The planet is in trouble. Every day you hear stories on the news of melting ice caps, extinct species, deforestation, and even worse. You can’t reverse these disasters yourself, but you can play a big part, especially where your business is concerned. When you operate your company in an environmentally-conscious way, it has positive effects on the world around, but can also lower operating costs. With that in mind, here are five smart ways to grow a green business.
1. Allow Flexible Work Schedules
The cost of lighting and heating an entire office is huge, which is why many new entrepreneurs try to put it off for as long as possible. Unfortunately, the damage that this space contributes to the planet is also significant. Introducing flexible work policies can remedy this issue. By allowing your team to work from home, even if for only part of the week, you’ll significantly reduce your energy bills. Your team also won’t need to travel to work, which lessens your impact further.
2. Install A Bike Rack
The cars you see commuting to work each morning are one of the biggest contributors to emissions, which cause damage to the ozone layer. If you can’t let your team work from home, then you should at least give them the option to travel to work in a green way by installing a bike rack. This is a relatively small investment, but one that can have positive results for everyone in your business. You can encourage cycling further by offering your team incentives to do so.
3. Switch To Efficient Equipment
Everyone knows that leaving equipment on unnecessarily wastes huge amounts of energy, but few people realize that you can consume more power than you need to even when these tools are in use. To avoid this, you should switch to newer, more efficient devices. Depending on your industry, you might also benefit from investing in condensate return pumps. These expenses will increase costs initially, but you’ll soon make money back in lower energy bills.
4. Sort Through The Trash
Throwing all of your rubbish and junk into a single bin may be convenient for you and your employees, but it isn’t a very ethical decision. After all, many different types of materials can be recycled these days, but, if you put all of your trash in the same place, then it will all go to rubbish dumps. A better choice would be to provide three bins – One for general waste, one of plastic, and another for paper. This ensures that at least some of your waste is disposed of properly.
5. Turn To The Web
Initially, ink and paper may not seem particularly large costs, but, over time, they can have a huge impact on your budget, as well as the planet we call home. For this reason, you should try to limit the amount of paper that your business uses. Instead of printing pamphlets and flyers, you can send marketing emails and link to PDFs on your website. You can also store important documents on the cloud, rather than in filing cabinets, and take notes on phones and tablets.
With these smart tips, you can save money and the planet at the same time.
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