Contributed by Luke Clifton

As businesses look to the future and begin to adopt more eco-friendly practices in the workplace, you may be considering how to do the same.

Fret not. You can quickly and easily make improvements to reduce emissions and futureproof your workplace. Here are just some of them:

Turn off the lights

If you’re at work reading this post, take a moment to observe your surroundings. How many lights are switched on? In the workplace, it’s not uncommon for lights to be left turned on, even if nobody is in the room. If you come across one, be sure to turn it off. And do the same once you leave a room.

Light switch with passive infrared occupancy sensor. Public domain from Wikimedia Commons

Lights are one of the main offenders when it comes to emissions in a workplace, with many employees not even considering the consequences they may have.

For a long-term, futureproof solution, consider getting some automatic light sensors that’ll turn off when nobody’s in the room, as suggested by Smart Pension. That way, if anyone forgets, it won’t be as much of an issue.

[Editor’s note: They work on the same principles I describe in the post Residential Occupancy Sensors.]

Recycle

You’d be surprised at how many workplaces still refuse to recycle their waste. It’s almost commonplace in every household nowadays. Workplaces, however, are yet to take the same collective approach. If you can, introduce recycling and encourage people to dispose of their waste correctly.

Depending on how many people you work with, you’d likely be astounded at just how much waste you dispose of on a daily basis. That makes for a potentially massive amount of recycling, helping the environment and providing more materials for products in the future. It’s a very easy step towards  being eco-friendly, and it’s one you could introduce almost immediately.

Consider working from home

Home office

Perhaps one of the best ways to reduce your workplace’s emissions is by not being at the workplace at all.

Working from home has been proven to have multiple benefits, with one of them being reduced emissions. Your will use less power, energy and expenses if you stay back and work remotely.

Working from home also improves productivity, according to a study from Canada Life Group. With time being saved not having to commute, more productivity and less emissions all coming from working from home, perhaps it’s time to propose it to your employer. And, if you are the employer, see if your employees would be interested in staying home for a day or two per week.

Of course, there are perks to being in the workplace – being able to talk to your colleagues for one. But for a day or two, working from home could have massive benefits for an eco-friendly workplace.

Transfer from physical to digital

How many files and pieces of paper do you have stored away in the workplace? Paperwork takes up massive amounts of room and is often difficult to track – especially if you’re trying to find a specific document. –Transferring paper files to digital may be in your best interests, both for practicality and emission reasons.

Paper simply isn’t necessary in most cases. It’s wasteful and impractical when everything else is stored on computers or in the cloud (another useful system to implement in the workplace). Plus, when files are stored digitally, they can be tracked with a simple search. It’s a sensible approach to take, so consider taking some time to transfer your physical files to digital. It’s a futureproof approach that’ll save you time and money in the long run.

Use laptops as opposed to desktops

Some rights reserved by Park County Library System.

Another major waste of energy is using desktop computers as opposed to laptops. There are plenty of perks to consider when using laptops (working from home being one of them). But most important, no power source is needed when they’re not charging. Unlike desktops, which need to be constantly plugged in, people can work on laptops anywhere, according to AIS Journal. They allow for necessary mobility, portability and movement in the workplace.

Transferring to laptops shouldn’t be too difficult in the age of the cloud, so perhaps propose them to your higher-ups. It makes sense in the long run, as offices become less fixed and more open and portable. The happiness and productivity of employees should be in the best interests of your employers, and this is one such way to improve emissions as well as lift spirits.

What other changes can be made in the workplace to improve emissions and make a business more eco-friendly? Be sure to let us know in the comments below.