And since office buildings contribute largely to the consumption of resources and release of harmful chemicals into the environment, a big difference can be made to sustaining the environment if all companies take certain measures.

Here are a few ways in which offices can contribute towards conserving the environment without much expense. 

Reducing Energy Consumption

Go green with your commute

Offices can encourage their employees to use public transport, bike, walk or car pool to work. This helps conserve fuel as well as reduce emissions.

Save on electricity

Large corporate buildings consume vast amounts of electricity merely by powering up their computers.

Furthermore, it can often be seen that most of these computers have been left in standby mode over the weekend. Even though desktops consume only 3-15 watts while in standby, when all are taken into consideration, this amounts to an astronomically large consumption of electricity – which is a total waste. 

To resolve this issue, employees can be encouraged to put computers into standby mode when not in use for more than one hour and to switch off completely when they leave for the night or the weekend. Most office staff could also use laptops instead of desktops as energy consumed by a laptop is far less when not in use. 

Consider also using CFL instead of incandescent bulbs as CFLs use 75% lesser energy and last up to ten times longer than standard lights. 

3. Work from home options

Allowing employees to telecommute (work from home) as much as possible helps reduce fuel consumption, time and emission of gas into the atmosphere. This also has the added advantage of the employee being happy and contented. 

Reducing Paper Consumption

Go digital

Digitization goes a long way in reducing paper usage. Using less paper can help conserve more trees. Digital documents can be also used in meetings to reduce the need for printed paper. Default settings of printers can be also set to print double sides. Already used papers can be used by employees for all kinds of rough usage instead of fresh paper.

Reusable alternatives

Offices can stop providing disposable cups, plates, etc. and encourage employees to bring reusable alternatives. This can go a long way in preserving paper (and trees).

Recycle paper

Used paper can be collected with separate trays and sent for recycling instead of just being thrown away. Offices also can use 100% recycled paper as opposed to 30% – 50% for all purposes. 

Organic Products 

Using organic eco-friendly cleaning supplies helps in preserving the environment from any toxic chemicals which may be present in standard supplies. 

Using Green Office Products 

Nowadays, green office products such as recycled papers, envelopes, post-it notes, etc. are available at all major office supply stores.

They can be used in place of the usual supplies. Also, paper clips and tags can be used instead of staples. Paper clips are made of aluminum which can be recycled and reused easily. 

Eco-Friendly Drinks: 

1. Drinking water

It has been estimated that Americans use about 35 billion bottles every year. This number can be reduced considerably if offices have a water delivery service. Else, a reverse osmosis water filtration system could be installed and used for providing drinking water to employees.

Eco-friendly caffeine

Providing coffee to one’s staff is a big morale booster and helps employees keep up with their work. But instead of the usual coffee provided, employees can be offered Fair Trade, shade-grown or organic coffee.

These varieties of coffee, while being more healthy and tasty, are grown under eco-friendly conditions which don’t involve cutting trees or using synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. Both employers and employees involved in this business work under ideal conditions and receive a living wage. 

While the above measures may seem quite basic and easy to implement, there’s no doubt they do go a long way towards preserving the atmosphere and environment for us all to enjoy.

About the Author:
Amy Harris is a writer for Expert Market, an office equipment and franking machines website. She is concerned with environmental issues and greener alternatives in the workplace.

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How Your Office Can Go Green in 2013

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#1: Use Multiple Bins

Have separate bins for paper, glass, plastic and for food scraps. Putting a multiple bin system like this one allows you to manage the waste better. Make sure you put a paper recycling bin next to each and every desk. This should go into the “recycling system” rather than the general waste.

#2: Choose Green Power

There are many electricity retailers out there that offer their customers an option to receive energy specifically from “renewable sources” like wind, solar and geothermal. When you make this switch, you not only save on emissions but also add to the demand for “renewable energy”.

#3: Avoid Hard Copy Reports

Using online versions of items like information memorandums and annual reports is much better and preferable than using hard copies of these. And when it comes to printing, just cut/copy and paste the required/necessary information and print only these pages instead of the complete report.

#4: Say No to Bottled Water

Bottled water is not only an expensive option, but it also poses as a big environmental hazard due to the plastic used to package it, and fossil fuel energy that’s used for transporting it across the world. Contribute to the green revolution by helping in stopping the excessive use of bottled water. You can do this by saying no to bottled water and by installing a water cooler or a good, “under sink” water filtering system. Give the employees drinking glasses or if not that, permanent alloy water bottles which can be used all day long.

