The document discusses strategies for promoting sustainability in the office, emphasizing the economic and environmental benefits of adopting green practices. Key measures include saving electricity, paper, and water, as well as encouraging the use of sustainable materials and promoting a circular economy. It highlights that being sustainable can enhance employee satisfaction and retention, while providing financial savings and boosting organizational reputation.

1. Going Green at the Office
Summary from December 2010, Revised August 2015
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2. Table of Contents
Other Interesting Facts.....................................................................................................................................5
Saving Electricity ............................................................................................................................................7
Saving Paper....................................................................................................................................................9
Saving Water .................................................................................................................................................10
Plants..............................................................................................................................................................11
News and Information....................................................................................................................................15
Certifications..................................................................................................................................................16
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3. General Information
The economy is embedded in the environment (Lovins, Lovins & Hawken, p. 6). University of Oregon found
that a strong environmental rating is a “consistent predictor of profitability” (Lovins, Lovins & Hawken, p. 14).
Environmental performance should be a business measure and tied to rewards.
Sustainability is “meeting your current needs while allowing future generations the capacity to meet theirs”
(Swallow, p. 10). Sustainability looks at how to add value to the organization, employee, customer, and
community.
Most people think that going green or being sustainable is costly, but it can save money, lower risks, and add
great value to the company by creating loyal customers and employees who are proud to work for their
organization. If you are uncomfortable with the word sustainability try substituting resilience. It is all about
making your organization and the community stronger.
Background Information:
• Reduce, reuse, and recycle is listed in the order of least environmental impact. Why reuse before
recycle? It takes more resources to recycle an item than it does to reuse it. A great article on reducing
and reusing by the EPA can be found at: http://www2.epa.gov/recycle/reducing-and-reusing-basics
• Three P’s of Sustainability or Triple Bottom Line are People, Planet and Profit. Sustainability is the
intersection of people, planet and profit. Sustainable Development is commercial achievement linked to
ecological and social success (Swallow, p. 10).
• Ecoefficient is a management philosophy where you produce goods and services that use fewer
resources.
o Do more with less-decrease use of energy, water, land, etc.
o Reduce waste
o Enhance a product’s functionality-focus on selling customers only what they need and creating
products with longer lives and more adaptability (Swallow, p. 20).
• The filled in symbol means the product was made from recycled materials.
• The three arrows by themselves mean that a product can be recycled and for plastics the number
inside the arrows is the type of plastic (many areas only recycle #1 and #2 plastics). Plastic caps or any
plastic not marked are not recyclable.
• RCP stands for recycled content product.
• Biomimicry is imitating biological solutions in the design of products and processes. See
www.biomimicryinstitute.org or www.biomimicryguild.com.
• Upcycled is using waste materials as components of new products or reuse discarded objects or
materials in such a way as to create a product of a higher quality or value.
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4. • Closed-loop manufacturing is zero-waste production based on constant recycling of materials.
• Used as a carbon off-set, green tags do not directly provide green power, but purchasing green tags
represents a certain number of kilowatts per hour of renewable energy (allows you to provide capitol for
the energy).
• Cradle to Cradle is a product design strategy where things are designed as a whole system, instead of a
sum of parts. Designers create things, so at the end of a product’s life all of its components (both
biological and technical) can have a new life (so all outputs become inputs for other processes).
www.mbdc.com
o Biological nutrients-decompose organically
o Technical nutrients-can be easily extracted (like ores or synthetics) to be reused in the
manufacturing process
• Standard product life cycle has many opportunities to be more sustainable. It consists of extracting or
producing raw materials, manufacturing or assembling the product, distributing the product, using the
product and disposing of the product.
• Reuse and the circular economy are connected. Reuse plays a large role in the circular economy where
products are designed for longevity with multiple reuse and eventual recycling (Houten, 2014). A
circular economy is an economic system in which materials are not wasted, because products are
designed and built to be part of a network where reuse and refurbishment of a product, component, or
material assures a continuous cycle of resources (Houten, 2014).
