Are we green?

Here is what we do in the stores right now:
• we have a water service so we do not consume a lot of water bottles

• we do not use paper plates or plastic forks in our lunchroom

• at staff meetings we choose ‘less packaging’ options pretty consistently, ie: a two litre bottle of juice instead of individual juice boxes or pop cans

• we use a laundry service that provides towels and linens instead of paper towels

• we have started replacing our lights with more energy efficient bulbs

• we turn the lights off in the bathroom when we are finished!

• we reuse paper when we can and cut it up into scrap pads, then recycle them

• we try and re-use signage and labels when we can

• we reuse the large backing sheets that come with our paper packages

• we reuse plastic grocery bags for our kitchen garbage container

• we give a rebate if a customer brings in their own bag to re-use

• we recycle all our paper, cardboard, soft plastic, pallet wrap, nylon strapping, and packaging from our shipments

• we recycle all food containers when we can, including juice boxes, bottles, pop cans, yogurt containers

• for stores without recycling pickup, we have someone pickup our pop cans and bottles from the lunch room to recycle, or leave them out for the local binners

• the majority of staff bike or take public transit

• we ask customers if they want a bag, giving them the chance to decline

• we encourage safe disposal of paint water and minimal use of solvents when we are talking to customers

• we choose water based (latex) paints when doing renovations in-store

We are also trying hard in our admin office. This is what we are up to here:

Reducing
• we use both sides of printed photocopy paper where possible
• we have a compost at this location for our coffee grounds, lunch scraps and smaller bits of paper — anything that is compostable
• we share printed reports in meetings as much as possible, and much of our internal communication is via email instead of paper
• many staff use a reusable lunch bag to bring our lunch in every day, and we use reusable travel mugs and bottles for coffee, tea and water
• for staff birthday’s, we try to use ceramic plates, glasses and metal forks
• we use a laundry service instead of paper towels
• we switched over our previous shopping bags made of non-recyclable polymer plastic to kraft paper instead, as a step in a better direction — however ultimately, we would prefer customers re-use their shopping bags by purchasing cloth or canvas bags instead
• we encourage email communication with customers instead of printed mailers

Reusing
• we make our own notepads by stacking and gluing old photocopies with a card backing — when the paper is done, we re-use the backing to make more pads
• we re-use interoffice envelopes, binders and file folders instead of buying new ones
• we have informal practices around reusing office furniture and accessories, so that we aren't just purchasing new stuff all the time and throwing the old stuff out
• when we order office supplies, we order pen refills instead of disposable pens and constantly look at new options such as recycled post-it notes
• we re-fill the cartridges for our laser printer and copier instead of buying new ones
• we hate to throw anything out — for example we have an easel graveyard for replacement parts
• our supplier samples are saved as gifts for the staff Christmas party, or given away as donations
• we try to donate or sell off products that are damaged or discontinued, rather than just throw them away — we have given an awful lot away over the years that might have otherwise ended up in the landfill

Recycling
• we recycle wherever possible, including all office paper, product packaging, bottles, cans, zap straps, plastic, cardboard, mixed paper
• we take home our empty tins for recycling as we do not have municiple pick-up for tins here

Choosing
• we print on recycled stock for customer promotions and office stationary as much as possible
• we actively encourage our customers to dispose of solvents and paint responsibly and provide information on where to do so
• many staff take transit or ride their bikes
• we use low energy bulbs and turn off our computers at night — simple steps mean a lot
• we are the ‘Watchers of Still Creek’ outside our building, which is a recovering spawning creek — if there are problems with the waterway we call the city to alert them
• we try to include eco-friendly products as regular sales items, this includes hemp and bamboo papers, recycled papers and pencils, low toxicity mediums and our new biodegradable foamcore
• we make it a point to buy environmentally friendly products that use recycled products in their making whenever possible
• we try to purchase via local suppliers and manufacturers as much as possible
• we ask our suppliers to be more aware about packaging (some of them are listening)

And here are some of our other ideas for future changes we can make:

• change our account invoices to be sent via email rather than the usual paper trail
• continue to buy responsibly for products that we re-sell and for internal supplies
• develop an online ‘ECO PRODUCTS’ section in our online product catalogue, so customers can easily find all the eco-friendly products we carry
• repeat some of the customer outreach sessions we have done previously on ‘safe studio habits’ including non-toxic painting options
• take advantage of some of the incentives and programs available to businesses making ‘green’ improvements, such as BC Hydro and Live Smart BC, and the Clean Air Foundation

Recently, my husband participated Vancouver's "bike to work week" competition and their company was one of the winners. It got me thinking about the staff at the downtown Opus location and I did my own evaluation of our methods of transportation. The result:
100% of the downtown staff either walk, bike or take public transit to work.
Now that something to cheer about!