How green is your office? Every year American offices use 12.1 trillion sheets of paper, and when you then add on the electricity used, and the disposable coffee cups, plastic water bottles and drinks cans thrown away, all of a sudden, the waste an office-worker generates mounts up significantly. But a new wave of businesses are reducing their carbon footprint by re-evaluating everything they do and seeing if they can do it better. The changes aren’t drastic: often it’s a simple switch from one process to another.

So, if you can’t comfortably say that your office operates sustainably, here are some changes you can implement to make a difference, whether an entrepreneur, CEO, manager, or any office role. 

 1. Unplug It

How often do you see a computer monitor or a scanner plugged into the wall, but nobody is using it? Even if it’s turned off, appliances left plugged in will still use energy – they’re known as energy vampires. When you consider that unplugging energy vampires could save the average household between $100 and $200 per year, can you imagine what this could look like for an office?

 2. Go Paperless

Between emerging office management software solutions, e-signature programs and smart printers, it’s never been easier to transform into a paperless office. The average office uses 10,000 sheets of paper every year, which is a big figure but not nearly as alarming as the fact that nearly 20% of paper is never retrieved from the printer. With 68 million trees being chopped down annually to produce paper for the United States alone, you can help make a dent in that by using paper only when it’s essential.

 3. Embrace Natural Light

During the day, don’t switch on a light if there is a window in the room in which you’re working. Raise those blinds and let natural daylight take over. Almost 25% of all electricity used in the United States is used to light office space, so you have plenty of opportunity to make a difference.

 4. Encourage Team to Walk

Whether it’s walking to work or walking up the stairs, encouraging your colleagues to get around by their own steam rather than driving or taking the elevator is an excellent step in getting them to think about their actions and the small tweaks they can make. Not only is it a great (and free) way to stay fit, if everyone were to stop taking the elevator, the combined effect is a significant energy saving every week.

 5. Ditch Disposables

If you have plastic knives and forks and disposable plates in the kitchen area, consider investing in metal cutlery and porcelain crockery. True, it will involve some washing-up in between uses, but it will mean you can play a part in reducing the 100 million plastic utensils that are used every day in the United States.

 6. Change Your Bulbs

You can’t always avoid having lights switched on, but you can change the types of bulbs you use. Energy-efficient light bulbs can use anything between 25% and 80% less energy than traditional bulbs and can last up to five times longer, which not only makes your office more environmentally friendly but also saves a considerable amount of money annually.

 7. Install Motion Sensors

Motion-sensors allow lights to switch on only when they detect someone in the vicinity. These are highly effective in buildings where people might work shift hours or in areas that are rarely used as it means that these areas are well-lit when they need to be, but the rest of the time aren’t expending any energy.

Everyone is responsible when it comes to living cleaner and greener for the good of the planet. If you’re keen to play a part in making your office more environmentally friendly, take one small step today. Whether you start to explore digital document software solutions or implement a recycling schedule – every little helps.