Why do we need to reuse more and move towards a circular economy? According to the Ellen
McArthur Foundation, in the next 15 years three billion additional middle class consumers will flood the
marketplace (n.d.)! A new way to meet everyone’s demand is necessary. Additional global trends in
resource constraints, emerging technologies, increasing urbanization, and new legislation around waste
regulation are also causing a shift towards a circular economy (Ellen McArthur Foundation, n.d.).
In Phoenix we currently have a 17% diversion rate (which is the percent of total waste that doesn’t go to
the landfill) with a waste reduction goal of 40% by 2020. Recycling is not the only answer to reduce
waste. To achieve this goal we need to incorporate reuse by considering what we buy and what we do
with it when we no longer need it. Can a product have a longer life through repair? Can it be reused?
• Sustainable materials
o Sustainably grown, harvested or manufactured locally
o Nontoxic and natural (do not contain artificial ingredients)
o High recycled content
o Easily reused or recycled at the end of the product’s life
o Low or no ongoing maintenance
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5. • Estimated 60 to 70 million American consumers now make purchasing decisions based on a product’s
sustainable or health characteristics (Swallow, p. 198). Besides product or service performance, quality,
and price consumers are looking at:
o How a product is made
o What a product is made of
o Amount of packaging
o Recyclability
o Seller or manufacturer’s practices
o Origin of the product-made locally
o Whether it is tested on animals (Swallow, p. 15).
• For businesses to be successful in the long term, they need to be prepared for changes in natural capital
(especially fresh water and fossil fuels) (Swallow, p. 13). Are your products, services and facilities
poised competitively for a resource-constrained future? Examples of some current or upcoming
legislation:
o Tax incentives for renewal energy, waste-reduction systems, green buildings and water
conservation.
o Taxes on carbon emissions and waste-stream creations.
o Trade policies that favor local economic development and alternative fuels (Swallow, p. 13).
• Being sustainable can create a desirable workplace, increasing employee retention (Swallow, p. 22):
o Link sustainability with pride (employees can become more invested in the company).
o Enhance employee productivity (higher levels of satisfaction and LEED-accredited buildings can
have benefits such as reduced absenteeism).
o Provides passion in the workplace.
o Encourage innovation--How can your company help people and the planet?
Other Interesting Facts
• The U.S. has one of the highest per capita greenhouse gas emission rates in the world. By 2020,
emissions from electricity could be as much as 160% higher than in 1990 (McCay, Bonnin & Wallace,
p. 73).
• The energy from waste heat by U.S. power plants equals the total energy use of Japan (Lovins, Lovins &
Hawken, p. 11).
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6. • A computer left on all day everyday in a year will use nearly 1,000 kilowatts of electricity resulting in
more than a ton of carbon emissions (McCay, Bonnin & Wallace, p. 21).
• “In U.S. offices, 30-40% of PCs are left running overnight and at weekends—using as much energy as
2.5 million cars” (Yarrow, p. 95). “Americans spend about $4 billion a year on electricity for things they
are not using” (Bach, p. 43).
• Even though 70% of the planet is water, less than 1% is available for human use (Bach, p. 52).
• Swiss Re, a European reinsurer, is seeking to cut their storm damage losses by pressing for public policy
to protect the climate and by investing in climate-safe technologies (Lovins, Lovins & Hawken, p. 14).
• The consulting firm, Arthur D. Little, found that 83% of North American and European business leaders
believe that they can derive “real business value from implementing a sustainable-development
approach to strategy and operations” (Lovins, Lovins & Hawken, p. 15).
• “Eighty-one percent of U.S. respondents said they would prefer to work for a company that is has a good
reputation for environmental responsibility, according to the 2007 Corporate Environmental Behavior
and the Impact on Brand Values survey” (Fox, p. 47).
• “According to a 2006 poll by Mortgage Lenders Network USA, 94% of Americans would prefer to
work in a building designed to be energy-efficient and ecologically sound.
• If workers are more comfortable, better able to see, and less fatigued by noise, their productivity and the
quality of their output will rise. Eight case studies of people working in well-designed, energy-efficient
buildings measured labor productivity gains of 6% to 16% (Lovins, Lovins & Hawken, p. 8).
