Simple Waste Free Hacks for a Busy Corporate

A busy corporate lifestyle doesn’t necessarily go hand-in-hand with zero waste living, but with some simple tips & tweaks, sustainable living can be achievable no matter your lifestyle. Read on for some of our top zero waste hacks for a busy corporate lifestyle.

Keep Two Reusable Drink Bottles & Cups

By keeping one reusable drink bottle on your office desk and the other at home (or in your car/handbag for on-the-go) there’s much less chance you’ll be caught reaching for a plastic water bottle. The same goes for your takeaway coffee cup – one designated to the office desk and the other for home! Not only is this a must for the environment, but by avoiding drinking out of plastic bottles & cups, you’re also avoiding ingesting leached plastic (learn more about how plastic can impact your hormone balance here). You could also keep spare glass jars around so they can be used as a water glass, a takeaway coffee mug or a smoothie carrier!

Separate Your Food Waste

Healthy and plastic-free work lunches can be difficult. Grabbing a quick lunch on-the-go will inevitably come with some sort of plastic, so we recommend pre-preparing lunch & snacks or stocking your office fridge with package-free foods to whip up a fresh lunch each day. This eco-friendly choice presents the problem that most offices don’t provide a food composting system to keep food waste separated from other rubbish. One solution for this is to keep a large jar handy to place food waste inside to take home and compost at the end of each day. Or encourage your office to invest in a commercial composting system! Putting food waste in with general rubbish can have a hugely detrimental effect on the environment (read more about the impact of not composting your food waste here) so avoid this where possible.

Say No to Freebies

In the corporate world there tends to be a lot of paper handouts and freebies such as pens, pads, diaries, birthday treats and more. Don’t feel like you’re being difficult or high maintenance by saying no to some of these unnecessary items simply because they are free! For printed handouts and other paper work, see if you can get a digital copy before accepting the hard copy. Don’t be afraid of voicing your views, you might inspire others to make change too!

Team Building & Community Initiatives

While some people in the office will be easier to get on board the zero waste bandwagon than others, it never hurts to encourage those more resistant ones along with some in-house initiatives. Take it upon yourself to get as many people in the office involved in team-building volunteer days and other community initiatives, such as beach clean-ups, clothing swaps, in-house documentary screenings or month long challenges, like Plastic Free July…happening right now!

Lead By Example

Rather than trying to change those around you, “preaching” your values and beliefs onto them only to push them further in the opposite direction, lead by example and you might be surprised at who follows your lead. At the end of the day you can only control your own behaviour, not anyone else’s, so focus on that and you’re more likely to positively influence others’ actions through confidently living in your own sustainable values.