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.

< Older Post

Newer Post >

Simple Steps To Make Your Office Space More Eco-Friendly

By Julie Starr • 07 Oct, 2024

Becoming more eco-friendly and running a greener business is a responsibility that business owners really need to think more about. The good news is that if you spend a lot of time in your office, there are plenty of ways to make it more eco-friendly without having to overhaul everything and start again (which isn’t just disruptive, but expensive too). So, if you’re ready to get started, here are some simple steps to make your office space more eco-friendly; read on to find out more. Use Energy-Efficient Lighting This idea is a simple one that you can do no matter what else might be on your list of tasks - it’s quick, easy, and really makes a difference; change your light bulbs to something more energy efficient. If you’re still using traditional fluorescent bulbs, it’s time to upgrade to LED which doesn’t just last longer, but also uses a lot less energy. They’re easy to install and they’ll help you cut down on your office’s energy usage almost instantly. If possible, you should make the most of natural light too, so think about rearranging your workspace to let in more sunlight, which saves energy and can boost your mood - it’s a win-win that you can do right away. Prioritize Air Quality The air you breathe matters, and keeping it clean can do wonders for your health and the planet. One way to improve air quality is by adding plants to your workspace because plants are natural air purifiers, and as a bonus, they’ll make your office feel more inviting. Another great idea is to make sure your office’s HVAC system is working efficiently, and having air duct cleaning done by professionals is an easy step you can take to improve air quality and ensure your heating and cooling systems aren’t wasting energy. Clean air ducts mean cleaner air, less strain on your system, and even lower energy bills, so it’s a simple but really effective thing to do. Switch To Reusable Products If your office is still stocking up on single-use plastic items, it’s time for a change - swap your disposable cups, utensils, and plates for reusable ones and you’ll be surprised at how much waste to eliminate. And what about encouraging people to bring their own mugs and water bottles to work? Give them tea, coffee, and water to refill everything with, and you’ll be doing your bit to help the planet and have less waste to deal with as well. And don’t stop with these things either - there are loads of reusable products that could be useful in your office. You could have refillable pens and ink cartridges for your printer, for example. Go Paperless Speaking of your printer, is that an office machine you actually need? If you were to go digital and aim for a paperless office , you might be able to do away with the printer, which means less money spent on ink and paper, and less energy used altogether. You should be able to set up a system where documents can be shared online and stored electronically, and there are plenty of tools around to help you do exactly that (and much more). If you don’t need to print something and you don’t need a physical copy of a document, don’t make one - just use the digital version instead and you’ll be a lot more eco-friendly.

3 Most Unsustainable Industries & What They're Doing To Be More Eco-Conscious

By Julie Starr • 04 Oct, 2024

Sustainability often gets pushed on the common person. Joe Public is told to be more sustainable with their daily habits as the government pushes for more eco-friendly measures. This is all well and good - but does it really matter when 71% of greenhouse gas emissions come from just 100 companies around the world? Small business owners are desperate to prove their sustainability, but what are bigger companies in some of the most polluting industries doing to help? We’ve taken three of the least sustainable sectors on the planet and explored the unique ways they’re trying to cut down on emissions and be more eco-friendly. Mining Any industry revolving around drilling underground will not be very environmentally friendly! Mining causes a lot of pollution, but its unsustainability often comes from the way it damages local environments and ecosystems. So, what is this industry doing to change things? It’s largely focusing on more responsible mining practices to reduce waste and mitigate the impact on local environments. This is done through mining dust suppression systems to prevent airborne pollution, reforesting mining sites when they’re no longer in use, and recycling as many materials as possible. Is it perfect? No, but it’s a step in the right direction. Fossil Fuels Shock horror; the fossil fuels industry is the most damaging to our environment. Finding ways to change the scope of this sector is the key to ensuring a better future for all. Some companies in this industry are trying to do this through carbon capture and storage. This is a technique where CO2 emissions are captured before they’re released into the atmosphere and stored underground. Realistically, the main thing fossil fuel companies should be doing is pushing for more renewable energy sources. Many are doing this - though reports suggest they’re not investing as much as they should. If fossil fuel companies dumped more money into developing biofuels and other renewable sources, pollution from this industry would drop dramatically. Fashion The most unbelievable stat to take from this post is that the fashion industry is responsible for 10% of our global carbon footprint . That’s remarkable (and worrying), considering how most of us don’t view it as a “dangerous” industry. Fast fashion is the main problem; poorly-made goods are pumped out at a rapid rate, and consumers constantly buy new things. Fashion companies are trying their best to resolve this. Most big brands will now have sustainable lines using recyclable materials. Consumers also hold the key to solving this problem: stop buying new clothes all the time and wear yours for longer. Or buy pre-owned clothes to slow down the fashion production line. Companies can still do more as well: they are trying to adopt more eco-friendly production processes that use less water and energy. The moral of this post is that everyone can do their bit to fight for a more sustainable future. Keep this in mind for your small business . It doesn’t matter what industry you’re in; there will always be ways to promote eco-friendly practices.