As the climate crisis heightens, sustainability has never been as high on the agenda for Gloucestershire businesses, with customers also placing more value on choosing businesses with real green credentials.
Luckily, there are plenty of simple things your organisation could do to make business more sustainable, with SoGlos sharing nine ways to do your bit for the planet in 2025.
Look for quick wins
Implementing a whole new sustainability strategy may seem like a daunting task — but remember, you can make just as much impact by introducing a small number of simple changes as you can with larger, more complex initiatives.
For East Glos Club, this has looked like switching off unnecessary lights and installing water-conserving taps, as well as improving signage and bins to encourage club members to recycle glass and food waste.
Switch to green energy
Switching to a green energy supplier could make the single biggest impact on your company’s carbon footprint. According to Stroud-based green energy company, Ecotricity, a business that uses 30,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per year could cut carbon emissions by six tonnes just by switching to its tariffs.
Not all green energy is the same though — choose a supplier that invests the money from bills into new sources of renewable power, to help increase the proportion of green energy in the national grid and end our reliance on fossil fuels.
Consider your supply chain
Making your business more sustainable isn’t just an internal job; you should look at your supply chain, too. Ask your suppliers how sustainable their businesses are and if they’re willing to make changes to adopt greener practices.
Consider sourcing goods from local suppliers wherever you can — you'll not only be supporting a fellow Gloucestershire business, but also reducing the carbon footprint of your deliveries.
Lower your energy usage
It sounds like a no brainer, but something as simple as replacing halogen light bulbs and spotlights with LEDs can save your business energy and money. East Glos has upgraded to LED lighting in its clubhouse, corridors, rooms and squash courts — as well as installing PIR movement sensors so lights only come on where they're needed.
Regular maintenance is key to ensure heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems are all working efficiently. And, of course, turning off the heating, air conditioning and lights and shutting down computers when they’re not in use can have a big impact, too.
Cut down waste
As well as saving money on waste disposal services, becoming a zero to landfill business will have a big impact on your carbon footprint — and the environment.
Get your employees on board by doing a waste audit, identifying what can be reused or recycled. Be considerate when buying new items, asking if the business really needs it, or looking for more sustainable solutions such as refillable cleaning products. Then ensure that waste materials are disposed of in an environmentally friendly way.
Choose greener travel options
Sometimes travelling to or for work is unavoidable, but it can still be done sustainably. For businesses that offer a company car scheme, consider switching to electric vehicles; you could also look at installing EV chargers to make the switch more feasible for your employees and customers.
Encourage staff to commute more sustainably, try introducing a car sharing scheme, public transport season ticket loans or even better, a cycle-to-work scheme. And avoid using air travel wherever possible, as flying has the biggest environmental impact.
Mark your calendar with environmental awareness dates
From Earth Day in April to Plastic Free July and Organic September, there are plenty of chances to get involved with environmental awareness campaigns throughout the year — and no shortage of creative ways for companies to show their support.
Last year, East Glos encouraged members to cycle to the club for Cycling UK's annual Bike Week, saving over 120 miles of emssions; and took part in No Mow May, leaving the meadow and wildflower areas on the outskirts of its grounds to grow to encourage bees, insects and wildlife and boost biodiversity.
Make use of external resources
Lean on local experts for support in supercharging your sustainability strategy. Severn Wye Energy Agency, for example, offers energy efficiency surveys to help businesses identify energy saving measures; while tech firm Optimising IT provides climate conscious IT plans to offset your workforce's carbon.
Look for local grants — East Glos benefited from the Cheltenham Net Zero fund, which provided grants for LED lighting on seven tennis courts — and cast your net wide to find nationwide sustainability initiatives in your sector. East Glos partnered with Dyuce to install two tennis and padel ball recycling bins, which has seen over 5,000 balls recycled so far.
Get a sustainability team in place
Appointing a dedicated team within your organisation to drive the company's sustainability initiatives — instead of relying on existing management teams which may already have other pressures and priorities — is a great way to bring about change.
East Glos Club found that, although it already had an environmental sustainability policy in place from 2021, it was missing opportunities to calculate its carbon footprint, set sustainability targets and get club members involved; until a new sustainability working group was set up in 2023.
