How To Become A More Sustainable Business

Julie Starr • June 22, 2021



As a business owner and company, part of your responsibility is to help make the world and environment a better place. You may have the desire to but are unsure of where to start or what to do to achieve this goal.

Be glad to know there are several ways and steps you can take that will help you become a more sustainable business that you can be proud of. Take it one small step at a time and track your progress so you can see how you’re doing as you go and what you may need to work on and focus on in the future.

Set Goals & Communicate the Initiative

One way to become a more sustainable business is to outline goals for what you want to accomplish in this area. Figure out a game plan and strategy for becoming greener and improving your current practices. For instance, it may be that you want to work with more sustainable businesses or use less energy at your office. Write down your goals and review them often so you can monitor how you’re doing along the way. Once you have a plan in place you should communicate your initiative and objectives to your company and employees so they can help you find success with the ideas you have in place.

Create A Green Team

You may struggle to become a more sustainable business if you’re the only one doing the work. Therefore, consider creating a green team of employees who are passionate about the cause and can help you reach your goals. Let them take charge and figure out how to get more people at your company involved. Give them some direction but then allow them to lead the way and come up with strategies to implement your plan and ensure your business follows through on this important initiative. Brainstorm ways to improve and then work together as a team to turn your ideas into reality.

Do Your Homework

One reason you may be struggling to be more sustainable is that you’re unsure of how to go about it. In this case, it’s best to do your homework and research so you can get some additional ideas and strategies. Study your competitors and find out what other businesses are doing in this area so you can follow suit or come up with other innovative and creative ways to do a better job with this project. Learn from their mistakes and successes and figure out how they’re running a more eco-friendly business and come up with your own model for success.

Bring Your Products & Marketing Online

Another way to become a more sustainable business is to change what you’re doing and how you’re operating. Consider bringing your products and marketing online so you’re using technology and less energy, actual waste, and physical items to run your business. Use your website to market your business instead of printing off flyers and signs. Make sure your website is a success and your message gets out by working with a company like Unravelseo.com that knows how to get you higher up in the search results.

Offer Remote Work

Think about offering remote work at your company to make it more sustainable. This way you don’t have to operate a physical office as much or as frequently and can save money not having to stock, light, and heat your building. You can save on energy and your employees can work at home instead of having to take their cars to work. Having fewer cars on the road is good for the environment and will save your employees time. You may also want to offer public transit commuter benefits for when they do have to come into the office, which is the greenest way to get around. It provides your workers with more flexibility and an opportunity to complete more tasks online and through technology. Make energy-efficient upgrades to your office for the days you do have to spend and work in it.

Reduce, Reuse & Recycle

You should also commit to reducing, reusing, and recycling as a business if you want to run a more sustainable operation. Make sure you have the right tools and set up to see the results you desire and do what’s in your power so you’re not always creating more waste. Make sure you have recycling bins around your office, print less and use technology more, and rethink your packaging and use of plastic. Once you get in the habit it’ll soon become second nature and you won’t have to think so hard to follow through with these practices. Make it a point to use stainable products in and around the office so you’re practicing what you’re preaching. It can be anything from the rolls of toilet paper you buy to the cleaning products that you use. You may also want to consider how you decorate your office and choose to shop and buy second-hand and consignment décor and furniture.

Reward Effort

You can do what’s in your power as a business owner to turn your company around for the better but you may struggle to succeed unless your employees stand behind you and support you. Become a more sustainable business by rewarding any and all effort that’s made by your team and those you work with. Make sure that they know you’re watching and monitoring their actions and hard work. Reward their behaviors as a way to offer positive reinforcement and get them to stick with it in the future.

Conclusion

These tips will help ensure you can become a more sustainable business over time and can thrive in this area. Be patient because it’ll take time to change habits and behaviors and get everyone on board with what you’re trying to achieve. Let these ideas provide you with a starting point for knowing where to begin and how to succeed in this area. Be proud of yourself for making an effort and getting your company on the right track to helping the environment and making the world a better place.

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.