How to be Green at Work?

Many of you are probably wondering what you can do to make your workplace a greener place. Ideally, we would want to work for companies that use all energy-saving appliances, solar power panels around the buildings, or reimburse us for buying hybrid cars. Because most companies does not provide 100% green effort due to many reasons and before this ideal gets too complicated and unrealistic, we need to focus on what we can do on our end to make our office a greener place.

Paper
Electronic files are convenient and useful in storing documents at work. However, we still make frequent trips to the copy room to make paper copies. Here is what we can do. We can print double-sided copies, use scrap paper to take notes of print drafts, and be conscious of our printing behavior. We definitely want to make sure it is something we must have in paper form and make sure to proofread before the “oops” comes in. Also, choosing papers can help with the recycling effort. Choose papers that have high post-consumer recycled content would be the best because the materials used for the paper can be recycled and therefore, eliminating the path to landfill.

Electronics and Computers
Electronic appliances take up enormous amount of energy to operate. Choosing the right appliances will help lower the energy needed. If your office is looking for upgrading current appliances, look for the ones with the ENERGY STAR label. ENERGY STAR is a joint program of the Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy to help us save money and protect the environment using the efficient products. These products can also provide settings where the machine will go into a sleeping mode when not in use.

With the fast pace technology, parts become obsolete just as fast as we install new ones. If your company provides recycling program, it is best to use old parts whenever possible. Computers can really drain out the power when using unnecessary programs. Use programs that require less power and internal memory to operate. For example, use TextEdit instead of Microsoft Word. In other words, to make your computer run efficiently, adjust the power options to lower your power consumption. You can do this by adjusting he power options in your control panel to energy-saving settings. Screen savers seem harmless, but it takes up energy more than being idled. So when you are away, it is best to make your computer go to sleep than letting the screen saver comes up.

At the end of the day, it is best to turn off all electronic devices including lights in the office area. A good way to do so is to put most of the electronic devices on a power strip. Even though the machines are in sleeping mode, they require about some energy to keeps the machine running. Therefore, it is best to put all the devices into a power strip and turn off the power switch on the power strip to cut off all energy required by the sleeping machines.

Indoor Plants

Office area looks dull most of the time. It is nice to give your office area a homey feeling. Small plants can be decorations for the office; also it can be a good natural device to clean up the air inside the office. Most offices have air conditioning. It can be toxic sometimes because air is being recycled through the system. Plants will be great because most plants will absorb carbon dioxide (CO­2) and release oxygen (O2­) during photosynthesis, a biological process for plants. Having a plant in your office can be appealing to the eye and also cleans your air around you. NASA has conducted research on plants and their ability to clean air. These plants have shown excellent result in cleaning the air and other possible toxins found in indoor air such as benzene, formaldehyde, and carbon monoxide. These plants include: English Ivey, Chinese Evergreen, and Bamboo Palm. For more inforamtion, visit http://www.plant-care.com/indoor-plants-clean-air-1.html.

Conclusion

Here are some ways to do at work to provide go green effort. Even though your work might not be an ideal environment where it can change every appliance to the most efficient, but little steps help in turning our office into a vibrant green office. Who says going green at work is hard?