Quick Ways To Reduce Your Business’ Carbon Footprint

Julie Starr • Nov 25, 2020



Any conscientious company should be looking not just at their profitability but also their sustainability. All businesses will impact the world around them, but that impact does not have to be negative. In America, the average footprint for each person is a staggering 16 tons per year. This figure can be lowered by a few quick and simple changes to our business practices. Here are a few simple suggestions that any business can quickly implement to reduce your carbon footprint. 

Streamline Your Online Data

It is hard to imagine, but while an email costs less carbon than a similar size letter, our online use still has a carbon footprint. A Greenpeace report stated that some of the biggest data centers consume the equivalent energy of 180,000 homes within a day because the drivers where cloud data is stored need power and often also need cooling. This has a cost. So if you have multiple duplicates of a file sitting on your companies’ shared files, this does have a cost to your carbon. Every minuscule cost soon adds up. Consulting for cloud environments is a service that will help you streamline your cloud setup and use it most effectively. The added benefit is that the less data stored, the lower your carbon footprint, and the less financial cost occurred as well. 

The Reusables Bin

A recent study by Forbes discovered that, on average, companies recycle 54% of their waste. While this is an increase over recent years, there is room for improvement. If you have a sound system of recycling in place, consider adding a Reusables bin as well. This is for items that might usually be disposed of but could be reused by the company. For instance, paper clips or ring binders can be reused multiple times. If your business prints large quantities of non-confidential paperwork, you could use the paper’s back for scrap notebooks, rather than just throwing them into the recycling. Remember, while recycling is great, it does have a carbon cost, and reusing is a much more efficient way to deal with waste. 

Appoint A Green Champion

The best way to show your commitment to your environment as a business is by investing in it. This doesn’t mean you need to siphon off your profits for tree planting each year (although that could be a great idea). Even just given someone dedicated time within a week to calculate your business carbon footprint and lead any campaigns to reduce the footprint is an investment. A green champion can become well versed in the latest thinking within your industry and ensure that projects are thought through with sustainability in mind. This will prove better in the long run than discovering you have a terrible environmental impact within your supply chain, for instance, and trying to unpick the problem. A green champion can have this cause at the forefront of their mind during planning meetings and can be expected to raise the issue whenever you need to discuss it. 

Finally, remember, as, with any business change, it requires a commitment from the leadership. You need to demonstrate to your colleagues that this is a cherished company value and take reducing your carbon footprint as seriously as increasing your profits.

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.
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