There are many ways to make your organization more "Green".
You can do as much or as little as possible... Every effort helps.

Here are some tips:

Office Supplies - the top two products

Paper

Paper is the lifeblood of many businesses and given the fact that the process of creating it is one of the most ecologically harmful things in industry, it is easy to see why paper is a big focus and opportunity. The average U.S. office worker is responsible for an entire tree per year in paper use. Paper waste accounts for over 40% of the current total waste in the United States.

Purchasing 100% post consumer recycled fiber papers which are also chlorine free can have a tremendous impact on our environment. Paper made with 100% recycled content uses 44% less energy, produces 38% less greenhouse gas emissions, 41% less particulate emissions, 50% less wastewater, 49% less solid waste and 100% less wood.

In addition to this, paper bleached with chlorine is quite harmful on the environment, particularly the aquatic environment. Therefore chlorine-free paper is an environmentally preferable alternative.

Pens & Pencils

Americans buy more than 5.1 Billion pens every year, and most are the disposable type, thrown in the trash once the ink runs dry. That adds up to approximately 770 tons more unnecessary plastic waste to landfills each year.

Most pens are made from PVC plastic which releases dangerous dioxins (the active ingredient in Agent Orange) during production. Enough wood pencils are produced each year to circle the planet 62 times.

There are eco friendly pens/pencils available which can significantly reduce this impact and non-toxic alternative inks reduce the amount of toxins which end up in the water table. Alternatively, utilizing refillable, low or non toxic ink pens and refillable mechanical pencils (especially those made from recycled materials or sustainable biodegradable materials.) reduce waste.

Energy Consumption - easy fixes

Power save mode on computers
Enable power save on every user's computer and monitor after 15 minutes. Make sure that the policy is enforced by blocking end user ability to alter the setting without permission. This will deliver an amazing amount of savings and cut CO2 emissions

Thermostat settings
Setting thermostats around business hours will help reduce energy use.
Locking the devices to a set temperature and not allowing employees to override based on personal prefernces will also deliver savings and will be easy on the environment.

Lights - accounts for 40% of electricity use
Simple solution to reduce amount of wasted energy on rooms which are not constantly used:-
  1) Post signs to remind people to turn off lights after use
  2) Install light sensors - it can deliver thousands of dollars in savings

Type of Lights
Try to use energy efficient bulbs, like, LED or Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs. If you are fitting out a new space, consider SolaTubes.
LEDs are approximately 75% more efficient then CFLs, they also contribute to the reduction of mercury into the environement.

Bathrooms - Hand towels or dryer
Bathroom paper towels have an immense environmental impact. From the trees cut down to create them to the countless plastic trash bags full of them! You can easily and cost effectively, eliminate paper towels from your bathroom by purchasing a hand dryer, like AirBlade. Dyson's AirBlade for example is far more
energy efficient than most dryers and is very competitively priced.

Reduce, Re-use, Recycle

Recycle paper
Paper is one of the largest sources of business waste. Supply paper recycling bins at every location that there is a trash receptacle. Post a sign near every for-paper recycling bin that says 'It is
company policy to recycle paper'. Industrialized paper making has an effect on the environment both upstream (where raw materials are acquired and processed) and downstream (waste-disposal impacts). Energy consumption is reduced approximately by 40-60% through recycling - more accurate statistics are still being researched.

Recycle plastic
Plastic now makes up over 11% of landfill waste and this percentage has been growing steadily over time. Plastic containers and such are part of the ‘disposable item consumer culture'. First and foremost - get creative in ways to use less plastic. Then recycle what you have to. Make sure that a ‘for-plastics recycling' bin is available at every place where there is a trash receptacle. Make sure that signs are present to alert everyone of the new process.

Compost bins
Over 30% of waste going to landfills is compostable - but will take decades to biodegrade at a landfill because it is buried. When it finally does biodegrade it will release methane which is a greenhouse gas 20 times more powerful than CO2. It is therefore recommended that each business has a composting plan. Office composting represents a true sign of business eco-leadership. By composting you make something
useful out of what would otherwise become more landfill mass.

Manual forms
Internal forms which are paper based are almost always wasteful uses of company resources. Replace paper based internal forms with electronic digitally signed ones. If someone really needs a paper copy they can print it. This is an easy and simple solution to reducing cost, waste and energy for the business and the environment.

Batteries
There are many products used in business which require batteries. Headsets, radios, remote controls etc.

88 percent of the total mercury and half of the total cadmium in the municipal solid waste stream comes from discarded batteries. Try replacing disposal batteries with rechargeable batteries or using solar powered rechargers. When you do need to discard your batteries - please use a certified recycling program.

Reduce paper use
Paper is one of the single biggest waste items in the standard office. If you do not currently print

double sided then you should definitely start. If you do not have a printer that prints using automatic duplexing, then its worth consideration of functionality when the time comes to upgrade.

You will save money - by approx 50% on printing supplies. You will shrink your carbon footprint - beyond the trees that go into making paper, there is also an environmental impact to transporting paper and producing it (imagine lessening that impact by half).

Recycle printer/toner cartridges
Over 300 million printer and toner cartridges are land-filled every year. Recycling cartridges reduces negative environmental impact. In the U.S. an estimated 375 million ink cartridges are discarded each year. The total weight of these cartridges is equivalent to 67,612 Ford Explorers or 112,463 Volkswagen Beetles.

You can refilling your own inkjet cartridges and save money or purchase recycled ink cartridges which predominantly cost less then regular ink cartridges and also contribute positively to the environment.

Whilst there is a perception out there that recycled/refilled print/toner cartridges can harm your machine, Eco Worx offers a guarantee on all recycled cartridges, to replace and cover any maintenance costs caused by its products.