With Earth Day looming upon us (April 22), here are some tips to go beyond what you can do as an individual to be good to Mother Earth and consider also how you can do even more as a business owner.
These tips (excerpted from the WikiHow Celebrate Earth Day website) demonstrate how to expand your ability to do good for our planet if you run a business. Doing this has a double advantage:
- If yours is a class-based business, you can multiply the positive effect of your actions by encouraging your students and instructors to participate.
- Taking on some of these good-for-the-earth ideas as an entire school joint volunteer effort is an exceptional way to shine a positive light in your community on your business, while building customer loyalty at the same time.
- Clean up trash — Many groups use the weekend of Earth Day to clear roadways, highways, and neighborhood streets of litter. Your company can donate gloves and bags for clean-up groups and organize bag pick ups. Imagine the effect of creating an event like this for your entire class, if you are an instructor, or have an even bigger impact by encouraging the parents and families of your school students to participate as well. Talk about making a difference!
- Conserve energy — Go ahead and buy those new LED light bulbs you know your dance studio or gymnastics school or swim school needs. Replace old appliances and double-check the installation of your windows, doors, and attic . Turn off lights when leaving a room or install automatic motion timers on lights. And if you make this changeover at your class-based business, use your email newsletter or other communication channels to let parents know about it, and encourage them to do likewise!
- Ride a bike or walk — Certainly on Earth Day, but even better if you can make it a habit: consider riding a bike or walking for short trips, such as going to your local grocer or restaurant. You’ll save money, cut emissions, and get exercise all at the same time.
- Reduce, reuse, and recycle all day long — Buy as little as possible and avoid items that come in lots of packaging. Support local growers and producers of food and products — Their produce didn’t have to travel as far to get to your market and thus reduced greenhouse gas emissions. Take your drink container with you, and don’t use any disposable plates or cutlery. Recycle all the things you do use for the day or find other uses for things that you no longer use. Carry a cloth bag for carrying things in and recycle your plastic bags.
- Conserve water — As our environment changes more and more due to population and pollution, water will become one of the more scarce resources. Keep a bucket in your shower to fill while the water heats and then use that for your flowers and outdoor plants. Don’t leave water running while brushing your teeth or shaving. You can save hundreds of gallons a year with those two simple ideas.
- Make nature crafts at school or home — Get together with your family and build a birdhouse or make a bird feeder to encourage the local bird population, which plays an important role in every ecosystem.
Something like this could also be done as a voluntary thing at your school when classes are not in session. - Learn more about our environment — Earth Day is a good time to make a commitment to learning more about the environment and how you can help to protect it. Borrow some library books and read up on an issue such as pollution, endangered species, water shortages, recycling, and climate change
Here’s an idea: Got some Earth Day-worthy ideas for businesses beyond these 7 Earth Day action items? Please use our comment section below to share.
From the earth-friendly folks at ClassJuggler.com