10 ways to improve your eco credentials at work

If we all made a single change, imagine the difference

We Australians spend a huge chunk of our lives working, yet we aren’t always as aware of the carbon footprint we leave behind at work.

The way we lead our lives at both home and work is hugely important. Just one of the points below will help you reduce your carbon footprint, but see if you can get the 10/10.

Think about your transport

You can improve your eco credentials as soon as you step out the front door. Buddy up and carpool with a mate, or catch the local public transport to work. Better still, if you’re close enough, walk or cycle to the office.

Either way, you’ll get to have a chat with a friend, improve your fitness and reduce your carbon footprint, all in one go.

Keep your cup to yourself

Australians love a coffee. Over 46% of the population drink the hot stuff and we throw away 2.7 million disposable cups each day. Yes, that’s right – each DAY!

BYO cup and you may get a discount from your barista, as well as the warm and fuzzies for doing your bit.

Green your space

If you didn’t get any fresh air on your work commute, you can still add greenery to your workspace for aesthetics and better quality air. Plants absorb indoor air pollution and increase the flow of air within the office. Green your space and improve your health!

Stop wasting paper

Australians throw away millions of tonnes of paper each year. We get it; sometimes you just have to press ‘print’ (and those of us in the older age bracket are still slowly moving from hard-copy reliance).

If you find yourself not being able to avoid the print button, make it double-sided, on recycled paper, and recycle your printing once you’ve finished with it.

Recycle ink cartridges

They are a necessity of office life, but you can be smarter with the choices you make with ink cartridges.

Check that your brand of ink is from sustainable resources, and recycle cartridges when you’re done with them. Some ink companies even come and collect your used cartridge for you.

BYO lunch

Pack your own lunch for the day and reduce the amount of disposable plastic in the world. Over 100 billion pieces of disposable plastic cutlery are used and thrown out every year, often ending up in our waterways.

Plus, a home-made meal always tastes better, right?

Say no to plastic water bottles

Bring your bottle from home and refill it with tap water as you need. Pre-packaged water has to be pumped from the ground, packaged, transported and chilled before it gets to us. That’s quite a process only for it to get thrown in the bin!

Say yes to tap.

Digitise, digitise, digitise

The greenest office is a paperless office. We’re living in a digital world and with so many cloud-based options, there’s almost no need to print. Think about what can be stored and managed in the cloud; it’ll not only reduce paper, but also remove the clutter in your office.

Turn it off!

Sleep is overrated when it comes to your computer. Many of us think that we’re doing the right thing by putting our screens into sleep mode when we leave for the day, but the reality is that it just doesn’t cut it.

If you’re going to be away for more than two hours, then shut your computer down. More than 20 minutes? Feel free to hit snooze. Being more conscious about power consumption means that you’ll conserve our natural resources and keep that carbon footprint down. It also means your computer will have the opportunity to take some much-needed time out so it can perform the following day, saving time and money over the longer term.

Energy audits

Maybe there’s a whole lot more that can be done in your office, but you don’t know how or where to start? An energy audit could be the way to go.

Some Solar Installers will undertake an energy audit using a data logger<link to relevant question in FAQs>. It will pinpoint your peak consumption periods and highlight any energy loss within your building. This will give you a good foundation on which to build your energy efficiency plan.

Do you have any more tips?

We’d love to know your thoughts and tips for an eco friendly workplace! Comment below and let us know your tips for reducing your carbon footprint – we love new ideas!