Earth Day is a yearly reminder that we should be aware of our ecological footprint and that we must protect our planet. Working from home is already a great start by reducing fuel usage from vehicles. You can take it a step further with these 7 tips on how to be eco-friendly when working remotely that will help the environment and also keep energy bills down!
- Turn Down your Thermostat
Turning down your thermostat is an easy way to save energy. According to the Department of Energy, heating and cooling account for up to 48% of home energy consumption. A more eco-friendly way to stay warm during the Winter is by bundling up! A cozy sweater or a warm blanket can help keep you warm during the Winter. Try opening a window! By opening a window, you can let fresh air in and save money on energy! You can also wear lighter clothing. Wearing breathable fabrics like cotton will help as well.
- Avoid Using the Printer
Before printing something, make sure it is not a file you can store electronically. If it’s necessary to print, try double-sided printing! Toner cartridges are incredibly harmful to the environment, and they take over 1000 years to decompose fully! To lessen the damage, try recycling used cartridges or buy remanufactured cartridges.
- Work more efficiently
Working more efficiently is less time spent on your computer. A win/win/win in all cases! You save energy, get more work done, and have more time to spend time outdoors enjoying your day.
- Use Natural Light
Want to look suitable for your Teams meeting? Use natural light! Instead of setting up a ring light or other artificial lighting, natural light is an easy way to have good lighting for important meetings. Rearranging your desk to face a window will allow you to have access to natural lighting and have a view of the outdoors. It is also important to remember always to turn off the lights when you leave the room. At night, try using a desk lamp instead of turning on the lights. If you must turn them on, try replacing your light bulbs with energy-efficient LEDs or CFLs.
- Unplug Electronics that aren’t being used
Make sure once your workday is over to unplug and turn off all devices that are no longer being used! Leaving appliances plugged in adds up; according to the United States Department of Energy, you save up to $100 to $200 each year by unplugging devices that are not in use.
- Utilize power-saving apps
Keeping your laptop and other devices on low power mode is another easy way to save energy. There are apps like “low power mode” or “sleep mode” that can easily help you save energy. You can also try using a laptop instead of a desktop since they tend to use less energy.
- Reduce plastic use
Now that working from home has become the new normal, our workplaces are no longer doing recycling for us. Keep a recycling program at home and practice things that will reduce plastic use, for example, cooking instead of eating out. Check out more tips on how to improve your recycling at home.
Let’s each do our part this Earth Day (and every day) to save our planet. Have any questions or comments on how to be eco-friendly when working remotely? Please don’t hesitate to Contact Us and feel free to connect on LinkedIn and Twitter!