#5: Understand Plastic Cups are not Eco-friendly

Banning disposable plastic cups from the workplace (along with the paper ones) will help you make an impact in your own way and be a stronger part of the green revolution. The less such waste is generated, the better it is. What you can and should do is have a good amount of crockery/glasses, enough for everyone working in the office and also for the visitors.

#6: Work on the Light Layout

Glass computer desks from officedesk.com are a good addition to your office. They should to be moved from the windows to maximize the amount of sunlight that comes in for the best results, though. When more natural light finds it way into your office, the use of electricity will come down leading to lower costs. It gives way to a more “work-friendly” environment.

#7: Go for Original Green

What could be a better way to go green than fill your office with nice plants? The number of plants that you choose to put in the office depends on you, but ideally you should try to have one plant for each person working in the office. There are a ton of advantages of using office plants like for example, they help in cleaning the air of “carbon monoxide”. Besides that, they also look nice and improve the overall look/ambience of the office. Making your office greener this way is the most natural and effective way to be eco-friendly at the workplace.

Remember, staying healthy in the office is not just about taking care of yourself but it’s also about creating a healthier office environment.

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Effective Office Tips for a Greener Workplace

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Vapor intrusion generally occurs when there is a migration of volatile chemicals from contaminated groundwater or soil into an overlying building. Volatile chemicals can emit vapors that may migrate through subsurface soils and into indoor air spaces of overlying buildings in ways similar to that of radon gas seeping into homes. Volatile chemicals may include volatile organic compounds, select semivolatile organic compounds, and some inorganic analytes, such as elemental mercury, radon, and hydrogen sulfide. – EPA

What Homeowners Need to Know About Vapor Intrusion – An infographic by the team at EDR

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What Homeowners Need to Know About Vapor Intrusion – An infographic

The post What Homeowners Need to Know About Vapor Intrusion – An infographic appeared first on Eco-Office Gals.

With just a little bit of effort and little bit of interest, your health levels can seriously improve if only you consider some interesting ideas regarding your daily life at the office. After all, we all live busy lives and most of our lives have to suffer due to tremendous amounts of work, unorthodox working hours and silly levels of stress.Rather than losing it all to an office job, why not treat some of the symptoms as they come along? Let’s see what are the ten things you can do to improve the quality of your health at the office.

1.) Water, More Water

Remember that old saying that you are what you eat and drink? Now I know that the office isn’t the best place to employ water drinking habits, but you know what, you should anyway. Apart from the fact that it helps your body in both terms of physical and mental performance it also improves detoxing mechanisms, digestion-related issues and so on. And it’s not that hard to do after all – consider 8 glasses of water per day and enough bathroom breaks to get you through the day. You’ll soon start noticing you simply have more energy. You can even consider Lifesource Water for a quality, certified water system.

2.) A Cleaner Work Area

Now you might not consider this health advice, but here’s the thing – a cleaner desk (and I don’t mean a neater desk) is sure to improve your health. You wouldn’t even imagine the type of bacteria that lies around on your keyboard, your mouse and your phone. UV light, disinfecting wipes and all sorts of similar cleaning tools will help give your desk a more sanitary feel.

3.) Remember To Wash Your Hands

Our mothers kept telling us to keep our hands clean but we seem to never listen. Washing your hands regularly reduces the risk of introducing all sorts of germs and bacteria in your body. Simple hot water and anti-bacterial soap should be enough – but if you’re a little paranoid you can always consider some antibacterial wipes which you can use every once in a while.

4.) Better Lighting And Healthier Habits For Your Eyes

Full-spectrum lighting is always better – consider some sort of light bulbs that simulate daylight in an indoor environment. Your eyes will feel more comfortable, and you won’t feel as stressed long-term. And while poor lighting might not be the issue at your office, staring too much in a computer screen might be (you’re reading this now on a computer, aren’t you?). So instead of stressing your eyes to that extent, remember to take a break every hour for at least 5-10 minutes. Allow your eyes to relax by focusing your eyes in the distance on an undistinguished object.

