11 Sustainability Ideas for Environment-friendly Teams

As more and more companies commit to environmental sustainability in the workplace, there's no better time to start promoting sustainability within your own. Promoting sustainable practices among your employees can create a culture that values the planet's health, and it all starts with a few simple changes. In this blog, we share 11 ideas on implementing sustainable practices in the workplace and among teams.

From waste reduction to energy conservation, explore actionable steps to positively impact the environment.

8 Ideas to encourage environmental sustainability at work

Let’s embrace environmental sustainability in the workplace. By conserving energy, reducing waste, and promoting sustainable transportation, we can make a real impact on the health of our planet. Here are 8 fun sustainable activities: 

1. Green Your Commute 🚏

Transportation is one of the biggest contributors to carbon emissions from workplaces. Employee commuting and business travel account for a large portion of a company's carbon footprint. Switch to carpooling or using public transport. 
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2. Switch to shine 🔆

Swap out your old, energy-guzzling bulbs for newer, efficient ones! Transform your workplace's lighting — get task lights, switch to LED, and use dimmers. This move can cut down on energy costs and reduce the company's carbon footprint. 
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3. Think twice, buy wise 🖥️

Invest in tech that lasts. Electronics can last longer with proper care! Repair and upgrade your devices instead of replacing them. Buying electronic products with ethical practices and recycled materials improves the longevity of tech.
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4. Turn off the lights, turn on the action! 💡

Dedicate Earth Hour every week in April to reduce your carbon footprint. Turn off all non-essential lights, unplug electronic devices, and take a walk to reconnect with nature. Take it one step further and use this time to volunteer for local nonprofits.

5. Start your organizations's food scraps revolution 🥕

Learn how to turn your kitchen scraps into gold by taking a composting workshop with your team! By composting, we can divert waste from landfills, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and create a valuable resource for our gardens. 
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6. Let's talk trash 🗑️

Organize zero-waste team meetups. They're a fantastic opportunity to collaborate and create sustainable work practices. Share tips and tricks, discuss challenges and successes, and make workplaces more ecologically friendly.
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7. Tree trivia for charity 🌳   

Let’s combine gaming and environmental sustainability. You can fight deforestation by playing a series of short trivia-esque games and earning points. The more points you earn, the more trees you plant. Have fun while making a positive impact on the planet.
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8. Give trees a break, go paperless 📜

Go paperless or make the conscious choice to print on recycled or FSC-certified paper. Deforestation is a global problem, but using sustainable materials is something we can all do in our workplaces.

3 Recommendations to reconnect with nature with your team

Engaging in sustainable activities can be fun to promote environmental awareness at work. Organize a "lunch and learn" session about sustainable practices, host a plant-based potluck, encourage employees to bring their reusable cups and utensils to work, and start a community garden or a green wall project - the ideas are endless!

These activities can help create a positive workplace culture around sustainability and encourage employees to make eco-friendly choices in and out of the office. Here are some recommendations to engage employees while building climate awareness and reconnecting with nature.

1. Friday team movie sessions for Earth Month 📺  

• Only yesterday — 1 hour 58 minutes, PG13
A hidden gem from the Ghibli universe — it explores the protagonist's relationship with climate and culture, finding solace in her connection with nature.

• The Bee movie — 1 hour 31 minutes, PG13
This hilarious pop classic spotlights various crucial ecological issues following a bee's life. With the declining bee population, it opens our eyes to the ongoing climate emergency.

• Okja — 2 hours

A satirical take on the modern food industry and our perplexing relationship with meat consumption. It highlights the importance of treating animals with care and kindness, not products on a shelf. 

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2. Watch documentaries about the environment 🌏

• Pacíficum — 1 hour 14 minutes
Four scientists provide a vivid and immersive narration of the awe-inspiring Peruvian coastline, with intimate insights from land, air and sea.

• The man who speaks nature — 9 minutes
We follow the story of a man building a genuine relationship with the environment, investing his time in interacting with and learning about nature, and in turn, attaining inner peace.

• The great death of Insects — 42 minutes 

Insects are crucial to the food chain, but their numbers are dropping worldwide, causing concern among scientists and environmentalists. 

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3. Encourage environment-friendly activities for employees 🦅

• Virtual birdwatching 

Join the Street View Birding group on Facebook to identify birds and maybe some animals too, all from the comfort of your laptop.

• Calculate your diet's carbon footprint 

Discover your diet's carbon footprint and how your meals contribute to climate change with the Climate Change Food Calculator. 

• Switch to a sustainable browser

Ecosia uses the profit they make from searches to plant trees where they are needed most. Search ads generate income for Ecosia, which is used to plant trees.

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It's up to all of us to take responsibility for the health of our planet. We can make a real difference by adopting environmental sustainability in the workplace. Remember, small actions can lead to significant changes, and together, we can pave the way to a greener tomorrow. 

This Earth Day, we encourage all organizations to invest in our planet with actions that promote sustainability and contribute toward our planet’s health in meaningful ways. Explore Earth Day volunteering activities for your employees in 100+ countries across 20+ languages. Join us in healing our planet by volunteering with Goodera today.