• The Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory conducted a study that found the estimated potential
savings from better indoor environments are $6-14 billion from reduced respiratory disease, $1-4 billion
from reduced allergies and asthma, $10-30 billion from reduced “sick building syndrome,” and $20-160
billion from direct improvements in worker performance unrelated to health (Bach, p. 114).
• In the U.S., 110,000 toxic chemicals are legally cleared for use, but only 5% have been tested by the
EPA for their effect on human health (Swallow, p. 29).
• In the U.S. building, operating and renovating structures accounts for 47% of greenhouse gas emissions,
transportation 27% and the rest is mainly from large-scale agricultural, deforestation and industrial
production (Swallow, p. 31).
Reusing
An unwanted item can go in the trash to the landfill. Or you can reuse or upcycle it. You can also donate it! A
donated item can generate revenue for a nonprofit and make people happy by helping them out with an item
they need. It can also be tax deductible. Learn more about becoming a Reuse Hero at these links:
https://www.haikudeck.com/p/XsuFCGytx9/how-to-become-a-reuse-hero or https://voice.adobe.com/a/REMvB
There are numerous organizations to donate items to. Below are three for the Phoenix area that you might not
have heard of:
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7. • Treasures 4 Teachers accepts and can pick up standard office supplies donations, but they also accept
manufacturing cast offs! http://www.treasures4teachers.org/ or
http://www.slideshare.net/sarahlyon12/treasures-4-teachers-slide-show-for-business-donations.
• Remodeling? Stardust Building Supplies accepts cabinets, fixtures, appliances and other building
material for reuse. They also offer a free deconstruction service. http://www.stardustbuilding.org/.
• AZStRUT or Students Recycling Used Technology accepts almost all electronic equipment, except
CRT monitors. http://www.azstrut.org/
Some cities have material exchanges for businesses to find used materials. Online see RepurposedMaterials
http://www.repurposedmaterialsinc.com/about-repurposed-materials-inc/ where you can sign up for a free
newsletter that has unusual reused products you can buy or post for sale.
To learn more about reuse go to http://reusephoenix.weebly.com/.
Recycling
• Recycling in your area see www.earth911.org, includes listings for recycling fluorescent light bulbs
(usually Home Depot or Lowes are the closet locations). The bulbs contain a small amount of mercury and
virtually all components--the metal end cap, glass tubing, mercury and phosphor powder can be separated and
reused.
• Rechargeable batteries from phones, camcorders, etc.: 1-800-8battery or www.rbrc.org.
• Computers: See AZStRUT above to reuse first. To recycle Dell Reconnect through local Goodwills
accept any brand of used computer equipment in any condition. They also accept just about anything
that can be connected to a computer. You can see where and what your Goodwill and Dell accepts
here: http://www.dellreconnect.com/.
• EPA source for e-waste recyclers http://www2.epa.gov/recycle/electronics-donation-and-recycling.
• Cellular recycling: www.charitablerecycling.com.
• Foam packing: http://www.epspackaging.org/info.html or take foam peanuts and packing material to
local mail box stores.
• Cardboard boxes: http://www.usedcardboardboxes.com/ or http://www.boxcycle.com/.
Saving Resources (Including money!)
Eliminate all activity the customer would not want to pay for.
Saving Electricity
• A 2007 poll commissioned by Sun Microsystems, Inc found that only 42% of workers turn off lights
and 34% turn off their computers when they are done working. If workers did do that, 4.3 billion
dollars in energy costs would be saved along with 32 million tons of carbon emissions (Bach, p. 114).
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8. • Install “smart strip” power strips. When the main device (such as a computer) plugged into the strip is
off, these strips turn off the energy flow saving up to 75% of energy that was wasted (Swallow, p. 105).
• Replace office equipment with Energy Star rated ones www.energystar.gov. An example of savings, an
energy star rated monitor can use 90% less electricity than one without power management (Swallow, p.
100).
• General Electric changed its computer settings and now saves 6.5 million dollars in electricity costs a
year (Bach, p. 119).
o Note screen savers do not save energy, so have computers automatically go into sleep mode with
ten minutes of inactivity.
o A laptop consumes 90% less energy than a desktop computer (Yarrow, p. 94).
o Flat LCD screens use 30% less energy (Yarrow, p. 94).
