I was thrilled to have been invited to join other local businesses in an evening celebrating sustainable business practices in and around Tenterden with talks, networking and of course, wine tasting!
Chapel Down were the perfect hosts, receiving their own award for setting a wonderful example by signing up to become a plastic free business.
Chrissie and Matt, co-founders of Olson, talked in depth about how we, small business owners, can make a big difference by changing our digital footprint. I mean, who knew that just by working in our own digital world we can still have such a negative impact on the world around us?
Sarah gave a talk on signing up to CRAB (a Carbon Reduction Action Box), and Phil inspired us all to swap out just three single use plastics to begin our journey into a Plastic Free Community.
So, with this in mind (and being very much inspired by Matt’s presentation), I have put together a list of changes that I am going to make to my business, and hopefully it will inspire you to make a difference too.
Step #1
Sign up to be a Plastic Free Business
I may be a small business but it’s amazing how much single use plastic I require to go about my daily life. Whether thats the milk in my tea to the plastic my deliveries come in. We can all consider small changes that will in turn make a bigger difference. I’ve made the first step in becoming a Plastic Free Business and I look forward to seeing where my journey takes me.
Step #2
1% for the planet
Whether you donate a percentage of your revenue or volunteer your time to local causes promoting positive sustainability practices, we can make a big difference to the world around us. I’m signing up to volunteer my time to help local causes. I wonder what your business can do to help?
Step #3
Carbon Reduction Action Box
A Carbon Reduction Action Box (CRAB) is a simple, high speed, fun workshop that is designed to be used by any small business. It helps you build a sustainability plan, documenting past achievements and preparing for the future. With an estimated carbon footprint calculator, you build a reduction plan and become certified at the end of it. I’ve ordered my CRAB box – fancy joining me?
Step #4
Refurbish or recycle your IT hardware
I have plenty of old hardware at home waiting to be recycled. An example of this is hard drives. It’s hard to remember a time when we used to store everything we owned on external hard drives, but since losing the cables they are now redundant. I plan on safely and sustainably recycling them using Klyk. An IT refurbish, repair, upgrade and recycling company aimed at reducing your carbon footprint and boosting savings up to 60%. So what’s not to love?
Step #5
And finally… don’t be afraid to ask
When it comes to sustainability, what is there to lose? If you have any questions about any of your suppliers and their sustainability practices, just ask. Many suppliers dedicate a whole team of people to sustainable business practices, and if in doubt, just ask. It can make a big difference to the relationship you have with the people you spend your money with, and if they don’t have any policies in place, maybe your questions will plant a seed in their thoughts. If you don’t ask, you’ll never know.
Sometimes making a change can seem quite overwhelming. But hopefully, with these small changes in place, we can all start to make a tiny little difference to the world we live in. After all, if we don’t protect our planet today, it won’t be here to enjoy tomorrow. Change is down to us.