Earth Day is celebrated each April 22, and we wanted to pull together some Earth Day ideas for companies and their employees to celebrate and take action Earth Day. Even though Earth Day is April 22, your environmental efforts can also be planned for a longer term, if you choose to celebrate Earth Week (the week surrounding April 22), or even Earth Month (April).
Earth Day Ideas for your Company & Employees:
- Lessen Paper Use – It is easier than ever to go paperless in today’s digital world. Try using email, PDF’s, electronic documents, CD-ROM’s, USB drives, tablets, and projectors instead of printing out paper. Even if you can’t go paperless, there are dozens of ways to print less. For instance, use duplex printing, reduce the images you print, and always “Preview” before printing to make sure you don’t print unwanted pages.
- Check Energy Consumption – A simple step towards being more green is by analyzing your building’s energy consumption. This is a win-win for your company, because by using less energy, you are also lowering your business’s utility bills. Energy Star has many resources specifically for facility owners and managers of buildings and plants. Get your staff involved in ways to be more energy efficient – even if it is little things like turning off lights or computers.
Reduce Air Leaks – Often we take window and door leaks more seriously in our homes, than in our offices. Replacing leaky windows can make a big difference in making your office more energy efficient. Adding weather stripping or window film can be useful for reducing drafts if replacing the windows is not an option.- Buy Earth-Friendly Products – Whatever products or equipment your staff is purchasing, whether it is office supplies, furniture, or equipment, think about about how it affects the environment first and research more earth-friendly alternatives with your vendors. For instance, when our customers ask us about a more environmentally-friendly baler, we tell them about the Vertical Baler with the Environmentally Friendly Option (EFO).
- Minimize and Compact Trash – Each of your employees could do more to recycle and reduce waste. But depending on your business, management can also take an active part by providing the right equipment for staff and customers to compact the trash, taking up less space in the landfill. Some examples of products used for this could be SmartPack Automatic Trash Compactors, Trash Compactors, or Packers.
- Involve your Customers – Instead of just focusing your sustainability efforts just inside your company, you could also involve your customers. For instance, you could promote the benefits of your sustainable products, services, or practices. You could also ask if they want a digital invoice or catalog instead of paper. It can be a great time to let your customers know how your company is doing their part to help the environment all year long.
These Earth Day ideas are meant to lead to long-term changes for the environment, not just be practiced for one day! Remember, small efforts are valuable too. Other fun Earth Day ideas to get your employees engaged could include “Biking to Work” programs, planting bulbs or flowers outside, starting a rooftop or office garden, or even a “Litter Clean-Up Walk”.
What other Earth Day ideas or Earth Day Celebrations are you implementing for Earth Day, Earth Week, or Earth Month?
