Eco-Friendly Idea Guide - Positive Promotions

Eco-Friendly Idea Guide

Celebrate Eco-Friendly

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At no time in our history has the demand for environmental awareness been as high as it is now. Individuals, businesses and organizations are looking for ways to “go green.” Positive Promotions has the tools to help you teach important Earth-care concepts, within your own facility or community-wide. We also offer imprintable products made from recycled materials. You can keep your company’s name visible while showing your commitment to our planet. The products can serve as incentives that motivate people and reward them for reducing their “carbon footprints.” We’ve incorporated some of these products into the practical ideas below. Use them to get everyone on apath towards greener living!


	Providing Environmental Education
	Begin your efforts with an awareness campaign. Discuss current issues, such as pollution and deforestation. Give statistical facts about the impact we humans have on nature. Then present tips about making Earth-friendly choices. Pass out “Dos And Don’ts Of Earth Care” Slideguides to be a handy reference. Also, hang up “101 Ways To Go Green” Posters around your building to serve as reminders.


	Reviving Recycling
	Staff members who currently don’t recycle might do so if it was a bit easier. Obtain a sturdy container to hold recyclables for each desk in your facility. Place larger bins in centralized locations for people to empty their containers into. If you have a kitchen or cafeteria, be sure to put recycling bins there as well. Meals produce a lot of waste, such as soda cans, drink bottles, cans from food, etc. When you start seeing your efforts pay off, in terms of more items recycled and less trash created, thank your entire staff with Recycled Newspaper Pencils and “Love The Earth? Recycle!” Bookmarks.


	Driving Differently
	Perhaps there are people in your organization who would like to carpool to work, but don’t know how to begin. Send an email, asking who’s interested. Find out from each respondent what part of town they live in and what hours they work. Match up pairs or groups. Suggest that the participants write schedules of who’s driving what days. Provide everyone in this carpooling program with “Driver’s Guide To Going Green Vehicle Maintenance Recorder” Pocket Pals so they can increase fuel efficiency. If you have employees without carpool buddies, see if your community offers a program that unites people from different workplaces who have similar shifts.


	E-mail For The Earth
	Printing documents takes quite a toll on the environment. Every aspect of the process requires resources: trees to turn into paper, materials to create the ink cartridges and energy to power the printer. Whenever you can, e-mail information instead of printing and handing it out. Urge everyone else to do the same. Also, set up an Intranet system for your staff to log on and read company reports. This is especially good for multi-page documents, such as newsletters and employee handbooks. Give out Recycled Lanyards and Recycled Materials Visors as rewards for suggestions of materials to post on the Intranet.


	Preferable Printing
	If printing is unavoidable, find ways to lessen the impact. Buy paper made from recycled materials. Print on both sides of the paper. And take advantage of programs that recycle ink cartridges. Perhaps most importantly, don’t let unwanted papers end up in the trash! Recycle everything. If documents are confidential, shred then recycle. Keep everyone’s mind on Reduce, Reuse, Recycle by distributing Recycled Paper Clip Message Holders, which come from used electronics, and Green Recycled Circuit Board Key Tags.


	Smart Shopping
	Individuals have control over their effect on the Earth when they make decisions about what to purchase. Provide people with some direction by organizing a shopping seminar. Explain that some shopping practices are better for the environment, such as buying durable materials and choosing minimal packaging. Also present advice on items to avoid, such as rainforest wood and toxic cleaners. Hand out “Earth-Friendly Shopping Guide” Pocket Pals,which supply more information. Hold drawings to give away “Tote-ally Reusable” Shopping Bags.


	Lowering Lunchtime Trash
	Aim for a reduction in paper lunch sacks as well as in paper plates and bowls at your facility. Hold a contest among employees who bring their lunches. Have participants track when they carry a reusable lunch bag and also when they eat off of reusable dishes. Determine goals for the number of times each activity is done. Award a 20-Oz. Recycled Sports Bottle for reaching the lunch bag goal and a Recycled Materials Bracelet for completing the dishes goal.


	Crucial Conservation
	The production of energy releases greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming. This makes energy conservation vital. Get the word out: it is energy efficient to turn lights off whenever you leave a room for more than a few seconds. Also inform employees that they should set their computers to go to sleep, not just to a screensaver, for short periods of inactivity. And remind everyone to turn ?off computers at the end of the day. Ask people to nominate co-workers who have been particularly good at conserving energy. Each week, reward one of the nominees with an Energy Saver Journal and a Liquid-Powered Clock.


	Coffee Cup Question
	More than 14 billion disposable cups are used in the United States each year. Help lower that amount by supplying your staff with reusable mugs. Consider the Recycled Mug, created out of used plastic, or the Corn Mug Commuter, made from corn instead of petroleum. Of course your staff members can use their mugs at work, but also encourage them to refill the mugs at coffee shops and convenience stores. They may assume they can’t bring their own mugs, so assure them that many places are allowing this and that they should just ask.


	Family Focus
	Many of the ways to save the planet involve activities done at home. Arrange an open house for employees and their family members. Show off any Earth-friendly changes that have been made at your facility. Then lead everyone to displays featuring actions people can take in their own homes. Distribute “Family Guide To Going Green” Slideguides to the adults. Give “Celebrate Earth Day Every Day” Educational Activities Books to lower elementary kids and “Earth Care From A To Z” Educational Activities Books to upper elementary kids.


	Going Green Glossary
	Here are some words you may encounter. Biodegradable: breaks down completely; requires air, sunlight and water to do so. Natural: is not legally defined, except in meat processing. Organic: grown or produced under guidelines from the USDA, such as no antibiotics, synthetic hormones, toxic fertilizers or pesticides. Post-consumer content: material made from products that have served their purpose and have been collected from the consumer to be recycled. Post-industrial content: more accurately called pre-consumer; material made from waste created during industrial processes. Recyclable: can be remanufactured into something else.