In Honor of Earth Day...

Here are some Carbon Footprint Reduction Tips for Work & Home!

Tips for Reducing Your Carbon Footprint at Work:

There are many improvements to be made at your workplace as well. Small changes can be implemented to even make a positive impact on the climate, such as:

At your Office

• Only print as many copies as absolutely needed. Instead of having each employee have their own files, create a central filing system to avoid having to make many copies of the same documents.
• Use smaller fonts when printing internal documents to save paper and ink.
• Recycle everything, including ink cartridges and toner. Ask local suppliers if they can deliver supplies in reusable bins rather than cardboard boxes.
• Turn off and unplug equipment when not in use.
• Telecommute whenever possible, but make a commitment to do it at least one day per week.

For your Meetings

• Ask your caterer for biodegradable tableware (plates, cups, utensils, etc.), or use china and metal silverware.
• Monitor meeting room temperatures. Turn the heat down a few degrees in winter and up a few degrees in summer, and encourage attendees to dress in layers.
• Make sure lights and AV equipment in session rooms are turned off when not in use. Ask your AV provider to unplug equipment at night.
• Offer a carbon-offset donation on your registration form. Many companies will plant trees for as little as 50 cents each.
• Provide materials that are eco-friendly: recyclable, printed on recycled paper, or go paperless altogether.

Tips for Reducing Your Carbon Footprint at Home:

Carbon emission from your home is directly correlated to everyday energy consumption. One way to reduce your carbon footprint is to improve energy efficiency inside your home. Some simple solutions with major impact include

• When appliances are not in use, turn them off and unplug them. Even small appliances like cell phone chargers waste energy when plugged in all day.
• Take shorter, cooler showers and turn off the tap when brushing your teeth.
• Recycle everything you can.
• Replace incandescent light bulbs with CFL low energy bulbs, which use just 20% of the energy of a normal light bulb and last 15 times longer.
  
• When replacing older appliances, always opt for appliances that use less power and receive a good energy rating.
  

Want to Learn More? Additional Resources:

www.carbonfootprint.com
whatsmycarbonfootprint.com
coolaustin.org

HAPPY EARTH DAY!

Styrofoam Doesn’t Fall Far From the Tree

450 years. 164,250 days, 3,942,000 hours. This is the time it takes for just one foam core sign to decompose in a landfill. That is an average of 6 human lifetimes per sign, which was most likely only used once, to biodegrade. It is time to make a change. More and more green options are becoming available to meeting planners in all different aspects. Sometimes when we think “green” our minds automatically land on “big picture” efforts, but every green change being made helps. While, yes, foam core signs are a quick and easy solution, we have found that Madison Avenue, Inc. has created a green AND cost effective option for eco-friendly event signs.

EcoSMARTsigns have one major pro for a step in the green direction, they are recyclable! EcoSMARTsigns are manufactured from 100% recovered fibers as well as an average of 35% post consumer waste. When the meeting is over, you can just place them out with all of your other paper recycling, unlike foam core signs. And if there are no recycling services available at your venue Madison Avenue, Inc will recycle them for you!

Looking for other small(but BIG!) changes to make around your meeting? There are a lot of “green meeting” resources you can check out to get other helpful tips and ideas.

Here are a few:

Reducing Paper Waste: http://www.conservatree.org/paper/Choose/SRpurchasing.shtml

Tips for Planners: http://www.bluegreenmeetings.org/HostsAndPlanners/10EasyTips.htm

PCMA Going Green: http://www.pcma.org/Resources/Meeting_Management_Resources/Green_Meetings.htm

Green Meeting Trends: http://meetingsnet.com/green_meetings/

Hot Wheels - A Simple Solution

We have all been there... It’s 9:00PM, you’re waiting for a reception to end and you figure you might as well set out all the signs and boards for the next morning. The last thing you want to do after a long day of being on your feet is hand carry heavy pocket signs around to 3 different floors. At a conference earlier this year, we came up with an easy and convenient solution for this daunting task. It’s simple really, a trashcan with wheels.

We have tried several different options, such as bell carts, but these can get cumbersome to be moving around quickly and hard to maneuver. In some cities, union requirements prohibit the use of bell carts. Trashcans are lightweight and the wheels allow for easy turns.

All you have to do it stack signs on top to make a flat surface. Then you can just wheel around to the space you are using the next day and put out the signs appropriately. This saves on having to make multiple trips back and forth to the office to get more signs, you can get it all done in one quick shot.

This system also works when having to move heavy things to a different location without having to get the hotel involved. For example, you have a box with all of the heavy awards in it. You can use the trashcan as a dolly. Just place one signboard over the top to create a flat surface and you’ve got a dolly to carry your awards to the ceremony without having to carry them individually or break your back.

Using a trashcan instead of a bell stand also aids in transporting easels to breakout rooms. Laying these flat on a bell stand can potentially be hazardous, but standing the easels up straight in the well of the trashcan allows for easier transportation.

Although this seems like a simple solution, we sometimes do not think of utilizing materials that are at our fingertips in these situations. Rather than going through the trouble of obtaining a bell cart to use for the week, these industrial trashcans are usually already present in your meeting office to begin with. Using a trashcan to move items around might seem unconventional but really, its practical, mobile, and gets the job done quickly and efficiently.