• “Inkjet printers use 10-15 watts, but laser printers use 60-100 watts. Even when on standby, laser
printers can use 30-35% of their peak power requirements” (Yarrow, p. 96).
o Duplex models (prints on both sides) reduce paper use and energy consumption by around 25%
(Yarrow, p. 97).
• Look for photocopiers with an auto off, which can reduce the copier’s energy consumption by 60%
(Yarrow, p. 96).
• Use motion sensors to turn off lights.
• Use light sensor switches for outdoor lights, which come on when it gets dark and turn off when it gets
light. Also, use solar lights for outside lighting when possible.
• Change any flickering fluorescent lights, because these waste energy.
• Switch from ordinary lighting ballasts to electric ballasts that automatically dim the lights to match
available daylight.
• Equip standard office-lighting circuits with fatter wire that reduces electrical resistance.
• Switch from ordinary motors to premium-efficiency motors.
• Use on-demand or solar water heaters.
• Besides making sure the building is insulated well, heating and cooling system ducts and water pipes
should also be insulated.
• Use a heat-recovery system, which is a coil installed in the water outflow drain that absorbs heat from
hot water and circulates it back into the building.
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9. • Do not heat or cool storerooms and corridors unnecessarily or on weekends and holidays.
• Even a few degrees can have dramatic energy savings, thermostat settings should be at most 64 degrees
in the winter and 78 in the summer.
• Upgrade windows and doors to efficient models, weatherize them, and use automated shades.
• Update roofing material from heat-absorbing asphalt.
• Re-position what you can to off-peak hours.
• Have employees telecommute http://www.telcoa.org/.
• For information on state, local utility and federal incentives that promote renewal energy see
www.dsireusa.org.
• Learn how to switch to green power (which does not include dam power)
www.eere.energy.gov/greenpower (www.eere.energy.gov also has information on alternative energy
technologies).
• Most power companies will do one free energy audit.
Saving Paper
• Dow Europe cut office paper flow by 30% in six weeks by discouraging unneeded information (Lovins,
Lovins & Hawken, p. 9). Senders of memos and reports got back receipts letting them know if the
recipient really wanted the information.
• Copy and print on both sides of the paper. Set the default on office printers and copiers to double-sided
mode.
o AT&T did that and reduced paper costs by 15% (Lovins, Lovins & Hawken, p. 9).
o It takes ten times more energy to produce a piece of paper as it does to place an image on one
(Swallow, p. 110).
• Have computers and/or projector available at meetings (instead of paper handouts).
• Email, circulate or post information rather than printing it for everyone.
• Use undated, erasable wall calendars.
• Reduce business junk mail received www.ecologicalmail.org (this service is free, but might take up to
six months) or http://your.kingcounty.gov/solidwaste/nwpc/ (see the Reduce Business Junk Mail link).
• Get green printing software, which will identify and eliminate unnecessary pages (like web banners),
convert files to PDF for easy file sharing, and track costs. The average savings per user is $90 and 1,400
pieces of paper a year (Swallow, p. 117). www.printgreener.com
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10. Saving Water
• Use water reducing fixtures and plumbing, such as dual-flush toilets, waterless urinals, low-flow faucets,
etc.
• Use drought resistant and native plants in landscaping. According to the Arizona Department of Water
Resources, a 50 x 30 foot grass yard requires about 24,000 gallons of water and a xeriscaped yard
requires only 6,000.
o In Arizona, see
http://www.azwater.gov/AzDWR/StatewidePlanning/Conservation2/LandscapePros/PlantLists_
Landscaping.htm for a list of draught resistant plants, shrubs, and trees.
o Native plants see www.abnativeplants.com.
• Mulch around plants to help retain moisture.
• Use trees and shrubs to be energy efficient.
• Use soaker hoses connected to timers (set to go off early morning) instead of sprinklers.
• If your roof is flat plant a green roof (provides excellent insulation and reduces storm water runoff)
www.greenroofs.org.
• Connect downspouts to a barrel to collect rainwater, install a rainwater harvesting system (to use in
toilets.
