meetings, and make a business case for change. They don’t just flip switches—they shift mindsets. And they carry these habits into adulthood. The result? A generation growing up not only with climate anxiety, but also with tools to tackle it.