Earth Day Tips For Your Office – Must Read
Earth Day 2023, which falls on April 22nd has the theme “invest in our planet”. Businesses non profits, schools and even individuals can play their part in promoting this social cause to join this environmental movement.
Here are some handy Earth Day tips that you can practice at your office to inspire your team to be ecofriendly both within and outside the office. We have a quick list of custom ecofriendly giveaways as well to complement the theme.
Go Paperless
Offices can reduce paper consumption through online communication and electronic documents. This will help to save millions of trees and the energy it takes to create those paper sheets. If at all you need to take print outs, make sure to print on both sides of the paper and set printer controls to print multiple pages per sheet. You can even include tag lines on e-mails to remind people not to print out messages unnecessarily to highlight your social commitment. Make sure to include notepads made of recycled paper.
Make use of natural light
You can reduce your energy consumption by replacing the old glass into super-insulating glass, which is four times more efficient. Another feasible alternative is to treat windows with a low-emission glaze that reflects long-wave heat rays in sunlight. This in turn will make the interiors cool in summer and help you save on air conditioning costs.
Turn Out the Lights when not in use
Overhead lighting consumes a lot of power in commercial buildings. Replace these lamps with high-performance tubes with electronic ballasts , which will bring down the electric load by around 42 percent. You can also install daylight dimming controls and occupancy sensors to reduce the load. Overhead light sensors will automatically turn the lights on and off based on the sunlight entering from windows or on the movement in a particular area.
Set up a Green Roof
If permissible, cover the building’s roof with plants to keep it cooler. However, green roofs also involve a lot of maintenance as well. So, do your homework before painting your thumb green. If green roof is not a feasible option, consider setting up a green wall with vertical metal panels filled with soil and seeds. It will create a visually pleasing green canopy on the outside of buildings to reduce heat and above all ensure the benefit of home grown fruits, vegetables and herbs.
Use Eco friendly Design Materials
When building or furnishing your offices, consider using recycled materials. Using organic paint, which is biodegradable and emits fewer noxious fumes is another option. You can also use bamboo mats and formaldehyde-free wool carpets that will complement your décor while being easy on the planet.
Purchase Energy Efficient Equipment
Purchase office equipment with low content of dangerous chemicals. From computer hardware to furnishing and stationery, there are a lot of areas where you can ensure energy efficiency by choosing ecofriendly custom giveaways that are safe for not just humans but the world around as well.
In addition, use rechargeable batteries instead of disposable batteries with a huge amount of pollutants. Try to adopt efficient recycling programs for office equipment to prevent it from ending up in land fills. You can even think of installing solar panels to harness the energy. They save you money while charging your equipment.
Tips to consider
Choose energy efficient equipment and electronics with a higher Energy Star rating that denotes low energy consumption. Likewise, use laptops instead of desktop computers as they are more energy efficient. In addition they are portable and ensures work place flexibility for your employees allowing them to work wherever they need. This will even make telecommuting a viable option, which in turn will help your employees save gas and commute time.
Have any other ideas for Earth day celebrations in your office? Share it with us on our facebook page to join an interesting conversation.
