sustainability in business

How Businesses Can Embrace Sustainability in 2021

Photo by Alesia Kazantceva on Unsplash

Climate change is a pressing issue all across the globe. 

Not only are carbon dioxide levels at their highest level for over 800,000 years, but sea levels are also steadily rising year on year, and animal habitats are being destroyed through deforestation.

In other words, unless we do something soon, the world will never be able to recover. In fact, some believe it may be too late already.

It, therefore, falls on each and every one of us to improve our sustainability and do our bit to protect the planet. And that includes businesses of every size.

With this in mind, we thought we’d compile a few ideas for business owners to think about when embracing sustainability within their working processes.

From changing internal systems to embracing sustainable technologies, we cover it all, helping ensure your business operates as sustainably as possible throughout 2021.

Invest In Recyclable Packaging

If your business is involved with the FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods) industry, then this one’s for you. If not, move on to the next point below.

Research is showing consumers are now opting to buy from companies with sustainability at their core.

It’s for this reason huge companies like IKEA and Apple have developed specific recycling-focused programs: they want to demonstrate how much they care for the planet.

So, within your FMCG business, if you’re not already using recycled packaging to distribute your products, you are missing out.

Whether it be coffee, tea, alcohol, nuts, sweets, chocolates, whatever – showing you are thinking about sustainability in your products will resonate a lot better with consumers and could lead to an increase in sales as a result.

Think Renewable

While the thought of everyone being back in the office may seem a long way off right now, you have to hope the world will return to some semblance of normalcy (or what we considered so) within the year.

As such, it’s important to think about your workplace. Look at ways to improve how sustainably your staff, systems and processes operate on an internal basis. One of the best ways to ensure your staff share a sense of responsibility for the office’s carbon footprint comes through incentivizing them.

Persuade them to carpool to the office together, for instance. You might even consider using a gift voucher as an extra incentive. This could go a long way towards encouraging them to act more sustainably.

Likewise, abandoning the use of plastic cutlery, printers (unless absolutely necessary) and non-reusable water bottles are some great, additional ideas to think about. Stocking the office’s kitchen cupboards with environmentally-friendly products could discourage your staff from buying unsustainable alternatives.

Invest In Plants

With millions of employees around the world stuck at home at the moment, the chances are they will be missing out on appreciating the beauty the natural world can offer.

Similarly, without the social camaraderie of the workplace and the sudden need to juggle working from home with teaching their kids, many workers are now feeling burnt out, with their mental health seriously affected as a result.

Therefore, to combat both of these issues, businesses should encourage their staff – whether it be in the office or at home – to invest in a few plants.

These natural purifiers will not only brighten up the workplace, but they will also offer a number of additional benefits – improving the quality of air, reducing stress levels and enhancing productivity.

They will also act as a constant reminder to your staff of how important our natural world is, potentially encouraging them to do more to live and work sustainably throughout the year.

Set An Example

Being a successful business involves a lot more than just standing out – you also need to set an example for your customers. Showcase why you’re not only a leading authority in your field, but how your customers can be as well.

Your consumers will trust you, after all, so it should fall on your shoulders to demonstrate why climate change is so important to you by educating your customers on how they can help.

Whether you portray this through the products you sell, the packaging you use, the delivery system you utilise or some form of pay-it-forward, recycling or charitable initiative, there are a whole host of ways you can get your message across to consumers.

So, where possible, try to ensure your message is one which encourages them to act more sustainably – protecting the planet is, ultimately, in their hands too.

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