Workin' for the man, while greenin' up the land...

Alrighty! Here I am, back from Guatemala, and as promised, back with another Green Daisy post. I've got my cup o' green tea (harder to find down there), a wooly sweater on, (only May in Canada requires multiple layers...) and a cat poking at my leg. Yep.. I'm home.
And, subsequently, back to work. While at work the other day, I noticed a short blurb about greening up office space, and since I work at a place with "Environmental" in their very name, I started slacking off, poking around, and compiling a handy list of ways to be environmentally conscious while on the job... like you need one more thing to think about at work!

We do a lot of green things at my workplace that could be applied to any kind of job, whether it be an office, outside, in the service industry, or .. hell, even illegal! I was thinking about it, and many of us spend more time involved in our occupation than we do at home.. we're always hearing ways to green up the average household, but what about the places we slave.. er, I mean.. work at every day? For instance....

- Most jobs require some paper use at some point, and when paper's being used.. it's probably also getting wasted. Sad! All I can think of when I see paper in a garbage bin in Julia Hill telling us to imagine a chainsaw attached to every disposable piece of paper.. it doesn't have to be that way. Using recycled paper and making sure that unwanted scraps end up ACTUALLY getting recycled in the responsible thing to do. I've worked in places where the recycling bins are emptied in the dumpster every night, and I bet you have too... running a business without shelling out for simple recycling pick-up is a crappy thing for a boss to do. (I used to bring all the paper scraps home to recycle from a previous employer who shall remain nameless.)

- Speaking of paper, if you're in an office setting, or in a workplace that has a computer network of some kind, email reports and memos to people instead of using paper! Think about it.. you can 'lose' an important report, but you sure can't 'lose' an email... mua ha ha!

- I'm infamous for collecting random scraps of interesting waste paper at my job and turning them into cute little notebooks. All you need is a hole punch and some string! Why spend money on those annoying coiled memo pads that bust up in a week anyways? Obsessive note/list makers like myself will agree.

- Do you love lunch time? I love lunch time. And beneath my tofu-laden exterior lies a former greasy-food addict who still loves to stuff herself with chip-wagon poutines.. but I know, I know... lunch garbage sucks. It sucks because most of it can't be recycled at all, or even re-used properly. Styrofoam, greasy paper, those little foil plate things, plastic straws... the fast food lunch is an environmentalist's stomachache of guilt. We can't deprive ourselves all the time, but there is a better way. Invest in some reusable food containers (go stainless steel, glass or ceramic!) and bring your eats from home. Wash 'em up later, and trash-be-gone! Alternatively, show the neighbourhood greasy spoons what you're made of - and it isn't styrofoam. Bring a reusable container, and ask them to put your order in it, instead of a takeout container. They'll probably look at you funny at first, or even refuse to do it - and I understand their point of view. But if they want your business, they'll comply if you're friendly and explain your motives.. and don't forget to mention that you're saving them supplies!

- Here's one that gets my goat. See all those office buildings, big and small, leaving their lights on all night? What the poop!? And don't let anyone tell you that it 'saves energy' not to turn lights on and off as needed.. that's for the birds. Besides common sense telling me this, I also saw it on Mythbusters. (What a show.) They did a full out experiment, and guess what.. turning the lights on and off according to use doesn't waste energy a bit, compared to leaving them on from here til infinity. It's like your momma always told you: if you leave the room, turn the light off. (I'm not made of money ovah heah.) Same goes for computers, fax machines, and other office appliances.. it takes seconds to turn them off at the end of the day, and big Momma Earth'll thank you.

- Coffee.. I love it. It makes my eyes all buggy and makes me work faster. Oh my! But if you're a coffee or tea lover like I am, you'll want to be a responsible caffeine-addict and do the right thing. There's no good reason to have disposable cups lying around in the staff room... if everyone used a travel mug or just brought in a crappy old mug from home or the thrift shop (or better yet, make a neat collection of 30 cent mugs and teacups from your local Goodwill in funky 70's colours! Oh.. I guess by 'neat' I meant 'tacky'...) you'd avoid that gross paper/styrofoam taste in your beverage while avoiding waste. Buy sugar in bulk, not in those tiny packets, and the same goes for milk and cream. Also, while you're at it, shell out an extra dollar or two for fair trade coffee and loose-leaf teas. Hooray! Extra hot double soy cappuccino anyone?

- Ok.. I'd like to know who has the ambition to hit the gym or track every day after work? Not I. Why not get some exercise and invigorate yourself in the morning by walking or biking to work when you can? Even if you take the bus half way and walk the rest, you're still doing something fantastic for your health. And it gives you a magnificent excuse to have that second fritter at break time. Oh baby. Public transit, if you can get it, is a generally stress-free way to get to work, and greener too - I know a fella who has an hour-long bus ride to work every morning, but the cool thing is that he doesn't lament this fact. Rather, he uses it as a time to chill out, read, or get something done before he gets to work. Good for the enivronment AND the soul.. fancy that!

There are a million different professions, and a million ways to avoid waste.. if you've got an idea from your workplace, let me know! We've all gotta make a living, but that new business isn't gonna get off the ground if there isn't a friendly planet to put it on.
Thassit for now - stay tuned for next week's post.. and don't forget to give the poutine man your reusable lunch container and tell him to fill 'er up!!!