Interest among businesses in being green has decreased as the economic situation has worsened (source), but with over 60,000 tons of CO2 emitted in 2009 from UK conferences and exhibitions, this is definitely an industry which can become greener.
With all the planning involved, the extra stress of considering the carbon footprint and wider environmental implications of your attendance isn’t necessarily welcomed! Luckily there are a few techniques that let you do this without the stress:
Number one: Go green for the right reasons!
There’s an upsetting trend at the moment of companies greenwashing their business practices – bringing attention to their green activities with the sole purpose of gaining positive PR. This sets a dangerous precedent as green responsibility should be taken seriously! If you’re enthusiastic about your green efforts, this will rub off on visitors to your stand, and will hopefully lead to them taking an interest too.... read more
I grew up in the Northeast with Dunkin Donuts all over the place. Not gonna lie, I enjoy the occasional chocolate donut and I love their iced tea on a warm day. But, each time I set foot in a Dunkin Donuts I feel my blood boil whenever I see their cups. It's disheartening that they still haven't made strides to phasing out those cups.
Well, over the past few weeks, I teamed up with the good people at Causes.com to create a petition urging Dunkin Donuts to STOP using Styrofoam cups.
Increased awareness of the environmental challenges facing the world mean that more and more business owners are searching for ways to reduce the environmental impact of their businesses. For many, the desire to improve their environmental performance goes hand in hand with the pressure to save money – energy-efficiency is the key both to reducing carbon emissions and to keeping electricity bills manageable in an era of rising costs.
For businesses with public lavatories, such as restaurants, pubs or theatres, hand drying can be a major source of carbon emissions. The same is true for office buildings or public spaces, where high traffic in lavatories means many users drying their hands throughout the day. Although traditional hand-drying methods can have a significant environmental impact, recent advances in technology now offer businesses a chance to cut down on their carbon footprint, as well as saving on energy bills.
Business owners have always had to make the choice between the hand dryer and the traditional paper towel dispenser. This debate has usually been framed in terms of expense – dryers are usually more expensive initially, but towel machines need to be constantly restocked. Additionally, towel dispensers create large amounts of waste and require more regular attention than dryers. On the other hand, a dryer can add to a business's energy bills. Cloth towels are still seen in some lavatories, but users often avoid these, citing hygiene concerns. For most businesses, hand dryers and paper towels are the only practical options.... read more
Word of mouth is often the best method of advertising, and it depends solely on your business's reputation in your local community. If you're unsure of how your business is perceived, or want to improve your reputation with your customers and neighbors, consider sponsoring or instituting one or more green programs.
Being greener is a great way to improve your reputation, and can help your business in the following ways:
Green Initiatives Increase Employee Satisfaction
Business owners know that often, their employees are their greatest asset. If employees are satisfied, they do their jobs well, they're more productive, and employee turnover is limited.
Green initiatives can increase employee's pride in their workplace, leading them to speak well about their company. Recycling programs, workplace beautification programs, and implementation of employees' green ideas all show that the company is listening to employees and is interested in what they have to say.... read more
Think about how much trash you throw into your recycling bins at home each month. Now think about how much trash you produce in your office. Can you image how much garbage your office throws out could be recycled? If you think that recycling in your workplace would not make a difference, think again.
Each year, businesses throw away tons of garbage that could be recycled. It’s such a waste of resources and money, and it overruns our crowded landfills. Make the change to start a recycling program in your workplace today.
Make a Plan
It’s easy to say “we want to recycle in our office,” but it’s much harder to make a program that actually makes the workplace more efficient. Before you implement a recycling program, take a few minutes to make a plan. Be sure to decide:
What items you want to recycle
Who will head the recycling program
How you will dispose of waste
Each of these steps is very important because you need to stay focused in order to keep track of your results to see how much of a difference you are making with your new program.... read more
As the environment becomes a bigger area of concern, many consumers are looking for companies that subscribe to “green” practices and provide products that are good for the planet. As a result, businesses are jumping on this trendy bandwagon and claiming that their goods and services are earth-friendly—regardless of whether it’s true. This has caused earth-conscious shoppers to turn to the Internet to check out companies’ reputations before they buy.
A company’s online reputation is not only determined by the content on its own website, but also links to other companies’ websites, online endorsements and advertising, posts on social media, and consumer reviews.
So, when you’re looking to find an environmentally responsible company, can you trust the Internet to help you choose the most “green” business?... read more
A recent CNN report revealed that the U.S. is one of the top 10 polluting countries in the world.
Reducing our enormous ecological footprint will require the combined efforts of the government, individuals, and businesses. While this may seem like a daunting task, there are five simple steps your business can take to be more eco-friendly - and as an added bonus, some of the steps can also reduce your operating costs.
Are business leaders finally discovering that climate change hurts everyone’s bottom line? In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, NYC mayor Michael Bloomberg endorsed Obama over Romney because Obama took concrete steps against carbon pollution, and at the same time he slapped Romney for denying climate change.(1) This was a major departure for any one-percenter, as Bloomberg clearly is, since that group is allergic to talking about climate change. As climate scientists offer more detailed predictions about our overheated future, one fact has become clear: climate change is going to cost everyone a lot of money. The worse it gets the more it will cost. This has been known for a decade, and new businesses are thriving in the areas of alternative energy, conservation, etc., but corporate leaders have remained eerily silent on the reality of climate change, apart from spin and greenwashing.... read more
Summer’s just gone by and Christmas is already upon us. It happens every year—the holidays come in the blink of an eye. The air is buzzing with excitement as our family and friends prepare Christmas parties and gatherings. It’s always nice to travel for the holidays, away from our daily lives. If you find yourself in the English capital looking for an eco-friendly London hotel, you won’t be disappointed. Whether it’s for New Year’s or Christmas, travelling green will always make you feel better. Here are the top 5 environmentally friendly hotels in London.... read more
Paper has been with us for a long time. And by a long time, I mean way back in A.D. times. Ts'ai Lun has been credited with creating paper back in 105 A.D. If you could think of the amount of paper created and used between then and present day, it'd probably fill up the globe ten fold. ... read more
Interest among businesses in being green has decreased as the economic situation has worsened (
I've blogged in the past about how 
Increased awareness of the environmental challenges facing the world mean that more and more business owners are searching for ways to reduce the environmental impact of their businesses. For many, the desire to improve their environmental performance goes hand in hand with the pressure to save money – energy-efficiency is the key both to reducing carbon emissions and to keeping electricity bills manageable in an era of rising costs.
Word of mouth is often the best method of advertising, and it depends solely on your business's reputation in your local community. If you're unsure of how your business is perceived, or want to improve your reputation with your customers and neighbors, consider sponsoring or instituting one or more green programs.
Think about how much trash you throw into your recycling bins at home each month. Now think about how much trash you produce in your office. Can you image how much garbage your office throws out could be recycled? If you think that recycling in your workplace would not make a difference, think again. 
As the environment becomes a bigger area of concern, many consumers are looking for companies that subscribe to “green” practices and provide products that are good for the planet. As a result, businesses are jumping on this trendy bandwagon and claiming that their goods and services are earth-friendly—regardless of whether it’s true. This has caused earth-conscious shoppers to turn to the Internet to check out companies’ reputations before they buy. 
