Sustainability, carbon-neutral, being more environmentally friendly are hot topics, and rightly so!

We’ve got one planet, and we need to look after it. And what that means for all of us is that we need to shift away from unsustainable practices and move towards becoming more environmentally friendly and less polluting.

But how do we do that? What practical tips do we have to help us become more sustainable as both individuals or groups of people, in, for example, a business or a small organization?

This is exactly what we want to discuss in this article.

We want to give you practical tips and advice on becoming more environmentally friendly in 2022.

Some may seem obvious, but we still think it’s a great reminder to talk about them here and hopefully nudge you and others into action.

And hopefully, all of these small steps go a long way to helping us achieve the goals we need to hit to avoid ruining this planet even more.

So let’s dive into the ideas.

1 Turn your packaging compostable

Single-use items such as packaging should be a key focus to reduce the amount of plastic waste.

There are numerous compostable alternatives to the various components within modern packaging. For example, void fill that used to be plastic is now available as shredded paper or even airbags made from wood pulp so compost.

Another large part of packaging is customization. And the great news is that you can now customize any packaging using compostable stickers that degrade within just a few months in a composting environment.

For example, these paper labels are made from a sugarcane fiber byproduct. They are amazingly environmentally friendly and completely compostable. The white, matte material looks really premium and will make any packaging standout.

Image source: stickerit.co

2 Reduce international travel

Air travel is notorious for being particularly bad for the environment. So cutting any international travel, wherever possible, is a bonus.

It has the added advantage of also reducing costs. One impact of COVID-19 is that we are much more comfortable with remote working and meeting via video calls. This has a big benefit on reducing international travel, so let’s try and keep it up and stop flying where possible.

According to the David Suzuki Foundation, 25% of all emissions could be from air travel by 2050. This is a scary statistic, so let’s prove it wrong!

3 Choose sustainable branded giveaways

Events happen every day all over the world. It’s a large part of cultures globally, so we have to try and make these more sustainable where possible.

One big impact we can have is to reduce the waste created by such large events.

I’m sure you’ve been to multiple conferences where you’ve picked up numerous bags, personalized merchandise, and other bits and pieces and have ended up just throwing them in the bin.

So as brands, it’s our responsibility to ensure that if these items do get thrown away, they are either recyclable or, even better, compostable.

Custom stickers are regularly used at conferences and other events worldwide, and making the switch from plastic-based stickers to their environmentally-friendly alternatives is a great thing.

The image below shows an example of a sticker printed on a bioplastic made from wood pulp. You wouldn’t know it was plastic – amazing, eh!

Image source: stickerit.co

4 Switch to green energy

Green energy is powering more and more of the world every day. There are multiple clean energy sources, from onshore wind to solar photovoltaics. 

A simple but effective impact on our carbon output as a business is switching from fossil fuel-based electricity generation to a clean alternative. 

Many providers offer green tariffs, so take this opportunity to make the switch and go green.

The more of us that do this will show the demand for clean energy and speed up the investment in the infrastructure needed to generate renewable electricity.

Conclusion

And there we have it, four practical tips for how to make your business more environmentally friendly in 2022.

There are, of course, many different ideas, from non-plastic stickers to green energy, you can implement to become carbon neutral as a brand. We hope this short article helps to start that transition.

I would love to hear your ideas and to know that you’re implementing some of the ones we shared with you. Please comment below, letting us know how you are getting on going green.

Ron Evan is a Marketing Specialist and a writer who takes his time writing articles about travelling, psychology, and  marketing.  He is currently finishing his MBA degree with a focus on Marketing. During his free time, he enjoys going to karaoke, window shopping, and watching Netflix.