5.) Stretch. Walk. Stop Sitting Still

A great posture at your desk is one thing, but any prolonged sitting activity is bound to take its toll on your back and muscles. Wouldn’t it be interesting to get up and stretch once in a while? Of course – not to mention that you’ll notice how less fatigued you have become.

These are five tips in order to stay healthier at the office. What tips do you have for better health at work?

 

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Staying Healthy At The Office – 5 Interesting Tips

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Office design involves integrating various elements of furnishings, including partitioning, furniture, flooring, artwork and lighting to create an overall effect. Plenty of natural light, comfortable furniture and decent sized workspaces are a given; access to decent-sized kitchen facilities and break-out rooms should also be a top priority.

Give your office an attractive colour scheme by integrating brand colours into wall paint, furniture, pictures and carpets. For example, 120 Edmund Street in Birmingham combines an earthy color scheme with impressive, minimalistic designs.

Natural colour schemes combined with large windows and natural light will encourage positivity, communication and productivity, as well as reducing lighting requirements and wasted energy.

Combine with some modern furniture for stylistic effect, ensuring that desk arrangement encourages interaction between team members and chairs are comfortable and supportive.
Environmental furniture, including cardboard shelving and desks, energy saving desk lamps, recycled plastic pens and notepads can also help create a green culture.

To further green behaviour, introduce posters educating and motivating staff; install recycling bins, “think before you print” reminders and create a cycle to work scheme. Installing loft and cavity wall insulation will also save you energy and reduce costs; water conserving taps will significantly reduce water wastage.

Your company’s line of business will heavily influence your office design, although most businesses should reflect values of being environmentally friendly, creative, organised and mindful of their staff.

An accountancy firm, for example, will use different design themes to an advertising firm. Professional services firm Deloitte predominantly uses natural colour schemes, with common use of pure white to reflect a culture of professionalism and attention to detail; minimalistic furnishings also project their modern approach to traditional services.

Advertising or technology firms, on the other hand, will aim to project a feeling of creativity and boundlessness. Their offices will contain impressive creative themes, artistic furniture and extravagant use of colour. Workspaces are often redefined to encourage collaboration and lateral thinking.

Facebook’s offices, for example, include chill-out style workstations, soft furniture and urban wall art; Parliament’s office is designed like a log-cabin, built from hand-crafted timber. For creative firms their workspace is their identity: the more extravagant the design, the more innovative the organization is perceived.

Research has shown that allowing staff to decorate their workspace can encourage teamwork and engagement. You should also purchase artwork which reflects staff members’ way of life, making them feel valued; for example, a staff member who loves baking bread could have artwork close to their desk which alludes to baking.

Encourage staff to move away from their desks when working collaboratively; adopt Facebook style chill-out zones where employees can use laptops or problem solve over a hot drink; encourage staff to dress casually, it immediately changes the atmosphere of the office and removes stifling, traditional ways of working. Open plan offices designs Redheughs Rigg in Edinburgh allow departmental viability and encourages cross-functional interaction.

You can also reduce your environmental impacts by minimising overall special requirements. In any given day up to 60 per cent of desks are unmanned, with excess space requiring energy to heat and light; encourage staff to work remotely or implement a shared desk policy.

Just because your company is small, do not feel constrained by your budget or traditional workplace values. Your workplace should reflect your entrepreneurial character traits of being independently minded, creative, authoritative and risk-taking; dare to be a little bit different, your staff will recognise and appreciate it.

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The Importance of Good Office Design In Creating a Productive Working Environment

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A green office product policy should begin with an in-depth audit of your equipment requirements. Procurement stakeholders and senior management should work together to identify products which can be sourced sustainably and then decide on various budgeting priorities.

Kitchen products are a good place to start. Dishwasher ranges like Bosch ActiveWater minimize water and energy usage effectively; ensure that you only run a cycle when the machine is full.

Ecokettle supply particularly effective energy saving kettles, allowing you to boil the exact amount of water required for each coffee run. Most leading manufacturers also offer energy saving microwaves and fridges; just look out for an Energy Saving Trust certified product.

Environmentally friendly cleaning products are particularly effective and will minimise the impact on the atmosphere and local ecosystem. Clover Eco460 All Purpose Cleaner will work on most hard surfaces including tables, kitchen surfaces and glass; it is also rapidly biodegradable and phosphate-free.

