As one year draws to an end and another one begins, now is the perfect opportunity to reflect on your social and environmental impact on both an individual and a business level to allow for the correct foundations to be put in place to ensure a greater positive impact in 2025. Whether you’re at the start of your sustainability journey or are a seasoned professional in the industry, it is important to remember that much like with investing, making small changes over time can lead to compounding returns, and the new year is as good a time as any to make some positive changes in your workplace.

 

Reducing Consumption

One simple change that can be implemented in any business is to introduce policies to reduce the consumption of both energy and water.  This can have a huge impact on environmental reporting as reducing Scope 1 & 2 emissions is imperative for any company moving towards a Net Zero target. The introduction of utility saving frameworks may also provide significant financial savings on running costs, allowing more money to be invested in sustainable projects.

Some simple ways to reduce energy and water consumption are:

• Turn off lights and other electronic equipment when not in use
• Use occupancy sensors and making the most of natural lighting when available
• Replace old bulbs with energy efficient LEDs
• Turn down the heating, as even reducing the temperature by as little as 1˚C can have a huge environmental impact
• Ensure taps are turned off when not in use

 

Tracking Key Metrics

As sustainability becomes increasingly important to investors, metrics play a very important role for both internal and external stakeholders as a way of ensuring that businesses are compliant with international mandatory disclosure requirements such as CSRD. Another small change that can be made is to start tracking more sustainability metrics.  Increasing the range of metrics being analysed can offer a deeper understanding of what areas of the business are having the biggest impact on the environment. Once all the new information has been collected, it can then be used to form a baseline of data from which reduction targets can then be set. However, it is important to remember to develop and document a clear reduction plan when setting sustainability targets, as unfounded sustainability claims may be classified as greenwashing.

Some examples of key metrics to look out for include:

• Carbon footprint
• Energy and water usage
• Waste
• Staff and customer satisfaction

 

Waste Management

As of March 31^st 2025, all businesses in England will have a legal duty to separate their dry recyclable, food, and black bin waste. So, the start of the new year offers the perfect opportunity to stay ahead of the legislation and ensure proper waste management systems are put in place. It also offers the perfect opportunity for businesses to assess their waste streams and try to increase circularity into the business model. Not only will this result in the generation of less waste, but it can also help to reduce the supply costs of raw material or potentially even provide a new  product.

Another simple waste related change that can be easily implemented is going paper free in the office. This small change can lead to large reductions in the amount of waste produced. Depending on the industry and specific company needs, this may not always be possible so an alternative solution would be switching to an alternative inks and keeping printing to a minimum. When looking for sustainable inks it is important to avoid any containing volatile organic compounds (VOCs) as they can cause long lasting damage to the environment and instead look for either water or soy-based ink.

 

Employee Engagement

Something that is often overlooked with regards to the implementation of sustainable practices at a company is employee buy in.  As it is vital that all key stakeholders share the same vision for the direction of the company as a collaborative systems thinking approach is needed for meaningful change to occur. There are many ways to engage stakeholders with sustainability, but most importantly it is about adapting the story of the business in a way that will resonate with them.

Aside from crafting a compelling narrative, team activities can also be a useful way to achieve this such as:

• Sustainability focused away days such as tree planting or litter picking
• Inviting industry leaders and experts to offer talks
• Volunteering for a local charity
• Offering financial incentives linked to the environmental impact of the business
• Achieving a sustainable certification such as B Corp

 

Conclusion

These are only a few of the many ways in which small sustainable changes can be implemented into a business of any size that will make a real difference over time. It is important to remember that it is a slow journey and there is no definitive quick fix solution. There will undoubtedly be setbacks but it is about building the foundations for a business to grow sustainably with the planet. Here’s to a greener 2025!

 

Sources

https://www.fsb.org.uk/resources-page/five-free-ways-to-make-your-business-more-sustainable.html

https://www.wwf.org.uk/challenges/turn-down-one-degree

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/simpler-recycling-workplace-recycling-in-england

https://coatings.org.uk/page/VOCs