The modern environmental movement, known as Earth Day, is purposed to spread awareness of the importance of sustainability and eco-friendly precautions that can be taken by everyone. We can better preserve and protect our homes with collective investment in our planet. Earth Day 2022 is right around the corner, and each year businesses take this opportunity to further improve and increase sustainability efforts. Below is a breakdown of five ways companies can become eco-friendlier to keep growing towards a green future.
Offer a Remote Work or Hybrid Work-From-Home Option
Working from home has become more common due to the pandemic, however, protecting one’s health is not the only benefit to come out of it. Working from home all the time, or even just some of the time also does wonders for the environment. A whopping 98% of an employee’s carbon footprint comes from commuting to and from work, meaning that working from home allows us to drastically reduce our carbon emissions! In addition to the carbon emissions avoided when employees work from home, having fewer cars on the road, especially during morning and evening rush hours, leads to fewer traffic jams, fewer idling cars, and therefore fewer carbon emissions from all drivers. Another way that remote work or a hybrid work-from-home option benefits the environment is that fewer, or zero, people in the office results in reduced or eliminated needs for electricity, heat, and cooling. As an increased number of companies offer remote work options (including here at Invico!), it is becoming easier to facilitate your employees virtually, making this a fantastic way to create a more sustainable business.
Source From Other Sustainable Business – Choose Your Suppliers and Partnerships Wisely
When it comes to materials and supplies that your business must outsource, ensuring that you source from other sustainable businesses is a great way to make your business eco-friendlier. A sustainable supplier will use renewable, recycled, or biodegradable material and will avoid excessive packaging. Additionally, a sustainable supplier uses sustainable manufacturing methods. For example, operating eco-friendly factories or limiting water usage. At Covico, we work with our exclusive farming partners to leverage the natural sustainability of coconuts by nourishing already growing trees, composting coconut husks, and protecting soil carbon.
Plant Trees
Trees are essential to our world today as they provide us with the very air we are breathing. Not only do they support the human race with their oxygen production, but they are great for the environment and wildlife around them. They reduce the amount of storm runoff which reduces erosion and pollution of our waterways. Wildlife species rely on trees for habitat, protection, and food as well. Knowing that trees are of tremendous importance, why not add more to our planet? As we approach Earth Day, there are several ways that companies can help increase our planet’s tree count. If your business allows for space and landscape, it is encouraged to plant seeds and further the growth of trees on your property. If this isn’t an option, businesses can provide their employees with seeds to plant at their own time and location. For a plant that does so much for us, we can surely use some of our time and resources to surround ourselves with lush spaces.
Use Eco-Friendly Shipping
When it comes to ordering and placing shipments, there is a way to do so that is courteous to the environment. The consolidation of orders can create eco-friendly shipping due to fewer necessary trips. To help with consolidating, companies can encourage bulk purchases by giving incentives. For example, if a business places multiple orders, offer them a deal to help cut down on shipping and travel trips. Compact packaging is another helpful contributor that is associated closely with consolidation. The best way to take part in compact packaging is to utilize carrier space in the most effective way possible. This can be done by packing in orders close together or consolidating items within orders into a single package to allow more space for products. Effectively utilizing carrier space will result in fewer necessary trips for the carrier, and therefor fewer emissions released into the environment. In addition to compact packaging, it is encouraged to use materials for shipping that are considered biodegradable. A biodegradable item is capable of being decomposed by bacteria or other living organisms, or in simplified terms, an item that can be reused. Paper and cardboard are a few great examples of biodegradable packaging. Bubble wrap made from recycled polythene is also a great biodegradable option for products that need extra protection and wrapping. Plastic is often frowned upon as a non-eco-friendly material, however, there are now biodegradable plastic packaging options easily accessible. There are alternatives to nearly every sustainable packaging material used for shipping purposes; you may just need to do some extra digging!
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Our planet today has more waste than it can handle, but waste production can be slowed by small efforts that everyone can partake in; reducing waste, reusing items that otherwise would be thrown out, and recycling as much as possible. In a business setting, we can take actions such as not using disposable cups, bowls, and silverware, and investing in reusable utensils for the office. Avoiding the use of plastic silverware can have an immensely positive effect on the environment considering single-use plastic accounts for about 150 million tons of plastic waste each year. Although it may seem small-scale, efforts to get creative and reduce waste within your own company can make a big impact. At Covico, we’ve taken things a step further and have implemented the 3 Rs not only in our office space but also in our farms and factories! Covico coconuts produce zero waste, as we utilize 100% of each coconut for multiple functions throughout our manufacturing process. Another practical application of the 3Rs for businesses to implement is to emphasize the importance of using office supplies only as necessary. This could be paper, boxes, or other office supplies. One way to cut down on paper use is to encourage electronic notetaking and provide resources that make this possible such as company computers or iPads. If the option to reuse is unavailable, recycling is another great option to go green. A productive way to start recycling within your community is by simply placing recycling bins around your office or building. Many materials can be transformed and repurposed which is entirely sustainable and environmentally cautious.
Businesses can make major progress through this environmental movement and put to practice the five ways to create more sustainability with a few simple adjustments. The earth is our friend, and we want to do our best to collectively preserve it. Although Earth Day is only once a year, let’s make it an everyday goal to keep growing towards a green future, one step at a time.