Recycled toilet roll, combined with Clover Eco550 Toilet Cleaner, will reduce the environmental impact of your bathroom facilities. Click Cleaning UK offers a variety of environmentally-friendly cleaning products which help you keep your office ship-shape.

Most companies have a recycling plan in place; make sure each room has separate bins for recyclable and non-recyclable waste; biodegradable refuse sacks also minimise the overall environmental impact.

For computers and electrical products, Go-Green-PC offers a variety of energy saving desktops, monitors and accessories. Eco System JB3 is a particularly efficient model, although the majority of leading manufacturers have energy-saving modes.

Lighting accounts for 40 per cent of an office’s estimated electricity bill and is a huge opportunity to reduce energy wastage. Phillips offers a variety of energy efficient lighting solutions including MASTER TL-D Power Saver set. Energy saving radiators from Haverland will also reduce your heating requirements.

Adopting a managed print service can help to reduce paper and energy wastage and save costs. Xerox’s ColorQube printers will also maximise energy efficiency; look out for Energy Star certified products.

Greenprint software highlights and removes unwanted pages prior to printing, reducing paper wastage. Sourcing sustainable paper will also help to reduce global illegal logging; all paper products now need to adhere to new European legislation to ensure that their environmental impact is minimized.

Environmental furniture, including cardboard shelving and desks, energy saving desk lamps, recycled plastic pens and notepads can also be sourced from Nigel’s eco store, creating the complete green office.

Overall, the benefits of green office products are clear: firms are able to reduce energy requirements, improve their environmental impact and lower costs. By creating a wider sustainable strategy, firms can attract new investment, government grants and become more profitable in the long-term.

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The Benefits of Green Office Products

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Learn more about Earth Day 2013 – The Face Of Climate Change

Here are some past post to get the creative, earth day juices flowing:

21 Best Green Business Tips

The Virtual Office: Can Your Business Go Any Greener?

Six Ways You Can Green Your Gym and Workout Routines

The 5 Eco Gadgets That Will Save Your Money

31 Ways To Recycle Your Home Waste

Celebrate Your Earth FREE!

Take advantage of going a little greener for FREE with this list of 2013 Earth Day Freebies.

Do NOTHING!

I’m not saying be lazy or hide in a corner until all the Earth Day fun is over – I’m saying Don’t do something that would normally cause waste, energy, etc.

DON’T drive to workDON’T use disposibales
DON’T watch TV
DON’T use fertilizers on your Garden

DON’T do something!

What are you doing for your earth today?

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Happy Earth Day 2013

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Of course, with all the hustle and bustle that comes with restaurant ownership, it’s easy to glance over your establishment’s environmental footprint. You’ve got mouths to feed; everything else comes secondary. The good news is that you don’t have to put a whole heap of thought into going green around the restaurant. Here are five simple techniques for giving your eatery an Eco-friendly overhaul:

1. Start with the bathroom. At is busiest hours, your restaurant is sure to have a lot of traffic coming in and out of the bathroom. If you’ve got the capital to do it, consider installing low flow or waterless toilets. It might seem a bit pricey now, but they’ll eventually pay for themselves on your water bill. If you’re looking for something a little cheaper, be sure to purchase Eco-friendly paper towels and toilet paper. Oh, and remember to wash your hands before you get back to work.

2. Reconsider your lighting. Like homeowners, restaurant owners have the opportunity to scale back simply by changing their light bulbs. If you’re still using incandescent bulbs, try switching over to LEDs or CFLs. Or better yet: if you can find a way to utilize a natural light source, go for it!

3. Serve the right meals. People love your restaurant for what it is. Maybe you specialize in Asian fusion – or maybe it’s southwestern BBQ. Regardless, you don’t have to sacrifice your staple entrees in order to go green. Just look for a few opportunities to serve organic food where you can! Will your customers notice if you’re using organic soup crackers? Probably not.

4. Start Composting. Think about how many food scraps you produce in a typical day. Couldn’t all those bones, all that gristle and all those inedible items be put to better use than simply sitting in the bottom of a dumpster? Start composting and use it to maintain your decorative plans, or find a local organization that will help you donate it.

5. Go in-house. If you have the resources, it might not be a bad idea to start growing your own produce and developing some of your own ingredients. It cut backs on your carbon footprint
(think about how much dirty transit is involved to get mass produced foods from A to B), and it can even be a scalable way to save some money. Plus, your customers will be able to taste the
difference (in a good way).

