When it comes to writing company policies most companies have no problem committing themselves to being green and doing their part for the environment. Many companies even donate money to green initiatives and many encourage recycling within their businesses. While all these things are good, its definitely not enough as we enter into a new era of environmental issues. Having a business that is responsible towards their carbon footprint really needs to go much further than merely pledging their commitment to environmental issues.
One area where virtually any business can make a huge impact is with travel. Air travel is now considered to be the biggest source of greenhouse gas in the western world and with air travel continuing to grow at an alarming rate, its time that we all do our part. Developing business relations globally is important but with all the wonderful new technology we have available we really can reduce travel significantly. Video conferencing can break down international barriers and apart from saving you a fortune in travel costs it can actually create a much smoother business environment.
Air travel is not the only culprit though. Cars are guzzling up fossil fuels like never before and unless we change our travel habits we are doomed to lose the battle. Our businesses need to become much more conscious of our business travel activities as well as that of our employees. One simple thing that some businesses started implementing is car pool schemes that allows employees to drive to work together.
If your business delivers a lot of products and uses a lot of transport then you need to look at your policies as well. Many transport companies are now starting to implement green initiatives with trucks running on green fuel and ensuring their vehicles are properly services to minimize its carbon footprint. You can opt to use these companies and be smart with your transport plans and not just be driven by cost. In the end we all need to take responsibility and it starts with you and what you do today.
