Today, sustainability is a hot topic. The media is telling you that the world is going to end in 40 years, your plastic straw is going to kill every turtle, and if you litter your trash, Greta Thunberg will hunt you down (she’s small, but mighty). While this all may be true – to some extent – it’s hard to take in all these facts and think about how you, as one person, can really make a difference. And you can start as simple by reducing waste.
You don’t need to have a “passion” or even a general interest when it comes to the environment. However, with the growing threat of climate change, it is important everyone understands their role. So, how can you make a positive impact? Well, let’s start in your very favorite place. You know the one you go to almost every day, an escape from your real life, with the most exotic people you’ve ever met? That’s right, your office! (Note the sarcasm).
The Digital Age: Not Paperless Quite Yet
Did you know the average office worker generates approximately 2 pounds of paper and paperboard products every day? Or that 90% of all office waste is paper? (The other 10% is that 20-year-old summer intern who just learned what a spreadsheet is, God bless them). In our modern-day workplaces everything is pretty much digital and online – can anyone else not feel their eyeballs by 5pm?! All reports, statements, memos are completed through a specialized software. We don’t even have meetings in person anymore! Honorable mention to the work from home warriors, we see you in your collared shirts and flannel pajama pants. Also, we see your golden doodle humping the couch in your background of our Wednesday morning zoom meetings.
With the digitization of our work, we don’t realize there is still a significant amount of excess paper and plastic being used. Things like sticky notes, plastic thumbtacks, folders, etc. still exist in these spaces. When it comes to office supplies it is always cost-effective to buy in bulk, but it’s important to match value with quality when reducing waste. Often times a cheap price tag is indicative of poor, non-sustainable manufacturing.
There are more sustainable options than ever these days. Supplies such as refillable ink cartridges, biodegradable pens, recycled paper/notebooks (even though we’re just using those to make a grocery list when we’re sitting in meetings…right?). Recycled paper uses less energy, water and produces lower carbon emission than the manufacturing of non-recycled paper. Additionally, when wastepaper is buried in landfills, it releases methane gas, which is 23 times more harmful to the environment than CO2.
The Lunchroom: Feeding Our Landfills
So, you’ve read up to this point, the second page of talking about literal garbage… are you that bored that this is your best distraction? By reading this you are already one step closer to being more aware about the waste you’re producing in your office. One step closer to being that obnoxious guest at a dinner party that says, “I read an article about sustainability…”, even though nobody cares. But maybe you can be the person in the work lunchroom who brings awareness to your shared break room, and you can change things to be a little eco-friendlier.
- Litterless lunches: Encourage the use of reusable food storage containers. Discourage plastic, single-use bags.
- Swap out the plastic cutlery with reusable kitchenware. Some estimates put the number of individual plastic utensils at 40 billion per year in the United States alone. After one single use, these utensils are thrown away and end up in landfills.
- Reusable water bottles and coffee mugs. You know that drink station, maybe water or coffee, where you and your work bestie hide and spill all the hot gossip about your co-workers. Yup, Karen from accounting got ANOTHER cat – riveting stuff. Those single-use plastic cups you use as an excuse to get up, stretch your legs, and run your mouth take 500 years to disintegrate. An estimated 500 billion plastic disposable cups are used every year around the world, which are discarded immediately after their single use.
Be The Change by Reducing Waste
It’s no surprise to anyone that the workplace is where a significant amount of waste is produced. But it is also the place that holds the most opportunity for adopting eco-friendly habits. You can be the first to change these things in your office, the first to print double-sided, the first to use a reusable bottle! Becoming environmentally conscious of your workplace operations is important as this is where most of us – as consumers and employees – spend majority of our day-to-day lives. Reduce your waste in your workplace because small things do make a difference! (And Greta is always watching).
