by  DIANA HOLGUIN

Here at Voice Over for the Planet, we work hard just like you. We’re mostly in our home offices and recording booths but every so often we venture out to a studio. You might work from home too, have a hybrid setup, or clock in at a real-life company office every workday. Whatever your situation, work is one area in life where making some eco-friendly and sustainable changes is important and totally doable. Here I’ll share with you some ways that you can do this starting today. 

Let’s begin with office supplies. Who doesn’t love a well-stocked office supply closet, amiright? I’ve loved supply closets ever since I was a kid; neat stacks of boxes of pencils and staples, stacks of paper, bins of markers, paper clips, scissors, tissues, you name it. So how can we make this area a little more eco-friendly? 

• If you use a printer, you can buy recycled paper, and if there is a print mistake or two or three, you can save those scraps to make little notepads instead of buying new ones. Better yet, don’t print if you don’t have to. 
• Refillable ink cartridges are great too and not just for printers but also for pens! Try using a fountain pen. They may take a little getting used to but believe me, it opens you up to a whole new world of beautiful pens (and inks) that will last you a lifetime. 
• Also, instead of going straight to a big chain store to buy supplies, take some time to research used office supplies (Buy Nothing Groups, Facebook Marketplace, etc). These are great if you need something random like a glue gun for a single project (I’ve personally never needed a glue gun, but you never know!). You don’t need to buy a brand new one… ask around and borrow it. Many communities have lending libraries for tools too. So, just do a bit of research first!

Now on to paper and recycling. Nowadays paper waste in offices is becoming less of a problem since so much has been digitized but when there is paper or cardboard or anything else recyclable coming out of your office or home, make sure to recycle it. It helps to get a refresher on what is recyclable or not in your area. Is it mixed recycling? Do you have to separate it? What other specific requirements are there for recycling in your area? 

Let’s save some energy! One thing we mentioned in our ‘Perfectly Imperfect’ blog post a few weeks back was switching off lights. It’s often forgotten but these little habits add up. 

• Think about getting a motion sensor for lights in closets or infrequently used hallways or simply get in the habit of switching lights off even if they use energy-saving bulbs. 
• For electronics, purchase energy-saving versions and even refurbished ones as well… or both!
• Phantom energy is a real thing. Unplugging small appliances in your kitchen, for example, probably won’t make that much of a dent, but your computer, modem, monitor, TV, phone charger, etc. all consume a pretty considerable amount of energy even while not in use.

Now, let’s talk transportation. Whether you have to go into the office every day or not, you will at some point have to travel for work so it’s important to know your options. The fun thing about this one is trying something new that might be a lot of fun. If you have a car, I’m looking at you. Is there any way to ditch your car even from time to time? 

• Public transportation – some cities have this down better than others so if you live somewhere that has a decent system then use it! It’s the best for people watching.
• Biking – lots of cities are improving their bikeability by adding designated bike lanes. If it’s safe and accessible then give it a shot. Not only are you getting from point A to point B but you’re also getting some exercise.
• Carpooling – consider asking around to see if anyone at your office would like to carpool even if only a few times a week. Think about any option to cut down on road time. If you can’t take public transportation all the way to work, then drive or carpool halfway to a station. You may save time and money by not parking so close to work.
• Walking – this one is old school, I know, but have you considered taking a stroll instead of a drive? Weather and time permitting, this is my favorite one.

I saved the best for last. Plants! This is the literal greening of your work and while it may not help save the planet, think of it as the planet saving you. Plants have so many benefits to your work environment. They are proven to improve your mood and productivity and although newer studies say plants can’t actually purify air in an indoor space, they offer the perception of better air quality which energizes and motivates. A quick web search will tell you what plants are easiest to take care of and how. And worst case, if you do not possess a green thumb and your plants don’t thrive, you can compost them and try again.

This is not an exhaustive list of office eco-hacks but a small sampler of things that can easily be implemented today. I hope you found them useful or inspirational. There are a lot of resources online that go a lot deeper into how to implement green office policies in larger offices and really make an impact on office culture in regards to helping the environment. The added benefit here is education – if someone at an office is exposed to ways they can help the planet there then maybe they’ll start taking some steps at home too. What are some of your favorite ways to make your workplace greener? We would love to hear about them.

