Sustainable business practices have many obvious benefits, from reducing your environmental impact to saving on costs and improving your company’s public image. Even so, figuring out where to start can be daunting. Taking a few simple steps can help move your business in a more sustainable direction.
Taking time to vet the companies you do business with may not sound appealing, but it does make a difference. Look for businesses who share your values, are transparent, andfollow through with their environmental commitments.
Unfortunately, greenwashing is still a problem. Some companies are more than willing to take credit for green practices while actively contributing to the issues they claim to care about. Recently, ABC News put dozens of tracking devices inside clean plastic bags dropped in labeled recycling containers at Target and Walmart locations across the U.S. Only four actually ended up at recycling facilities.
According to the ABC News article, “one tracker dropped off at a New York Walmart last pinged in Indonesia, and other trackers dropped off at one Walmart location in Florida and another Walmart in Kansas last pinged in Malaysia - places known to be struggling with plastic waste imports from around the world.”
Whether you’re choosing a long-term data storage solution or looking for a place to recycle your organization’s old tech and plastic waste, these decisions all add up.
Baby steps toward sustainability can look like changing out your incandescent light bulbs with CFL or LED bulbs, and reinforcing energy-saving practices with your team. Consider investing in better insulation and windows to cut down on wasted energy ― and reduce your overhead in the process. Each small choice adds up over time. Need more ideas? Here are a few you may not have considered:
Choose Energy Star-certified appliances and equipment for your office. Their site can help you narrow your search to EPA-approved products and find rebate programs with Energy Star partners.
Switch from local servers to cloud storage to reduce carbon emissions while making remote and hybrid work possible for your team.
Get a professional energy audit to see how your building could be operating more efficiently.
Conserve energy by ensuring that equipment in your work space is powered down overnight and on weekends ― either on a schedule or by reinforcing the habit with your team.
Even if you’re already passionate about improving our ecosystem, being able to do that by partnering with services you already use is a major plus. One easy way to contribute passively is to enroll in Stripe's Climate Program. When you do, Stripe allocates 0.5-1.5% of credit card purchases on your platform to carbon removal projects vetted by their team of science and commercial experts.
Another reason this is one of our favorites is the transparency factor. On their website, you can see the list of projects they’ve funded to see exactly where your money is going and assess their project criteria before you sign up.