At The Digital Picnic, we’re always brainstorming creative ways to be more eco-friendly in our office and putting tangible solutions in place to further reduce our [colourful] TDP footprint.

We always ‘think’ sustainably here at TDP, but after the heartbreaking and catastrophic bushfire crisis here in Australia [our hometown of Victoria has been one of the worst-affected areas], it’s more important than ever to start turning ideas into action. 

Being amongst the sea of thousands of people recently protesting for Climate Change nationwide really opened our eyes to the next generation of leaders, and the [little] footprints that are making the biggest impact of all. [We see you Greta Thunberg]! 

So we are learning from our little leaders and taking a #noexcuses approach to sustainability, by implementing [and maintaining] some key changes to our office environment that are making us, [and the planet] better, brighter and #greener.

[Green] office alternatives

There are so many AMAZING eco-friendly alternatives for office essentials and we have found some of our favourite, cost-effective brands from a trusty Google search [and some A+ recommendations from our TDP community!]. We love Koala Eco for non-toxic plant-based cleaning products, Frank Green for contemporary reusable coffee cups and water bottles [colours on fleek!], Thankyou for bathroom essentials and Urban Brew for biodegradable coffee pods. Oh, and because we love birthdays SO much at The Digital Picnic, we’ve even managed to find an eco-conscious local florist, Lilac And The Cat [they only use recycled packaging materials!] and 100% biodegradable balloons from Flowerly Yours. 

Plant paradise

At TDP, we almost have more plants than office furniture [true story!] and although our flora friends look pretty damn good [thanks to our office green thumb, Allyson] indoor plants are also known to absorb indoor air pollution and increase the flow of oxygen, making your workspace not only 100X happier, but cleaner as well. So crazy plant ladies? You have our full permission to purchase that fiddle leaf fig plant you’ve been eyeing off. 

What printer? 

Our paper trail is pretty much non-existent at TDP and we’re SUPER proud of that! [We take the ‘digital’ part of our name quite literally, ha!] Instead of printing, we opt for Google Docs and Dropbox for sharing our internal [and external] documents and utilise a projector for client meetings to avoid the mass printing of 50+ page strategy docs. So next time you go to hit Ctrl+P, consider sending an e-copy or setting up an online form instead, and if you must use the printer in your day job, opt for double-sided pages when printing. Remember, the greenest paper is no paper at all!

Recycle station 

At TDP we take our recycling [very] seriously, but what does recycling look like in your workplace? Is there a dedicated recycling station? Does everyone know what can and cannot be recycled? Sounds pretty simple, but some of the most common recycling mistakes happen in the workplace [and go straight to landfill!] So to ensure you avoid a recycling faux pas, educate your team on recycling best-practice in your next WIP [over a cup of coffee in a reusable cup ;)] Planet Ark has a super informative toolkit available online, to help guide you in a greener direction. 

TDP Green Challenge

Get your team involved and excited to be on your sustainability journey with you! Consider ‘Green Challenges’ where each month you introduce a new sustainability challenge for your office. For January, join Team TDP in our #reusablecupchallenge, where each team member must use a KeepCup for their takeaway coffees for the entire month. No KeepCup = no coffee! Hold each other accountable and make the challenges fun, to ensure maximum participation. Reward team members that complete the challenge with prizes, like a coffee card to the local cafe! It’s also really important to further educate your team on the positive effects of living more sustainably – for example if you use a KeepCup for an entire year you can save up to 3kg of plastic. 

Do you have any #greenofficehacks that you implement in your workplace? Let us know in the comments below!