Make It Your Business to Place the Environment First

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Whether you run a small business or a much larger-sized one, what you do both in and out of your office can and typically does have an impact on the environment.

With that being the case, is 2016 the year you and your staff look for ways to do your parts to make the environment better off?

If you stop and think about it for a moment, there are myriad of ways just one employer can help make the planet and little healthier and last a little longer.

Stumped on how to go about this?

As many big-name brand makers have shown over the years, there are countless ways to make the environment a little healthier and safer for all. As a result, your business can learn some lessons from these companies and implement your own environmental initiatives.

Are You Doing Your Part for the Planet?

Keep some of the following ideas in mind to do your part for the planet everyone calls home:

  • Put a plan in motion – In order to do your company’s part for the environment, get together with your staff and decide the best options available to each and every one of you in the office. Will you be in charge of the environmental plan or will you outsource it to one or members of your office team? Instead of trying to wing it, have a steady plan (see more below) in place which will benefit and encourage each and every staff member;
  • Where to start? – Once your plan is in place, you should have a better idea of where to get going. One idea is recycling in the workplace. You might want to consider having recycling bins in the office where all employees can dump bottles and cans when they’re finished with them. Once a month or at other intervals, the bins can be taken to a local recycling center and dumped. In some cases, your office may get some money in return for the monthly recycling efforts. Do you typically go through a ton of paper in your office? If so, make sure you are recycling it when done with. Always do your best to use both sides of the paper so that you are not going through reams of paper on a regular basis. Another option is to consider going to a 4-day/10-hour a day work schedule, especially in the summer. In doing so, you can keep the office closed one week day each week. This not only will cut down on your electric bill, but also help the environment by not having the air condition blasting one day a week. Is it truly necessary for all your employees to come to the office five days a week? If not, consider offering some telecommuting options, though be very clear on how this will work to avoid any jealousy in the office that this employee can work from home one day a week and this other one can’t. Getting employees off the roads even one day a week is less emissions for the environment. You can also encourage employees to ride mass transit, once again keeping one more car or SUV at home during the workday;
  • How to encourage – Like so many other things you either have in place or try to get going in your office, it sometimes takes a little incentive for employees to truly get on board. When it comes to recycling and other such measures to assist the environment, give your workers some motivation. You can have a contest each month wherein the employee doing the most to recycle bottles, cans, paper etc. wins a prize. You can also ask employees (within reason) to turn the office thermometer down a bit in the winter and up a little more in the summer to save on heating and cooling. Lastly, encourage your employees to pass the recycling tips on to friends and family members at home. This is another option where you could have a prize for the employee’s family which turns in the most recyclables to a local recycling center each month.

There are endless ways for your business to make a positive impact on the environment.

The only question now is, are you ready to do your part?

About the Author: Dave Thomas covers business and environmental issues on the web.

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