Being good to the earth is good for your business. Share some ways that you improve your business that are also environmentally responsible.
Curated by Gregory Pings
Earth Day is more than a single day where we celebrate sustainability and environmental protection. It’s a day that reminds us to check our processes and habits, and to consider how we, our companies, and the people who work for us, can live and work in a way that advances the cause of environmental protection.
10 Tips to Go Green at the Office. These include using the auto power-down features on your electronic devices, using environmentally safe cleaning supplies, and sharing ideas with coworkers, your mangers, and your building property manager.
“Sustainability is synonymous with simplification,” Catherine Reeves noted in “Why Going “Green” is a Win-Win for Business” on RealBuiness.com. “When we simplify, oftentimes we reduce environmental impacts like waste and energy, we reduce our costs, and we improve the way we work.”
It’s not “sustainability” if you don’t have all three benefits.
One thing companies can do, Real Business noted, is work with the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), a U.K.-based organization that asks companies to submit data in areas such as climate change, water usage, and supply chain — and then calculates a score. Hundreds of companies submitted CDP applications in 2013.
Sometimes simplification is not so simple. Achieving sustainability is a process that requires intricate planning and constant tweaking. But if the short-term results are any indication, the potential long-term impact of “going green” can be tremendous — for the environment, businesses, and customers alike.
Let’s have a conversation. What are some of the quick and easy things we can do to advance environmentally responsible actions? What are some of things that are more difficult, but also provide a measurable payback that makes your business better?
Simplify Work will publish a new Earth-Day related blog every day this week. You may subscribe to Simplify Work so that you don’t miss a single article.
Here’s something that’s easy to do.
I recycle my spent mobile devices by donating them to soldiers at http://www.cellphonesforsoldiers.com. But I never donate without first “cleaning” the device beforehand. Everyone should take this same vigilant approach when recycling a mobile phone or tablet. This ensures no matter where the recycled device ends up, you can feel somewhat secure that you have done your best to make sure it contains zero data about you or your company.
Here’s how to “clean” the data on your mobile device – do a factory reset. Every mobile phone contains software to do this.
1. To reset Android: Menu > Settings > Privacy > Factory Data Reset.
2. To reset Blackberry: Options > Security Options > General Settings > Menu > Wipe Handheld.
3. To reset iPhone: Settings > General > Reset > Reset All Settings.
4. For other phones, you can do an online search on how to reset by using relevant keywords, including the device type and model number.
Great post! Been reading a lot about the importance of environmental responsibility for business. Thanks for the info here!