Earth Day Ideas for Any Business or Office

Five simple promotions for eco-friendly initiatives

As Kermit the Frog tells us, it is not easy to be green.

Doing good things for the planet is not always easy for businesses.

Turning off lights during the day in favor of natural light is a start. Yet not all office spaces have windows to allow that. Turning up or down heat and AC settings can save power. But these settings may not be up to an individual office space. Many aspects of building management may be outside your control, from recycling to water use.

Companies can still do things in small ways to help conserve energy, recycle, and help the planet. That includes celebrating Earth Day.

Held each April 22 since 1970, Earth Day asks everyone to take some time that day to consider their impact on the planet. The website, www.earthday.org, suggests steps community groups, schools, and individuals can take.

What about businesses? Why does it matter to corporations whether they embrace green projects and Earth Day?

A 2018 survey suggests that 77 percent of American consumers are more loyal to purpose-driven brands. They want eco-friendly products and will support businesses that promote green initiatives.

Give those consumers what they want. Tell them what your company does to achieve its environmental goals.

Here are some Earth Day projects your company can do to encourage a more sustainable, healthy, and earth-friendly workplace.

Virtual Green Speaker Events

A virtual event is simpler to create than you think. Many cities have recycling or sustainability coordinators. School districts have environmental science teachers. Colleges often have a speakers bureau that connects experts to the community.

These are great resources for finding a local professional for your event. That person can then discuss what you and your customers can do individually.

Take a half-hour of your day in late April -- on or near Earth Day -- to offer an online chat with that expert. Invite staff to join the discussion. You may even open up the event for customers to learn what their offices can do to help.

It's important to keep the chat brief, ideally around 15-20 minutes. No one wants to be in an hour-long Zoom conference. Put your expert speaker's tips and suggestions on your website when the event is over. Share that website link during the conversation.

You can even record the conversation. Upload it to YouTube and the company website once it is over.

Social Media Posts.

A series of Earth Day social media posts is an excellent way to share tips and your company's efforts with followers.

Do you have a blog where you talk about your company, its products, and achievements? Write about your green initiatives there. Share those posts on your Facebook or Twitter page.

If you plan an Earth Day forum, share the event on social media and invite customers to join in.

Get your speakers talking points before the event. Expand on those in your social media posts once it is over and invite your employees and customers to share them.

Office Challenges.

During the pandemic, many companies started online events to keep staff interacting. Use one of these meet-ups to promote an Earth Day event and create challenges for your team to participate in.

One idea is for a recycled fashion show. Invite your staff to make reusable accessories from what would have otherwise been trash.

You can also show off your employees' creativity. Online guides show how to make pot scrubbers or doormats from plastic grocery bags. Recycled fashion can include making bags or dog toys out of old blue jeans.

Have staff vote on the best reuse (online or in-person) during the meeting. You can even auction off the coolest finished product. Donate the money raised to a local charity, food bank, or green organization in the company name.

Do you have inspirational posters in your office? How about doing an Earth Day poster idea for your staff? Ask them to create one around a theme you pick.

Your graphic designers may have an edge for this idea. Or, you can invite your staff's children to create one and pick a winner among those. Have the contestants take pictures of their work. Then, post them on your intranet or send out an e-survey to determine the winner. Get it framed for the office or for the winner to take home.

The winning posters can even become the basis for a social media post or online marketing campaign.

Cleanup Days.

Trash pickup days are a great way to get staff outside and walking, improve their bond, and beautify the area. Pick a day during office hours for an outdoors cleanup event. That can be around your building, at a local park, or along the streets of your city.

Some towns will provide grabbing sticks and garbage bags for a neighborhood cleanup. Call your city to discover if those are available. If not, buy heavy-duty garbage bags and vinyl gloves for picking up trash. Give your staff promotional t-shirts to wear as they work. The event can be just an hour of picking up litter or half a workday. It is up to you.

You can also make this event into a challenge. Give a prize -- a company-branded promotional gift -- to the person or group that brings in the most trash by weight or bags collected. You can also give out an award for the weirdest thing found during the cleanup.

Have someone take photos during the event. Post those to your social media channels to show your commitment to a green planet.

Office Recycling Programs.

Many office buildings do not offer recycling programs. Still, don't let that stop your office from recycling.

You may have to find a drop-off location or a service to pick up the recycling bin. Speak to the building management, or reach out to your city to learn the available options. Either source may have more suggestions on how your office can reduce its trash and more recycling ideas.

Do you have anyone on staff who loves to garden? That person may have ideas on composting options if food waste is a problem for your office kitchen.

Little things like recycling can greatly impact the amount of trash and waste your office produces when everyone is onboard. You can even save money over time since less garbage means less hauling it away.

What else can offices do to reduce waste?

See if your staff can reduce the amount of paper they print. Will your office printer and copier print on both sides of the paper? Check the machine's settings for double-sided printing. Then, change their computer's printing preferences to use that function. Send PDFs instead of handing out printed copies when possible.

Does your company still send out printed catalogs or brochures? Put those publications on custom recycled plastic flash drives instead. These drives are less expensive to create and mail. They are also easier to bring to a sales call or trade show. Have you updated the catalog? It is less wasteful to update flash drives than reprint new hardcopies.

You can also consider giving your staff custom printed shopping bags with your logo or slogan on them, or reusable food containers with bamboo utensils for their lunch breaks.

Plastic straws are a huge waste problem and are not recyclable. Reusable straws made of silicone or stainless steel help prevent plastic from getting into our oceans.

Don't buy single-use water bottles for your employees. Get them a reusable sports water bottle with your branding and encourage them to fill it up from the tap.

These days, national coffee chains embrace reusable cups, so get some promotional travel coffee mugs and tumblers for your staff. According to Starbucks, reusable coffee tumblers can stop 200,000 paper versions from going into landfills in just three months.

When you give customers products that reduce waste and save money, they will use them. Your employees will also follow when you model good practices.

We suggest any of our eco-friendly promotional products as part of your corporate gift program and Earth Day promotions. Contact Logotech or register for an account today. Then send over your logo. Our expert designers will send back suggestions for greener promotional products for your brand.