Small Sustainability Tips to Apply at Work

Here are some simple actions you can take to promote sustainability in your workplace.

Much of the daily stress that comes with going to work is the inconvenience brought by traveling to and from your office, whether it’s because of a lack of PUVs or the daily traffic that consumes hours of our day.

You can try to expand your options by trying different means of heading to work, such as cycling or even walking if you live just a few minutes away from your workplace. 

Living in a digital age means most of our work communication happens on our laptops and mobile phones. This means we can reduce the consumption of actual printed paper, which helps save a handful of trees in the process.

During meetings, for example, it will be more ideal if copies of the presentation are sent online instead of printing each attendee a copy of the entire deck.

The fast-paced nature of work often leaves employees to buy fast food or anything easy and quick to consume. One small sustainable practice is bringing your own pair of metal spoons and forks, which you can leave in your bag.

This way, we can reduce our consumption of plastic forks and spoons on a weekly basis. Just imagine the number of plastic utensils that can be spared each week if we don’t use them anymore.

While offices seem like they are unlimited sources of electricity, doing small acts such as turning off lights and air conditioners in unused meeting rooms or removing appliance plugs that are not in use (particularly with laptop and phone charges) can significantly contribute to reducing energy consumption.

There’s a reason why trash cans in offices are already labeled separately. They serve as a guide for everyone to follow. This helps the entire office building collectively segregate their trash and deliver it to different destinations (recyclables go to thrift shops, food waste goes to composting sites, etc.).