This is the second part of my two part series on organizing your home or work office with the environment in mind. The first part focused on paper, and what we can do to reduce our use and waste of paper in the office. This second part focuses on the environmental impact of the use of plastic and technology in offices.
First plastic.
According to the EPA, 31 million tons of plastic waste were generated in 2010, representing 12.4 percent of total Municipal Solid Waste. But only 8 percent of the total plastic waste generated in 2010 was recovered for recycling.So…when organizing desk drawers and office supply closets, try to stay away from CPS (cheap plastic stuff) which tends to crack, warp, and break and then ends up in a landfill. Look around your home to see if there are any items you can re-purpose like small bowls, boxes, or even shoe boxes, mugs, glasses, vases. If you do buy something, think about its long term durability and try to stick with wood, bamboo, or other sustainable materials.
When it comes to technology, electronics can be a double-edged sword. While technology is an obvious way to assist with office organization, we are so often tempted in today’s fast-paced world to keep up with the latest in technology and to buy the newest and hottest phone, tablet or whatever it is that is being advertised. Most of the time, our cell phones, tablets and computers are working just fine and don’t need to be upgraded “just because”. Try to hang on to your electronics for as long as you possibly can to minimize your impact on the environment, as well as your wallet! And resist the urge to buy electronic uni-taskers like laminators or business card scanners, that perform only one function and just add to clutter and eventually to landfill.
If you do need to buy technology or electronics, see if you can purchase them used. You can often get tablets or phones on sites like Glyde.com that are less than a year old for a fraction of what you would pay for them new. This is also an environmentally friendly way to not contribute to additional carbon output needed to ship electronics from overseas, where they are most often manufactured. And when you are done with your electronic gadgets, please recycle them responsibly. There is an astonishing amount of toxic chemicals in a tiny cell phone, including lead and corrosive hydrochloric acids, which can leach into the environment if not recycled or disposed of correctly. Here’s a great link from the EPA to help you accomplish this.
The great thing about technology, when purchased and used appropriately, is that these days, you don’t need a lot of it to get the job done. The only electronic items I use to keep myself and my business organized is my iPhone, iPad, and Fujitsu ScanSnap. They are all equally important, but in my quest to go paperless this year, I have come to rely heavily on my lightweight and portable Fujitsu ScanSnap S1100, which can not only scan documents, business cards, photos, and receipts, but just about any other paper into Word documents, Evernote, PDF, Excel, GoogleDocs, PowerPoint, iPhoto – you name it.
I now scan just about every piece of paper that comes into my office and put it in an electronic folder that is backed up on Dropbox. I can find things quickly and easily on my computer without having to even look in a file cabinet. Of course, I do keep my vital records in paper, but scan them as well just in case…
My point is, you don’t have to go overboard with technology to use it effectively. Just a little can go a long way, and think about what you actually need before you buy it. This applies to all things in life – not just electronics – and it will help greatly in reducing our impact on the earth and increase your ability to get and stay organized!
