A national office survey finds that managers at all levels fail to go green
By Michael Smith (Veshengro)
According to the findings of a national survey most office workers have little or no confidence in their managers when it comes to making their workplaces greener.
The research, conducted by YouGov, commissioned by office products manufacturer Avery, found only a third of those surveyed think their managers are clear about the steps that can be taken. In a way, I must say, this is also understandable as there are many mixed messages about and a great deal of greenwashing.
The poll, carried out for 2011's Green Office Week, also found that only 17% of respondents think their office is ‘very or completely green’, with more than a quarter, 28%, saying it is ‘still not very green’.
A number of factors prevent people being greener in the office. A quarter of office workers (24%) highlighted a lack of encouragement, 19% said there was too much effort involved, 18% referred to cost and 16% blamed a lack of information on how to go about it.
Avery’s third annual Green Office Week is an award-winning initiative designed to address some of these concerns and encourage office workers to spring into action and adopt practical ways to help the environment.
As well as raising awareness, the Green Office Week encourages offices to review purchasing habits in line with environmental targets, devise action plans for the future and celebrate the achievements of people who consider the environment at work.
Avery won the ‘Green Champions (Customers)’ Award for last year’s Green Office Week at the 2010 Green Business Awards, the UK's most comprehensive awards scheme for environmental business performance.
Regardless of the findings per se, for, I am sure, no one asked the respondents, one of the greatest problems facing managers and staff in offices as to going green is the fact that, as I have said already, there is so much greenwash and controversial information about.
What may be needed is a “green champion” in every office and every place of work and environmental development officers in large companies and government offices and departments who really know their stuff as to what is what when it comes to green and environmentally friendly procurement.
Green has to become part of the agenda but green also must mean savings and not costing more, and that can be done.
The “green champion”, for instance, should champion the cause of reuse in an office and actively be able to show how this or that can be reused instead of new having to be bought and with the PC many a piece of waste paper can become a notepad, for example. Templates for such abound on the Net.
© 2011
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