As we celebrate Earth Day, the following business owners are doing their part to promote sustainability in their eco-friendly workplaces.
APRIL 20, 2017
First celebrated on April 22, 1970 in the United States,
Earth Day is now a global phenomenon that involves more people than any other civic observance day of the year, according to the Earth Day Network. As we celebrate this day meant to educate and inspire us to conserve our natural resources, you may want to consider what your company is doing to promote sustainability and protect our planet.
No grand gesture is necessary to make a difference. There’s true power in numbers. The more businesses adopt small environmentally friendly changes, the bigger the payoff could be for our world’s health. The following companies are doing their parts in creating sustainable conditions that make our earth a cleaner, healthier place to be.
Bringing Sustainability to Your Office Processes…
“This Earth Day, make use of today’s digital technologies to create a step-change in business prowess. We’re helping organizations rethink the way they do work by helping them go paperless and enabling them to digitize their processes, streamline costs and increase efficiencies.”
—Nick Candito, co-founder and CEO, Progressly
“A cloud document management solution can reduce IT expenses, scale an organization’s growth and improve utilization rates. Like the businesses we serve, we rely on our cloud document management solution to scale back on paper, infrastructure and electricity in our office.” —
Jesse Wood, CEO, eFileCabinet
…to Your Office Space and Employees…
“MyClean uses reusable rags and sponges whenever possible, and environmentally-friendly cleaning solutions that contain no bleach or ammonia. We have found that our customers, particularly those with children and pets, notice the difference, and our cleaners report a high level of satisfaction knowing that the solutions they use don’t put their health at risk.”
—Michael Scharf, CEO and co-founder, MyClean
“As a cloud-based software platform, we provide the rehab community with a paperless route to completing patient documentation. Our technology has also supported WebPT employees in going virtually paperless. If hard copies are ever necessary, we have a green-certified printer and actively practice recycling throughout our office building. We also offer incentive benefits for carpooling and public transit, and we opted to have a Grid Bike station installed just outside of our office to make it easy for our employees to bike to and from work. We believe our actions have a ripple effect that begins with the team’s own behavior and spreads outward to friends, family and eventually, the community as a whole.”
—Heidi Jannenga, co-founder and president, WebPT
…to Your Products and Services…
“We believe what is good for the planet is good for us and our health. Bogobrushes are eco-friendly toothbrushes made of recycled plastic handles that would otherwise be destined for the landfill. We use only recycled/recyclable or biodegradable materials for our handles and stands. We manufacture in the U.S.—not overseas—to dramatically reduce transportation costs to the environment. The Bogobrush and stand packages are made from paperboard and are recyclable or compostable. Plus, our shipping materials are made from 88 percent recycled plastic and can be recycled completely.”
—Heather McDougall, co-founder, BogoBrush
“Fishpeople Seafood works with small-scale fishermen to bring consumers transparently-sourced seafood and prides itself on the sustainable practices that go into bringing each fish from pole to plate. The company only catches abundant species of fish using sustainable catch methods. Leftover meat like the fatty collar and flavorful tail are used in items like a salmon burgers that is in development. Fishpeople also sells the nutrient-rich skin, bones and meat trim from the salmon to various pet food companies, so nothing goes to waste.”
—Jen Paragallo, VP of marketing, Fishpeople Seafood
“Pete’s Living Greens is a California-based company recognized by consumers for its ‘living’ lettuce and cress varieties, and grows all of its produce hydroponically in state-of-the-art greenhouses where light, temperature, humidity and nutrients are controlled. This method uses up to 85 percent less water and 70 percent less land than traditional growers, and all of the brand’s packaging is 100 percent recyclable.”
—John Cochran, CEO, Pete’s Living Greens
…to Your Operations…
“As a leader in sustainability education and the alma mater of pioneering conservationist Rachel Carson, author of
Silent Spring, Chatham University is committed to employing a comprehensive range of sustainability practices, including purchasing renewable power since 2002, and now purchasing 90 percent of the university’s total electricity usage from a Green-E Certified mix of renewable energy that is primarily wind power. Chatham has also installed solar thermal water heating for two dormitories. The school also has a composting program in its dining facilities that gathers pre- and post-consumer materials, including takeout containers. Waste fat is sent to a regional biodiesel plan.”
—Mary Whitney, director of university sustainability, Chatham University
“Inspired by a heaping mound of left-behind plastic bottles at [a large festival] a few years ago, Flow is an eco-friendly solution for hydration on the go. Flow Water is a premium alkaline spring water packaged in an environmentally-friendly TetraPack that is 100 percent recyclable and made with up to 70 percent renewable material. Even the plant-based plastic caps that top each pack of Flow Water are derived from non-GMO sugarcane sourced from farmers in Brazil. Our packs of water are also initially transported as mega rolls and assembled at our plant because it’s hugely efficient. By using mega rolls we require minimal vehicles on the road, which cuts pollution, keeps fuel low and helps our company emit the lowest CO2 footprint possible.”
—Nicholas Reichenbach, founder and CEO, Flow Water
…to Your Community
“Rebel Kitchen, which produces coconut milk, has a deep-rooted pledge to sustainable business practices. In the spirit of Earth Day, we’re undergoing our
B Corp Certification so that we can stand up and be measured against standards of social and environmental performance, accountability and transparency. Rebel Kitchen has also signed up to the 1% For The Planet Foundation to give back by pledging to donate at least 1 percent of sales to nonprofit partners. We use organic, young green coconuts that are sustainably sourced from local farmers in the Philippines. The whole coconut is used, so nothing goes to waste.”
—Tamara Arbib, founder and CEO, Rebel Kitchen
“We care about sustainable living and the well-being of our world. Feed Your Soul Bakery offers its customers a craft gift box option made from 100 percent recycled, eco-friendly materials. As a bakery manufacturing facility, we continue to find alternative ways to create the energy, materials and resources we need in our day-to-day operations. For every order placed, Feed Your Soul Bakery gives a cookie to the Coalition for the Homeless.”
—Mya Zoracki, founder and owner, Feed Your Soul Bakery
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