Working Green Tips
Keeping Paper Out of the Trash
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), paper made up 34.2 percent of the more than 245 million tons of garbage discarded by U.S. residents, businesses, and institutions in 2005.
The good news is that implementing a paper-recycling program at work can dramatically reduce paper waste. Implement a policy of double-sided printing for all internal documents if possible, and contact a recycling company or your building owner/management company to find out what materials can be collected. Then help employees recycle correctly by printing posters for the workplace using this customizable pdf.
» Read more about setting up a successful recycling program at work.
Lights Out!
According to a recent story in USA Today (“Tech’s green problems,” July 17, 2007) the U.S. cost of leaving PCs on unattended is $1.7 billion each year in electricity costs. That’s nearly 20 billion kilowatt-hours—enough energy to run nearly 2 million homes annually, according to the story.
Conserve energy by setting computers, monitors, printers, and other business equipment to their energy-saving modes, and turn them off at the end of the workday.
Companies That Will Help You Stay Green
Cube Space
CubeSpace is an innovative workspace community in Portland, Oregon. We provide work stations, meeting rooms, and big office amenities to people who would otherwise be working from their homes, coffee shops, or wherever they can set up their laptops or use their cell phones. Our services are available on a monthly membership basis, or at hourly or daily rates. We are located at 622 SE Grand Ave., in Portland, Oregon.
FREE GEEK Gives Old Computers New Life
Recycling used computers and other office technology is not only smart—it’s now convenient and community-minded as well. Portland-based nonprofit FREE GEEK “recycles used technology to provide computers, education, internet [sic] access and job skills training to those in need in exchange for community service.”
Donated equipment is disassembled and recycled as electronic scrap or refurbished into new systems and loaded with open-source and free software. FREE GEEK volunteers can earn one of the computers by working 24 hours in the recycling facility.
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