What’s left? With these five tips in mind, there’s not much else you have to do. Give yourself a personal audit every month or so and make sure you’re still making a point to carry out these goals. Before you know it, you’ll be Mother Nature’s favorite eatery.

Ashley Joyce is a Blogger at EnergySavings.com

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Go Green at the Restaurant

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We live in Texas, one of the hottest areas in the United States, and for families living such extreme climates it’s important for us to be smart about how we use energy. Families who are living in Texas will be able to find information regarding energy efficient changes and products directly from their electricity companies. If you live in Texas and you want to get some tips on becoming more eco-friendly, just visit www.TexasElectricityProviders.com and choose the Energy Saving Tips link at the top of the page to learn a ton of ways your household to make the switch to energy efficient. This makes it extremely easy for Texas residents to get the motivation and information they need to start a greener life.

The same goes for families who live farther north, where instead of extreme heat they see extreme cold. If you happen to live in dense areas, such as those families living in New York, particularly in the Manhattan area of New York, you are able to take advantage of some huge discounts coming up for the Toyota Prius. Families in Manhattan will be able to receive a sizeable discount of more than six thousand dollars on the plug-in hybrid versions of the Prius from 2012. They could easily add this into the tax credit that is available for buying a plug-in hybrid vehicle, getting those living in Manhattan a discount that could wind up being more than eight thousand dollars after it’s all said and done. If the energy efficiency wasn’t motivation enough, the discount will surely add some incentive.

For residents of Pennsylvania that are using PPL Electric for their electricity needs, they will be able to save some money by switching to more energy efficient developments within their households. By going to their Save Energy tab at the top of the page, PPL Electric customers can then go on to find all the information about the company’s rebate program. For those who own their own homes, they can install energy efficient appliances and upgrade their furnishings and windows to help cut down on energy costs and submit a rebate form to have PPL Electric fit the bill. In addition to rebates, they offer customers making their homes eco-friendly a few discount and incentive programs as well. They typically offer these discounts every quarter and there are also some tax credits that customers will be able to apply for in the following year for making their home more energy efficient.

Most the United States is turning to more eco-friendly alternatives these days and as the need for sustainable green energy increases, more and more companies are offering help to those who need it when it comes to switching their homes to go green. The information is all very readily available and with such good discounts, credits, and programs available to families, it’s incredibly easy to make the switch.

You just read a guest post submission.

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Going Green Pays

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Eco-Office Gals is offering a reduced rate on our WordPress Monthly Maintenance package! Give your WP site the daily Spring cleaning it needs to keep things running smooth. WP maintenance is  like maintaining your car, there’s no promise your engine will never need to be replaced, but running your engine with no oil is a sure way to make it blow!

WordPress is an open source platform, coded by many amazing people, but there are constantly updates needed to the platform, themes and plugins. Letting these elements go out of date can hinder the performance, cause conflicts – or worse yet compromise your site!

Use this reduced price rate to set up a monthly subscription via paypal for WP maintenance. Set it and forget it. Eco-Office Gals will run a check on your site for updates EVERY 20 minutes and run updates DAILY! Have multiple sites? No problem, save more with our muti-site options! More then 4 websites, let’s chat!

The small print stuff:

Updates only include installed WordPress, themes & plugins on each website. Updates do not include installation of new themes or plugins requested by the client. It also doesn’t include any any compromises due to conflicting plugins or themes or issues due to themes or plugins no longer supported by the developer.

Eco-Office Gals is not responsible for themes not customized or maintained by Eco-Office Gals. I will upgrade the theme if needed, but any conflicts, broken design elements, theme crashes, etc will not be covered. If your theme incurs any cost to upgrade it will be the responsibility of the client to purchase the upgraded theme and provide the files to Eco-Office Gals.

In the unforeseen case of plug in conflicts, theme conflicts or any other conflicts occur we will either revert back to the backup, or deactivate conflicting plug ins or theme.  You will then have to fix the issue or hire Eco-Office Gals to fix the issue before we attempt the upgrade again.

** this price is good for monthly paypal subscription only. One time only payments are regular price of $50 per website.

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WordPress Spring Cleaning Sale!

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