Since the early 2000s, the trend towards sustainability in the workplace has gained significant traction, and for good reason. By making small changes to the way we work, we can drive real, long-term social and environmental change. Not to mention, sustainable workplaces tend to see higher levels of employee moral and loyalty.
5 examples of environmentally sustainable work practices
Prioritise recycling
Does your workplace have consistent recycling procedures in place? These could be as simple as colour-coding your bins or having designated containers for used batteries and ink cartridges to ensure proper recycling. By adopting these simple practices, your recycling efforts will become more structured and more likely to stick.
It’s also important to ensure that electronic waste, or “e-waste”, is properly disposed of. For large businesses in WA, it is now illegal to dispose of e-waste at landfill facilities. Instead, this waste must be transferred to a regulated e-waste service provider.
Get employees onboard
Even the most comprehensive sustainability plan is unlikely to succeed without employee buy-in. As such, it’s important to involve your team in developing sustainability processes from the outset. By doing this, your team can identify areas of interest and even take ownership of particular initiatives that they’re passionate about.
Use resources responsibly
Whether it’s electricity, gas or water, the responsible use of resources is central to any workplace sustainability program. Shutdown timers are an excellent way to make sure electrical devices are turned off when they’re not in use, while energy-efficient light bulbs use less power and last longer than regular ones. Similarly, low-flow taps can help to reduce water-flow by mixing air and water.
It’s also worth considering ways to integrate renewable energy into your work environment. For example, at Central Park, we recently introduced a Tesla EV car-sharing service for our tenants to encourage the use of electric vehicles. Learn more about the initiative here.
Purchase sustainable products
When buying products for the workplace, it’s easy to focus on cost rather than sustainability. But making small changes to your purchasing habits can have a significant long-term impact on your workplace’s environmental impact. Consider products marked as Fairtrade over less sustainable alternatives, or cleaning products made with natural ingredients rather than harmful chemicals.
Reduce plastic use
From coffee pods to cutlery, single-use plastic products have unfortunately become a mainstay of many office environments. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Instead, think about ways you can replace single-use products with reusable ones. Or if you have to use single-use items, try to buy ones that are recyclable. For example, choose wooden cutlery and paper plates over plastic.
Central Park and sustainability
Central Park is a fully electrified commercial building and we champion a range of initiatives and practices to ensure our building and our tenants businesses are contributing positively to the environment.
In fact, we hold a range of industry accreditations and are constantly improving our energy efficiency. Partnered with MOJO, we offer a car share facility for tenants along with along with a Green Room with separate facilities.
We maintain the CBDs only dedicated green space and encourage our tenants to commute sustainably by providing state-of-the-art End of Trip facilities.
Can you see your organisation kicking sustainability goals at Central Park? Enquire about vacancies today.