As a business, it can be difficult to know what you can do to support Earth Day. So to help you take positive action, I have put together a list of resources, advice and tips to support Cardiff’s transition to a greener economy.
What is Earth Day?
Taking place on 22 April, Earth Day has been celebrated around the World since 1970 and raises awareness of the need to protect the environment.
What is this year’s theme?
Continuing the same theme from 2022, the theme for Earth Day 2023 is ‘Invest in Our Planet.’
8 things businesses can do to support Earth Day?
EarthDay.org have put together a toolkit full of ideas for celebrating Earth Day. Here are a list of 8 things your business can do to support the transition to a greener economy:
- Go paperless as much as possible. Reduce paper usage by printing on both sides, using digital files, or implementing paper-free days.
- Offer cycle-to-work incentives or work from home opportunities for employees if possible. Find out more about cycling initiatives in our previous blog on active travel.
- Encourage recycling by providing recycling stations and guidance on separating materials.
- Install LED light bulbs where possible and turn electronics off when not in use or enable auto-sleep options to save energy.
- Donate a percentage of your employees’ time to volunteer with community or environmental projects.
- Create a Green Team of dedicated staff who will lead sustainability initiatives.
- Pledge to try a Simple Act of Green: small individual changes that have a big impact such as eating more plant-based meals.
- Share Earth Day’s list of 52 actions and tips with your colleagues to help them to make a difference, every day of the year.
8 sustainable changes FOR Cardiff have made
We’ve been working on making sustainable changes to our office to help minimise our impact on the environment. From recycling new items, promoting active travel and taking on a litter pick, these are the 8 changes we’ve made this year:
- Have a dedicated bin for Tetrapaks (alternative milk and juice cartons) which keeps them out of general waste and once the bin is full we arrange for them to be recycled.
- Put up information points at every office bin on what and can’t be recycled, so that all members of staff feel confident in knowing what bin to put waste in.
- Added planter pots to the outside of our office which are filled with native flowers.
- Cycle storage to be installed in our carpark to offer secure storage for staff that commute by bike.
- Weekly fruit delivery from Sullivans greengrocer at Cardiff Market.
- Took part in Keep Wales Tidy’s Spring Clean Cymru with a staff litter pick around St Andrews Crescent and surrounding streets.
- Donated our tumble dryer that was no longer in use to The Huggard Centre. We also helped find new homes for donated TV’s with several of our businesses taking up the offer.
- Volunteered with City2Sea to encourage new businesses to join the Refill Cardiff scheme, reducing plastic waste by creating refill stations in businesses across the city. Our team along with a group of other volunteers signed up 57 new businesses in just one morning!
What are other businesses doing to help the environment?
Businesses in Cardiff city centre are already doing some great things to help the environment. Here are a few initiatives that you may not have heard about:
Cotswold Outdoors – Recycle my Gear
Drop off clothing, belts, towels or shoes at the recycling bin in the Cardiff Cotswold Outdoors store and SOEX, the largest clothing re-wear and recycle company in the world, will collect. All clothing is sorted by hand into one of 450 grades and categorised according to the next best use: reuse or recycle. Find out more about the initiative here: Recycle My Gear
Yellow TSE
Yellow TSE is a plastic-free, zero-waste department store which provides a paperless shopping experience. Based in the Morgan Quarter, the not-for-profit social enterprise is “centred around the planet and people” and offers a self-checkout app that allows you to scan, weigh, and pay for your shopping.
Sports Direct – Save Bumblebees
In partnership with the Bumblebee Conservation Trust, Sports Direct have created limited edition bee mugs and bags. When purchased in store, you’ll receive a free educational booklet and wildflower seed, a blend of Oxeye Daisies and Poppies, which bumblebees love and will need to pollinate this summer. Find out more here.
LUSH Spa Cardiff
LUSH is a British high street brand dedicated to providing environmentally friendly, handmade products using ethically sourced ingredients. But did you know that they offer workshops in their Cardiff store? From learning about the ingredients used to creating your own self-care routine, LUSH Spa Cardiff host educational sessions open to all, from schools and community groups to workplaces. Please email cardiff.spa@lush.co.uk to find out more.
Let us know how you are celebrating Earth Day
Share your sustainability wins with us by tagging us on social media and using the hashtag #EarthDay2023.
We would also love to hear if you plan to implement any of these changes or if you have any suggestions or case studies that you’d like us to share with other businesses. Please email me at nia@forcardiff.com