Sustainability is a hot topic in today’s society, we are all much more aware about our own consumption thanks to the media. Being sustainable is fashionable. Although many of us have implemented changes to our home life – recycling, driving less, preserving water and so on, how many of us have employed these changes in our place of work?

Lights

Get into the habit of switching off lights when you are leaving a room for 15 minutes or more and make use of natural light whenever you can. Ask your employer to buy energy-saving light bulbs, which are much more efficient than regular light bulbs. Other ideas are to install timers or motion sensors to automatically turn off lights when they are not in use, but these options are more expensive to set up.

Computer

Can you use your computer more efficiently? Providing you don’t need to leave your computer on to run backups turn off your computer when you leave for the day, and remember to turn your monitor off completely, don’t just leave it on standby. If there are times during the day when you will be away from your computer for long periods then set your computer to go to sleep.

Think Before You Print

Do you really need to print every email? Be smart when you print, and print only what you really need. When printing, use both sides of the paper if possible, and for draft work use the back side of old documents and scrap paper. Only print in colour when you really need to, and when your ink cartridges run out, send them to be refilled rather than throwing them away to reduce waster.

Recycling

Does your company have recycling bins? Ask your employer to install recycling bins for cans, glass and paper. Your local council should provide these and will empty them on a regular basis. Place a paper recycling bin next to each printer, or encourage employees to use scrap paper to print.

Don’t Waste Water

Use water efficiently – don’t leave taps in the washrooms running, and don’t overfill the kettle when making tea or coffee.

Travel habits

Rethink your commute. If you drive, can you get to work any other way? Is there a train or bus station near your place of work? If driving is the only option, can you share with anyone else in your office? Finally, is your car the most fuel efficient model you could buy?

For many of the suggestions listed, it will be up to your employer to implement, but there are many ideas here that you can put into practice yourself. We spend most of our days in our places of work, and just a few small changes can make a huge difference. It is in your employer’s interest to make their company a greener company, as many of these energy saving ideas will save money on utility bills in the long run. Energy saving office design will benefit not only your company’s interests, but the planet too.

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