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Environment and greener living

Being greener at work

Greener living doesn’t stop when you leave the house. There are many things you can do while at work to help the environment and tackle climate change, and you may be able to get your employer or trade union interested too.

What an employee can do

Here are some of the things you may be able to do as an employee:

Travel
Changing the way you travel to work can reduce climate change effects and local air pollution. Things to consider include:

  • walk or cycle to work, or use public transport
  • if you can, use tele-conferencing and video conferencing instead of travelling to meetings
  • if you fly to business meetings, consider whether you can use other methods of transport and if not consider offsetting the carbon emissions from your flight (offsetting involves paying money to a project that is helping reduce carbon emissions in order to help balance out the impact of your flights)
  • explore with your manager the scope for working from home
  • car share instead of driving alone
  • encourage your employer to organise secure cycle storage and showers at work

Reduce waste
You can help reduce the impact of business on the environment by dealing responsibly with the waste you produce at work. For example:

  • champion recycling at work - ensure there are paper recycling bins close to desks or printers
  • ask your employer for separate recycling bins for glass, paper, and plastics
  • encourage your boss to purchase office paper with a high recycled content
  • wherever safe to do so, turn off all unused electrical equipment over night or when not in use - especially computer monitors and other equipment which gets left on standby
  • switch off lights not being used
  • reduce the size of documents and print double sided to save paper
  • add the slogan ‘Think before you print’ to the bottom of emails

Food and drink
Food has a large impact on the environment, but the following actions could help:

  • encourage your caterers to stock food which is fresh, locally in season, Fairtrade, or has been produced with respect for wildlife and the environment
  • take a mug or glass to work, and use it instead of disposable cups
  • set up a compost bin, or arrange a collection, for kitchen waste

What employers can do

There are organisations and schemes that work with employers to encourage their staff to be greener. Here are some ideas:

Travel

  • if your company owns a fleet of vehicles you maybe able to register for free fleet consultancy with the Energy Saving Trust
  • set up a business travel plan to help reduce car-use and the need to travel for work
  • apply for a Cycle to Work tax exemption loan, which is available to business for bikes and relevant cycling equipment, to encourage employees to cycle to work
  • provide and promote a car share matching scheme and priority parking for car sharers

Energy saving and other topics
Here are some ideas to consider:

  • get free advice from the Carbon Trust on how your business can save energy and money - your business may be able to benefit from interest free loans or tax relief on certain energy efficient products
  • get advice from Envirowise on reducing waste
  • put in place an environmental management system - a practical tool that helps businesses increase efficiency, save money and reduce environmental impacts
  • set up an EcoTeam at work: EcoTeams encourage employees to work together to take small actions to make their lifestyle greener (Global Action Plan supply the framework for running EcoTeams at work - there is a charge for this service)

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