How To Create a Sustainable Workplace Solution

Aug 3, 2021

Sustainability plays a crucial role in conserving our essential resources and protecting the planet as a whole. After all, the more materials we use, the more we need to throw away—polluting the environment even further. This is why it’s up to businesses to take the lead in implementing these efforts into modern practices. Since companies tend to use higher quantities of these resources, cutting back in the workplace can have a much larger impact than doing the same in the home. This is how to create a sustainable workplace solution in your office with just a few simple changes.

Eliminate Paper From Your Office

When you’re setting out to reduce your office’s resource consumption, one of the first things you should consider cutting out is paper. While we’ve used paper for nearly everything in the past, modern technology makes it possible to keep the same records digitally. This allows us to both save thousands of trees-worth of paper a day and store all our important business documents in the same place. As such, upgrading your office’s computer systems and encouraging digital note-taking is one of the best things you can do for the planet.

Make Recycling Bins Accessible

You can also create a sustainable workplace solution by providing more recycling bins, as well as making them more accessible to your team. Whether it be plastic water bottles or lunch containers, everyone produces waste in the office, and more of these items are recyclable than we often realize. That’s why many of them end up in the trash instead. But by placing more recycling bins around the office, it encourages your team to consider the difference and increases the likelihood that they’ll toss their item in the right place.

Reduce Your Energy Consumption

Energy is another important resource that businesses can conserve for the sake of the environment. The energy required for many major company procedures can produce byproducts that pollute the air. Even the generation of additional energy itself can release toxins into the environment. So, by finding ways to minimize your energy usage, you’re minimizing your business’s carbon footprint overall. Some effective practices include switching to LED lightbulbs and encouraging your team to turn off equipment that isn’t in use.

Use Refurbished Office Furniture

One of the most effective ways to help the planet, though, is by purchasing refurbished office furniture for your space rather than newly manufactured models. Throwing out older office furniture simply puts it in a landfill where it will sit until it decomposes. This can take several years or even decades, depending on the materials the furniture is made from. But by using refurbished furniture instead, you’re saving that piece from the landfill and keeping those materials from polluting the Earth.

Promoting sustainability in the workplace is one of our sole missions here at Rework. All of our products are decommissioned from older office complexes and skillfully refurbished for modern use. Even our selection of stackable office chairs is stylish, comfortable, and compact, making them a functional and eco-friendly fit for any office. To learn more about our diverse range of products and services, give us a call or visit our Chicago showroom.