Creating a green society and one where the environment comes first is something many people are fighting for globally. It has found its way into agendas and policies all over the world in an attempt to get people to comply. Businesses especially have been affected by this movement, perhaps because they’re said to be one of the culprits of unethical practices when it comes to the environment. If you’re running an online business, you can contribute to helping improve the environment just as much as anyone with a physical business. Here are a few ways that online businesses can be environmentally friendly.
Practice Green Procurement
If you want your business to become more environmentally friendly, you should try practicing green procurement. This is especially important if you run an e-commerce business. One of the first steps to take would be to review procurement policies when you’re looking for suppliers. What you should be targeting are suppliers who source both goods and services that have been produced sustainably and don’t demand excessive packaging.
If you happen to run a dropshipping business, this also applies to you. In case you’re wondering how to dropship, you would need to choose a niche, build a store and find suppliers. If you want to dropship in the greenest way possible, the same principle applies to find environmentally friendly suppliers to provide your products.
Try Green Web Hosting
Did you know that running all of the servers in the US has been likened to running five nuclear power plants? If you want to help mitigate the damage that this could cause to the environment, then consider green hosting. In case you aren’t familiar with what this is, green web hosting ensures part of the energy used comes from a renewable power source. It may also delight you to know that this form of hosting is a lot more affordable. This is because the hosting company makes its own energy. Overall, web hosting is a way to make your online business environmentally friendly.
Work Remotely
Choosing to work remotely is another option for going green. If you’re wondering how, it can help reduce your need to travel to and from an office and as a result, reduce your contribution to greenhouse gas emissions. While working from home, you can also adopt green practices. For example, you could choose to energy saving measures in place in your home office. This could mean choosing to go paperless, using LED light bulbs, and reducing water usage where possible.
Recycle Electronics
Even if you work from home running an online business, it’s likely that you still need equipment to operate. As a result, you may have a number of electronics you use like laptops, a printer, a fax machine, or a PC. Instead of throwing them away when they get old, consider giving them to a school or charity so that they can be reused or look for a technology recycling program.
Keeping the environment as safe as possible is everyone’s responsibility. For this reason, whether you run an online or offline business, there are measures you can take to ensure you do your part. It often begins with taking a single step in the right direction.
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By partnering with other business owners, environmental groups, and local governments you can collectively reduce your environmental footprint, promote your business as sustainable, and bring in more customers .