Infusing Environmentally Acceptable Work Ethics in Business Processes

The documentary ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ says a lot about how we had acted in the last few decades and how these actions impinge on our and the next generation’s future. This documentary unleashed a truth that rocked the world. And these truths triggered a wave of action from all sectors. For instance, a newsletter printing company vowed that it would undertake measures such as adopting environment friendly materials to infusing environmentally acceptable practices in production process. Actions like this do not matter if we take them individually; but small measures if taken collectively can give this planet some breathing space.

The buzz words today are reuse, recycle and recover. These three words capture what we aspire to ensure the sustainability of our world. If these three words are giving us hopes then it seems that it is a good idea to infuse these into our daily lives.

In the business world, these three words are also very much relevant. Businesses, either big or small, have to accept the fact that they are members of the community and that membership involves the recognition of some social responsibility. Corporate social responsibility as defined by Wikipedia ‘is a concept whereby organizations consider the interests of society by taking responsibility for the impact of their activities on customers, suppliers, employees, shareholders, communities and other stakeholders, as well as the environment.’

Business owners have to be responsible for their actions. Going back to this newsletter printing company, they have adopted a few questions to guide their actions:

Are our products environment-friendly? Can they be reused, recycled, or recovered?

Are our raw materials from sources that are renewable?

Do we try to reduce our environmental footprints in our work processes?

How can a company in a newsletter printing business help raise awareness?

Are we communicating the right message to our employees?

Do we inspire our clients and service providers to advocate environmental sustainability?

Inculcating environmentally sustainable work ethics among employees, clients and work process can only be achieved through perseverance and patience. Often, there would be setbacks like losing interest and cost considerations. Bear in mind however, that these costs are temporary and that the ultimate reward would not be realized in the here and now. Companies can only reap the rewards of their environmentally conscious actions and policies in time. This profit can be realized with the fact that they are will still be operating the business for decades to come.