• Build a hydroponic pond, which is a system that recycles graywater and stormwater runoff into clean
liquid by using bacteria, snails, plants, etc. Water efficient and beautiful.
Indoor Environment
Proper ventilation is the key to indoor air quality, but reducing contaminants is also important. Traditional
office furniture can give off air pollutants through the emissions of their glues and finishes (for great eco-
friendly office furniture see www.hermanmiller.com). Some cleaning supplies can also be harmful. Try to buy
environmentally friendly products to improve indoor air quality, which will lower worker health and safety
issues and disposal costs. Some chemicals and things to avoid:
• Brominated flame-retardants: found in plastics for computer casings, white goods, car interiors, carpets,
foams and bedding (the dust is linked to cancer) (Jeffrey, Barclay & Grosvenor, p. 40).
• Perfluorochemicals: acids used in the manufacture of clothing, stain-resistant materials and cosmetics
(linked to cancer and liver damage) (Jeffrey, Barclay & Grosvenor, p. 40).
• Phthalates: used as softeners in PVC, cosmetics and perfumes (can disrupt hormones) (Jeffrey, Barclay
& Grosvenor, p. 40).
• Volatile organic compounds (VOCs): smell (stronger when the materials are new) from synthetic carpet,
furniture made from particleboard, cleansers, paints, air fresheners, etc. (causes eye and respiratory
10

11. irritation, headaches and dizziness) (Jeffrey, Barclay & Grosvenor, p. 62). Look for no VOC paint and
opt for natural wood finishes.
Plants
• Act as natural air filters, absorbing airborne pollutants and computer radiation while replenishing
oxygen levels.
• Air coolers, because of the evaporative transpiration process.
• Help protect against germs. Research showing plants reduce the incidence of fatigue, coughs sore throats
and other cold-related illnesses (McCay, Bonnin & Wallace, p. 19).
• Reduce stress levels.
Green Building
• Green buildings can be on average up to 30% more energy efficient than traditional buildings (Swallow,
p. 154).
o Excellent return on investment with some green features saving money over the next 75 to 100
years.
o Enhances employee health, happiness and productivity.
o Opportunity to get recognition for your green efforts.
o Obtain stakeholder interest and respect.
• U.S Green Building Council www.usgbc.org is in charge of the LEED certification.
o Professionals that know about LEED are LEED Accredited Professionals (AP).
o Many certification options, including LEED-CI for commercial buildings, LEED-H for hoes,
LEED-ND for new construction and major renovation.
o Six categories (sustainable site, water conservation, energy and atmosphere, materials and
resources, indoor environmental quality, and green design innovation) where you can get points
in to reach a certification level of LEED certified, LEED Silver, LEED Gold or LEED Platinum.
o Certification means that your building will be listed on the LEED national registry of buildings,
you get a plaque, and some free publicity.
o LEED certification can be very costly and time consuming, so many people opt to follow the
standards but not go through the certification process.
• Cascadia Region Green Building Council’s website has information on living buildings
http://www.cascadiagbc.org/lbl.
o Smart shades-automatically curl up in the winter and expand in the summer.
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12. o Windows with carbon-dioxide sensors-an electric current activated by carbon dioxide makes
small slits etched into the windows open, then when enough air has come in the slits close.
• To find used building materials try: www.habitat.org (restores), http://planetreuse.com/ or in Phoenix
see http://www.stardustbuilding.org/.
• Sustainable deconstruction is also important. A few examples:
o Use a crusher on-site to recycle shingles, concrete stone, etc. to reuse as landscaping and filler.
o Use excavated materials for contouring and landscaping (create sound and privacy barriers)
(Swallow, p. 178).
o Donate materials whenever possible (see main bullet above on used building materials (also take
donations) or the Reusing section).
Food and Beverages
• Encourage your cafeteria to donate any unused food. Food waste decomposes and can produce methane.
Methane is a greenhouse gas 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide and can contaminate ground
water (McCay, Bonnin & Wallace, p. 91).
• Worm farms can be used to decompose unused food safely http://woodwormfarms.com/.
• More than 76 tons of packaging and containers (over 500 pounds for every person) are thrown away
each year. Less than half are recycled (McCay, Bonnin & Wallace, p. 113).
