Lately, governments have been incentivising organisations to become eco-friendly or go green. Going green shows an organisation is both responsible and socially conscious.

Creating a green workplace often involves putting policies in place that encourage employees to protect the environment, conserve energy and save money.

If you’re looking to go green in your workplace, you don’t have to implement green policies all at once. You should instead slowly introduce eco-friendly initiatives that are easy for employees to implement.

Once the little initiatives become a part of the culture, you can set a date to go fully green.

Here are five ideas to make your workplace greener & eco-friendlier:

1. Encourage eco-friendly commuting

Encouraging employees to take part in eco-friendly commuting styles like cycling, car-pooling and taking public transport to and from work is a great way to start.

Cycling is healthier for us, and car-pooling and public transportation means fewer vehicles on the road and less pollution.  Changing our commuting habits often means employees save money and create less carbon footprints which harm the environment.

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2. Eliminate single-use cups in the office

Plastic and styrofoam cups are non-biodegradable and can litter the oceans and cause harm to aquatic species. Instead of single-use plastic, paper or styrofoam cups, provide your employees with company-branded reusable bottles or thermos flasks.

This simple action will not only see your organisation contributing towards saving the environment, but it can help your team be more hydrated and healthier.

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3. Use recycled printing paper & print on both sides of the sheet

Ideally, workplaces should be paper-free environments. However, that may not always be completely possible.

Switching to using recycled paper preserves the environment, and printing on both sides of a paper can prevent paper waste anywhere between 10%-40%.

4. Optimise natural light usage

If your office has large windows, you should let in as much natural light as possible. Try as much as possible not to switch on lights unnecessarily to help reduce energy consumption.

It is known that working in natural light improves workers’ sleep duration and quality, physical and mental well-being and overall mood.

5. Use energy-saving lights

You should consider using energy-saving lights in your office. A recent study shows that energy bulbs last much longer than other bulbs and consume less power than regular ones.

From all the go-green ideas listed above, which will you be going for? Which one most resonates with you and your team?