Turning your office into an eco-friendly, sustainable haven is easier than it looks, and it will have lasting benefits for you, your employees, and the planet itself. Reducing or eliminating physical paperwork, upgrading office furniture and supplies to green alternatives, offering incentives for employees to participate in green initiatives, and installing recycling bins around the office are all good ideas for reducing an office's carbon footprint. But how do you make sure you're choosing the right furniture replacement or choosing the best, most affordable renewable energy option? Here are some tips on how to make your office greener.
Invest in better supplies and furniture:
Upgrading your office furniture and supplies to green alternatives is a great way to make your office greener. If you're on a tight replacement budget, it's best to start with smaller, cost-effective changes and work your way up to more important items like computers, desks, and chairs. Biodegradable pens and recycled pencils, nontoxic cleaners, compostable trash bags, and staple-free staplers are quick, easy tools which you can have around the office. If you want to buy an ergonomic office chair at a lower cost, Mychair is a good choice.
Paperless:
In our fast-paced digital world, it's easier than ever to go paperless in your office. Digitized files, cloud storage services, USB drives -- which you can now convert to solar drives -- and online payroll and time cards offer reliable alternatives to their paper-wasting counterparts.
If your job requires using or making paper products, consider purchasing a multifunction printer. Buy recyclable paper if you can, and recycle the ink cartridges when they reach the end of their life.
Switch to a Green Energy Plan:
Renewable energy is surprisingly easy to come by in this day and age. Some basic ways to reduce energy consumption include turning off the thermostat and installing compact fluorescent or LED bulbs. Motion activated lights reduce utility costs and energy consumption by only illuminating rooms that are being used.
In some states, you can buy electricity from an electric provider that offers a range of green energy plans. Solar and wind energy sources are becoming more common and readily available. Some plans may include geothermal or hydroelectric options. As an incentive to buy them, these plans are often priced competitively, meaning you can switch to them with minimal additional costs.