• Sodexho and other cafeteria providers have used organic or locally grown foods.
• Use reusable containers, silverware, cups, plates, etc. when possible.
• In 2006, North Americans spent $15 billion on bottled water (you could run 100,000 cars for a year on
the amount of oil required to make the plastic used for bottled water) (Bach, p. 14).
o Twenty-four percent of bottled water is tap water repackaged (Bach, p. 14).
o Bottled water can cost 2,500 to 10,000 times more than tap water.
o Bottled water is not necessarily purer water, since federal standards are higher for tap water than
for bottled (Bach, p. 15).
The proportion of plastic recycled in the U.S. is only about 6% of the nearly 30 million tons thrown
away each year (McCay, Bonnin & Wallace, p. 87).
• Vending Machines:
o Vending Miser-smart sensor that predicts when people will be away for long periods, so that
food are cold only when they need to be.
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13. o Ven Natural and Yo-Naturals are eco-friendly healthier vending fare.
Procurement
To complete the recycling cycle (create a demand for reuse and recycling) buy products that can be reused and
recycled products.
Only 1% of all the materials used to serve the U.S. are actually made into products and still in use six months
after sale (Lovins, Lovins & Hawken, p. 11).
Measure products by their life-cycle cost rather than their initial cost (can save money in the long run!).
Example, one pack of six refillable AusPens markers with refills included, equals 246 disposable ones (another
benefit is that they do not increase indoor air pollution).
• Try to buy new paper that is made from recycled paper rather than virgin fibers. Recycled paper uses up
to 90% less water and half the energy to make, yet only 10% of the over 12 million tons of printing and
writing paper is made with recycled content (McCay, Bonnin & Wallace, p. 28).
o Look for post-consumer waste content ideally 100%.
o Try to purchased unbleached paper or for white paper PCF (processed chlorine free) or TCF
(totally chlorine free).
o If you have to purchase virgin paper, look for the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification
(means it was harvested responsibly).
• Napkins, toilet paper & bathroom paper make up 1/3 volume of office waste. Choose recycled or
reusable & laundered roll towels.
• Buy things in bulk (like double-size toilet paper rolls) and in refillable containers.
• Fix things and make sure new purchases can be repaired or will last a long time. Buy and use reusables:
o Refillable pens and pencils
o Tape dispensers
o Rewritable CDs and DVDs
o Toner cartridges
o Rechargeable batteries (also get solar powered battery chargers).
• Try leasing products rather than buying them. Example Interface, Inc. leases carpet tiles and the
company is then in charge of replacing and recycling worn tiles. Utility over ownership also allows for
an immediate deduction, which can lower taxable income saving on taxes.
• For business travel right now, the sustainable leaders in airlines are Continental and Virgin Atlantic. In
hotels the leaders are Marriott and Doubletree (if you are staying multiple nights, reuse your linens and
towels). To find out more go to:
o www.environmentallyfriendlyhotels.com
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14. o www.greenhotels.com
o www.allstays.com
o www.specialplacestostay.com
o To find a green car service try www.ozocar.com.
o Details on public transportation in major cities across the U.S. www.hopstop.com.
o Company cars: research emission and fuel ratings www.epa.gov/emissweb and hybrid car
website www.hybridcars.com.
• Comprehensive Procurement Guidelines www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/procure/database.htm.
• Office Depot/Office Max has a Green Book of products
http://www.officedepot.com/a/browse/greeneroffice/N=5+11332/.
• Screened and approved green businesses www.greenpages.org.
• www.greenguard.org or http://productguide.ulenvironment.com/QuickSearch.aspx The world's largest
guide for selecting low-emitting products and materials.
• Comprehensive overview of green online shopping www.thepurplebook.com.
• To find local vendors try local chapter of Business Alliance for Local Living Economies
www.livingeconomies.org.
Business Resources
• To help with company reporting www.globalreporting.org.
• Resource for business guidance www.epa.gov/climateleaders.
• ISO14000-Environmental Assessment systems www.iso.org.
• Independent non-profit organization that can certify products from coffee filters to air chillers:
www.greenseal.org (also has a list of certified green products and services).
