Zero Waste Week is a chance to think about what individuals and organisations can do to reduce waste.
We’re in the middle of an environmental crisis and it’s never been more important for us as individuals and as a business to take responsibility, make changes to reduce waste and improve our environmental impact on the world around us.
Radian has over 800 colleagues working in offices and communities throughout the south of England. Such a significant organisation can have a big impact on the environment so it’s important that we get it right.
The Facilities team are key to reducing Radian’s waste. We are aiming to Be the Difference and become a department that role models what can be done to lessen Radian’s impact on the environment.
We are at the very start of a journey that will see all of us, both at work and at home, change how we consume in order to tread lighter on the Earth’s resources.
Facilities have already been making changes as part of this and as a department we already do quite a lot.
We’ve already:
- Installed LED lighting wherever possible and has reduced our energy consumption
- Introduced a recycling programme in place for Dry Mixed Recycling (DMR), paper, toner, batteries
- Reused redundant furniture where possible or donated to local charities and schools who need them and will continue to do so.
- New Staff are given a refillable water bottle and coffee cup when they join
- Worked with Procurement to ensure that specifications include best practice through supply chain
- Implemented Find Me Printing to reduce the amount of paper printed.
However, there is always room for improvement. We need to get better at measuring and validating what has been completed already. We’ve made changes which have already had a significant impact on our waste output, but we have little data to show what we have already achieved. One of the first steps is to begin gathering and reviewing data to ensure we are making the right changes in the most appropriate places.
But that’s not all…
We’re currently:
- Carrying out Waste Audits
- Removing individual bins and replacing with recycling hubs
- Reviewing all consumable lists with Procurement and make changes to eco-friendly products where we can
- Data gathering to review baselines, so that we make appropriate changes going forward
While we are certainly making a start, there is always more that we could be doing to reduce Radian’s waste and improve our environmental impact. We are constantly looking at what we can do and how to get it done, so we’ve got a lot of plans for the future.
We’re planning to:
- Improve recycling rates and educate staff on what is needed
- Review the standards of office changes and refurbs so that they are in line with best practices
- Review energy contracts and change to suppliers who have high eco credentials
- Implement an Environmental Management System aiming towards getting our ISO14001
- Promote car sharing and agile working
- Include bee and insect friendly planting where we have landscaping
But in order to succeed and make longer strategic changes, we need the buy in of everyone across the business. It’s going to take time but reducing our waste, improving our carbon footprint and becoming more sustainable is achievable, providing every individual gets involved and plays their part.
By Achieving Together, we know that we can make a difference.
– Laura Wright, Facilities Manager