Sources:

https://www.wework.com/ideas/research-insights/expert-insights/benefits-of-indoor-plants-in-the-office

Find out more about Diana Holguin

by  DIANA HOLGUIN

This month will be the anniversary of my 45th year on this planet. That’s a pretty long time. Enough to have learned a thing or two, forgotten some, and then had to relearn them. But of all the little bits of wisdom collected and knowledge acquired, I think the most valuable has been simply not being so hard on myself. Seems pretty basic, right? So basic and yet I’m pretty confident that you have also been too hard on yourself, at least once or twice.

Being hard on yourself can happen in all areas of life, but here I’ll address the realm of our personal sustainability and eco-friendly habits. If you’re reading this, I’d say you probably have some interest in saving the planet, and imperfect environmentalism is about all the little things we do to try and shift our habits to do less harm to the already hurting planet. This is one of the toughest areas to work on without being hard on yourself. But it’s not your fault!

The world around us is set up in a way that makes it nearly impossible to be perfect environmentalists with impeccable sustainability habits. Some of us fret over not having our reusable coffee cups on us when we need them, driving somewhere when we could have biked or taken public transportation, or scratching our heads wondering what can and can’t be recycled. And if we don’t fret then maybe we just give up altogether. This is too hard. I can’t do it. What’s the point, anyway? How much difference is one person going to make?

It’s frustrating, but being hard on ourselves when it comes to environmentalism isn’t our fault at all. Did you know oil companies have been thinking about this stuff since the 70s? According to an NPR article, one industry leader said that, “…selling recycling sold plastic, even if it wasn’t true.” So little of what we put in our recycling bins gets recycled and yet we feel the pressure to do it and do it… perfectly! Just like the oil and plastics industries, many have shifted the burden onto the shoulders of consumers as if we were the ones creating the problem. To quote Michael Grant, “We didn’t make this World, we’re just the poor fools who are living in it.”

So what’s the answer to all this? Aside from taking on oil and gas companies and all the other powers that directly put profits over our planet?

Just do what you can! And do it consistently and imperfectly. Tell your family and friends that you are imperfect AND you care about the planet enough to try on different sustainability habits; that might inspire them to try too. Our society’s expectations are set so high for any individual regarding environmentalism, beauty, success, [insert any area of life]. Trying to be perfect is completely unsustainable.

So with that, I leave you with some imperfect sustainability swaps and tips from our talented, planet-loving, tree-hugging voiceover roster. We admit we aren’t perfect but we try and we fail and we try again… because we care.

• Dani tries hard not to buy berries in the ubiquitous plastic clamshell packaging but sometimes it’s the only way they’re sold.
• Anne tries not to use the super energy-consuming dryer by line drying her laundry instead but hates how long it takes to hang.
• Andy sometimes forgets to bring reusable produce bags when grocery shopping but when they have no choice and have to use them they make an effort to repurpose and reuse them.
• Serge suffers from the age-old struggle of forgetting the reusable grocery bags at home. Who hasn’t been there!?
• Ally has recently started making a conscious effort to switch lights off around the house. This is a classic but often overlooked eco-friendly habit!
• Kenita has switched to bamboo toilet paper and toothpaste tablets. Sustainable and plastic-free!
• Jay struggles to find sustainable and eco-conscious athletic and running attire so for now he tends to use the “big player” brands but is always on the lookout for better options.
• Kari wants to compost but hasn’t taken the steps yet to put that into action. The VO4TP family has already volunteered to help her get started!
• Joe hasn’t found a great replacement for regular ziploc bags so he and his family will wash and air dry them outside and reuse them until they inevitably break. The neighbors might think they’re weird but that won’t stop them!
• I love to travel but I try to limit my airplane trips every year and I make every effort to only buy non-stop flights because as much as 50% of carbon emissions come from take-off and landing.

Perfection is the enemy of good and good is all we’re after because it’s better than nothing at all. If all of us do a good (not perfect) job at recycling, taking our reusable bags and produce bags when we go shopping, switching off lights when we leave the room, composting, being more mindful when (and if!) we shop, travel, eat and live, then we’ll all be better for it.

Sources:

How Big Oil Misled the Public into Believing Plastic Would be Recycled, NPR, September 11, 2020

Opinion: You are not the Problem – Climate Guilt is a Marketing Strategy, State of the Planet, Columbia Climate School, February 15, 2023

Find out more about Diana Holguin