• The EPA has a free program for businesses to help them reduce waste:
www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/reduce/wstewise/index.htm.
• Companies to benchmark
o Unilever
o SC Johnson
o GE
o Google
o Office Depot
o Interface (carpet)
o Patagonia
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15. o Herman Miller
o Nike
Creating a Sustainability Plan (Swallow, p. 52):
1. Create a “green team” that includes people from various departments and people with authority.
2. From a sustainability perspective, assess your current strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities.
3. Identify target groups, examples customers-pass on a conservation ethic, employees-enhance employee
health and well-being or organizational governance-designate how culture of responsibility is developed
and who is accountable for tracking.
4. Choose key performance indicators and conduct a baseline assessment, examples carbon emitted per
unit sold, energy usage or waste created per square foot of facilities or greenhouse gas emissions per
employee.
5. Prioritize the plan by deciding what fits in best with the company’s goals and budget and the speed of
implementation.
o Make sure the cost-benefit analysis makes sense, so you can show the cost savings from the early
efforts.
o Implement changes that are easy and that do not require many behavior changes first.
6. Communicate the plan to employees and stakeholders.
News and Information
• www.guardian.co.uk/environment
• www.theecologist.org
• www.greenbiz.com
• www.sustainableindustries.com
• http://www.environmentalleader.com/ (sign up for a free daily email newsletter)
• http://www.corporateecoforum.com/ (sign up for a free weekly newsletter)
To find out about green company stocks:
• www.coopamerica.org (go to the social investing section)
• www.socialinvest.org
• www.sustainability-index.com
For voting information go to the League of Conservation voters website www.lcv.org. For government
legislative activity type in green or sustainable in http://thomas.loc.gov/.
Author website David Bach www.greengreen.com.
Green Phoenix Organizations
• Green Chamber: Greater Phoenix http://www.thegreenchamber.org/.
• Arizona Recycling Coalition http://www.arizonarecyclingcoalition.org/.
• Arizona Green Living Magazine http://www.greenlivingaz.com/events/.
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16. Other sources:
• Business for Social Responsibility www.bsr.org.
• Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economics www.ceres.org.
• U.S. Business Council for Sustainable Development www.usbcsd.org .
• Social Venture Network www.svn.org website includes sustainable case studies, standards and best
practices.
• Green directory www.ecobusinesslinks.com.
• Join business leaders to solve sustainability challenges www.netimpact.org.
• EPA Green Work Tips www.epa.gov/epahome/workplac.htm (including tips for setting up a home
office).
• Centre for Sustainable Design www.cfsd.org.uk.
• Environmental issues related to printing, publishing and packing industry: Printers National
Environmental Assistance Center http://www.pneac.org/.
• Sustainable Packaging Coalition www.sustainablepackaging.org.
• For green marketing information LOHAS (Lifestyle of Health and Sustainability) Consumer Reports
www.lohas.com.
• Reuse Alliance http://reusealliance.org/, Reuse International http://www.reuse.international/, and Reuse
Institute http://www.reuseinstitute.org/.
• Keep America Beautiful, Recycling at Work http://recyclingatwork.org/.
Certifications
• B Corporation Certification www.bcorporation.net is a third-party certification for businesses who
change the way they do business and embrace the sustainability model (business plan should reflect
benefit to all stakeholders not just to shareholders).
• Green America Seal of Approval www.greenamericatoday.org can be obtained if an organization
demonstrates a commitment to corporate social responsibility. First sign up for the Green Business
Network (Support Us link). One of the benefits is that approved companies are listed in the National
Green Pages.
Getting Employees on Board
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17. • Clearly communicate your green mission, the practical benefits of saving energy, and the importance of
preparing for the future changes in resource availability.
o Communicate to your partners, community and employees (including new employees).
o Designate (people who are passionate) employees to handle questions.
o Some campaign ideas: “Respect our Earth” or “Saving Our Planet.”
• Communicate the baseline results, provide regular updates on progress, and celebrate when goals are
achieved.
• Offer “Going Green” columns or tips in company newsletters or Intranet.
• Ease into major changes slowly and offer many accolades for the efforts being made.
