More and more women in the workplace are concerned about sustainability. They want the companies and organizations they work for to actively look after the environment, not just pay lip service.

But if you are just a regular employee, what can you do to actually get your company to change direction? It’s not easy.

In this post, we take a look at some of your options. In some cases, you will simply be leading by example, whereas other ideas involve engaging management and getting them to course-correct.

Promote paperless work

Thanks to the cloud, paper is largely redundant in the office. You no longer need it for most operations.

However, despite this, many offices continue to order ream after ream of paper, believing it is fundamental to their operations. It’s not.

Pushing for a paperless office is actually easier than you think. For the most part, all you need to do is demonstrate the utility of the cloud. You’re not banning paper; you’re just showing your colleagues that there’s a simpler, easier way of working.

Go to green vendors

Not all vendors are green, and that’s a problem. Your organization might have sustainable practices in place, but if your vendors don’t, then you could be inadvertently adding to the problem.

If you aren’t sure how to approach this, then find a sustainability consultancy to guide you. You don’t want to disrupt your relationship with vendors but, at the same time, you’d like them to reduce the environmental burden of their activities.

Reduce and reuse

Recycling gets a lot of attention, but reducing and reusing are both equally important, if not more so.

For instance, Americans use tens of billions of disposable coffee cups every year. Worse still, these single-use items contain a thin film of plastic and are hard to recycle. Most wind up in landfill.

Instead of using a disposable cup, take your own flask instead and get the coffee shop owner to fill it for you. Then, show other people at the office what you’re doing so that they’re encouraged to do the same. It’s a small change but over time, if more people do it, it will have a big impact.

You can also encourage people to do the same with bottles and other items. In fact, it might be worth investing in company mugs or flasks and handing them out.

Support sustainable commutes

Simply transporting people to the office every morning requires a lot of energy. Most arrive in gasoline vehicles after having traveled from the suburbs.

Because of this, you might want to look at ways of running shuttle buses or car sharing. You might also suggest that your employer offers incentives, or supports such activities as a benefit of the job.

Add greenery to the office

Lastly, you might want to add some greenery to your office spaces. Evidence shows that plants can increase oxygen levels but, perhaps more importantly, remove toxins and other pollutants from the air over a relatively short time period. It may also boost wellbeing.

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