Some have made a clear and well-organized green shift, while others are still wondering where to start… Since every little gesture counts, let’s take a look at a few that can make a real difference in the end. If everyone pitches in, you’ll be surprised how significant the impact can be!
1) DIAGNOSE AND SET OBJECTIVES
To know where you’re going, you need to understand where you’re starting from. The first step in any green shift is to take a hard look at the current situation. What are we currently doing at the office to reduce our ecological footprint? Make a list of them and, on this basis, establish the objectives to be achieved, taking into account the 5Rs rule and the level of support expected from the whole team on site.
Review the different areas of your workplace: workspaces (office, workshop or other), kitchen, break room, toilets, conference room, etc. For each one, start by identifying possible improvements in the short or medium term and set a target to be reached, according to a realistic timetable (monthly, quarterly, bi-annually or annually).2
2) ACQUIRE THE RIGHT EQUIPMENT
Once the game plan has been established, we need to give ourselves the means to achieve our ambitions. So you need to get the right tools in the right places right away. For example, a paper recycling bin in the conference room, a compartmentalized recycling bin for sorting different materials in the kitchen, an automatic hand dryer in the toilets, etc.
3) FOCUS ON “DEMATERIALIZATION
The idea being to reduce our ecological footprint, the bins should be filling up much more slowly… So taking action on paper printing is one of the main actions to be taken quickly. This implies an increase in the production of digital documents, known as “dematerialization”. So you’ll probably need to equip yourself with additional laptops, a projection screen for the conference room, and various software programs (billing, online forms, etc.).
4) IN THE KITCHEN
- Recycling is all very well, but the materials must be free of dirt. Encourage your colleagues to kill two birds with one stone by rinsing out what goes into the recycling when they wash their lunch containers.
- Keep filtered water in the fridge rather than supplying single-use water bottles.
- Provide everyone with glasses, water bottles, cups, reusable bottles, crockery and utensils. Perhaps this will be an opportunity to produce items bearing the company’s effigy – who knows?
- Why not set up outdoor planters to get the team excited about environmental issues? Tomatoes and herbs are easy to grow and can be shared by all.
5) COMMUNICATION FIRST AND FOREMOST
- To mobilize the troops, there’s nothing like good communication. Your green shift must be accompanied by an effective strategy to inform, motivate and raise awareness among all employees. These presentations will provide an opportunity to explain the reasons for the project and its objectives. Information capsules, recycling charters, tips and advice, news articles, etc. can be relayed to employees, notably via a small e-mail newsletter, to encourage people to join in this initiative.
- Identify a person with a unifying profile to take charge of this aspect. It can set out in black and white your commitment to improving your environmental performance, which could take the form of a formal sustainable development policy.
And now it’s your turn! 😊
Team Société VIA