• Use employee events and gatherings to continually reinforce that together, employees are making the
company stronger and are making a difference.
• Make sure the changes affect all levels of employees equitably and acknowledge that some changes may
be frustrating.
• Make sure to align all practices with sustainability goals (Examples celebrate anniversaries with eco-
friendly gifts and use sugar-spun biodegradable garbage bags, bioplastic utensils, etc. at company
picnics).
• Ask employees for suggestions by using suggestion boxes or quality circles (teams of workers that get
together to discuss ways to improve quality and lower costs). Employees can have a ton of ways to
make small, cheap and easy-to-implement changes (added benefit is it also motivates staff).
• Recognize and reward employee participation, even offer a bonus system with points redeemable for
green items.
• Hold special events like discussion forums, classes or information sessions, clean up days (cleaning out
old office supplies) and department competitions (rewards can be gift certificates to local businesses).
• Set up a book nook with comfortable chairs, good lighting and books and magazines with sustainable
topics (try to pick information that can be looked at in pieces)
• Offer incentives to change behavior:
o Create a sustainability training budget for employees to use.
o Give rebates to employees who drive hybrid or cars that get excellent gas mileage or even for
home improvements such as buying solar water heaters, Energy Star appliances or adding
insulation.
o Provide bike racks, showers and free helmets to employees who bike to work.
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18. o Use company cars to form a car sharing program (employees who share a ride can still run
errands) for day or even night and weekend use.
o Set up Transportation Savings Accounts-pretax (like an IRA) for transportation costs (limit
changes annually) (Swallow, p. 266).
• Try online apps and software to engage employees http://www.wespire.com/.
What Employees Can Do
• Report any flickering fluorescent lights, because these waste energy.
• Dress in layers, so you will always be comfortable no matter what the temperature is.
• When you leave for the night and attend long meetings turn off cubicle, conference, and copy room
lights when possible and any misc. office equipment like paper shredders, fans or adding machines.
• Put office supplies no longer needed back in the supply area or where they came from (example send
Distribution binder clips back to reuse).
• Share magazines, newspapers, newsletters, and other reading material with co-workers.
• Computers:
o If gone more than 20 minutes turn off the monitor.
o Turn off your computer (Start-Shutdown-Shutdown) and the connecting power strip or unplug
the computer when it is not in use (if your IT department says it is okay to do so).
• Saving Paper:
o Copy and print double-sided.
o Reduce all margins to ½ inch and you can save up to one page for every three pages printed
(Swallow, p. 116)!
o Review drafts online.
o If printing an email, only print the text needed and/or print using “draft” or “fast” to save ink
(under Print Options). Note serif fonts — those with short horizontal lines at the top and bottom
of characters — tend to use thinner lines and thus less ink than a "sans serif."
o Jot things down on scrap paper rather than Post-it-Notes.
o Use PowerPoint or dry erase boards rather than flip charts (if using flip charts use both sides) or
handouts (if printing put several slides on a page).
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20. References
Bach, David. (2008). Go Green, Live Rich. New York: Broadway Books.
Brewer, D. (2009). Green my Home! New York: Kaplan Publishing.
Ellen McArthur Foundation. Why is the circular economy gaining traction now? (n.d.).
Retrieved from http://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/about/faqs.pdf
Fox, Adrienne. (2008, June). Get in the Business of Being Green. HR Magazine, pp. 45-50.
Houten, F. Why we need a circular economy. (2014, January 23). Retrieved from
https://agenda.weforum.org/2014/01/need-circular-economy-revolution/
Lovins, A. & Lovins, L., & Hawken, P. (1999). A Road Map for Natural Capitalism. Harvard
Business Review, pp.3-17.
McCay, K., Bonnin, J. & Wallace, T. (2008). True Green @ Work. Washington, D.C.: National
Geographic.
Smith, Alicia. (2007). 50 Plus Tips for Going Green. Waterville, ME: Thorndike Press.
Swallow, Lisa. (2009). Green Business Practices For Dummies. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley Publishing.
Yarrow, Joanna. (2008). How to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint: 365 Simple Ways to Save
Energy, Resources & Money. San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books.
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