If, like me, you tend to be increasingly concerned about the environmental impact of your daily choices and pay attention to the way you consume, then I imagine that this topic has inevitably crossed your mind: how can you continue your little eco-friendly gestures all the way to the office?
It is entirely possible to reduce waste in the workplace.
Here are 3 tips that will bring a real change to your daily life.
1. No more disposable plastic packaging!
Let’s take the simple example of water. A few years ago, I was surprised how easy it was to replace a plastic water bottle with a reusable bottle/cup. It may sound silly, but many companies still offer free water bottles in offices, often in small sizes. That’s a lot of plastic waste when it’s so easy to opt for a reusable option.
Choose a nice bottle/cup, for example glass/ceramic. Opt for a format that matches your handbag (or backpack) and you’re done!
This tip is also applicable to coffee (I always carry a very light bamboo cup with me to avoid using a paper cup at coffee time).
What about paper napkins?
Well, slip a cloth one in your bag and wash it as often as necessary. Generally speaking, a cloth napkin can be kept for up to 1 week when simply wiping the corners of your mouth. You save 5 paper napkins per week! Hurrah!
2. Think before you act!
The print button is right there in front of you, but do you really need to print this document? If so, can you print it double-sided to avoid wasting paper? In black and white maybe?
Another example: folders… When your folder is full, instead of buying a new one for the rest of your work, can you get an old one back?
My tip: I get my old folders back, which I no longer need. I keep all its pages by linking all the pages with a string and write the title on the top of the stack. This way, I keep my files (which takes up less space) while recycling my old folders. Pretty neat, isn’t it?
3. Reduce your digital consumption!
This is the dark side of digital. Without realising it, we consume energy to store digital on a daily basis. Mailboxes, cloud systems, online research… They all have one thing in common: they all consume energy.
Did you know?
A one-minute search on the Internet uses 100 watts on a desktop computer, 20 watts on a laptop, a few watts on a tablet, and a little less on a mobile phone.
There are simple ways to limit the impact of digital usage. For example, think about regularly emptying your email box, unsubscribing from newsletters you don’t read…
What do you think?