Kick off the spring season with these environmental awareness days in March!
Employee Appreciation Day – First Friday of March
Ask yourself: Where would your company be without your staff of team leaders, solution builders and dedicated workers? Whether you’ve just begun your green journey or your company has years of experience, sustainability programs of all sizes and at all stages are successful because of the employees running them!
Employee Appreciation Day is the perfect opportunity to give thanks to your staff for their hard work, commitment and passion in pushing towards new company achievements and a healthier, safer planet. This special day is also a chance to encourage employees to continue practicing sustainability at home and work, and to remind them that their choices DO matter and make a difference.
Here are some ideas on how to say “Thank you!”:
- Gift employees a sustainability pack equipped with a reusable tote, mug, bamboo straw and other practical reusable items. (Note: Make sure you’re purchasing from a like-minded company also committed to being environmentally responsible.)
- Ditch the plastic gift cards and give employees experiences they’ll remember instead! This could be a pottery or cooking class, a trip to the museum, a spa day, a concert by their favorite artist or a food tour around town.
- Reward staff with a day or half-day off work.
- Organize a sustainably catered event and give your team the chance to connect and relax.
- Give praise via newsletter and highlight the work of your green team.
Global Recycling Day – March 18th
Even if you’re a complete novice when it comes to sustainability, you probably have a good understanding of how recycling works and why it’s important. Global Recycling Day aims to raise awareness about the benefits of recycling along with how to do it properly.
Many are unaware of the dangers of improper recycling such as how food residue in containers can actually contaminate whole batches of recycled material and that not all items can be recycled even if they’re made from metal, glass, paper or plastic. Items like plastic bags, shredded paper, wires and broken glass can damage recycling equipment. Chemicals and electronics can not be tossed in ordinary recycling either.
This Global Recycling Day, educate your staff on the do’s and don’ts of recycling. The EPA has some great information on common recyclables as well as the hard-to-recyclables (used oil, pesticides, unemptied aerosol cans, batteries, etc.) Contact your local collection facility to confirm which items they accept and where to take the non-recyclable items they don’t.
Install recycling bins at convenient locations throughout the office or engage remote workers to record how much they recycle per week, month or quarter.
Research products made from recycled post-consumer content and consider incorporating them into your supply budget.
World Water Day – March 22nd
With an ever growing population and the amount of resources that it takes to support it, along with the increased frequency of severe weather events such as droughts, water is well on its way to becoming the most valuable resource in the world.
World Water Day focuses on the 2.2 billion people lacking access to safe drinking water and calls for global action to find better ways to manage freshwater. Sustainable Development Goal 6 “Water and Sanitation for All by 2030” is a core focus of World Water Day.
Your business can do its part to celebrate and protect this precious resource by:
- Upgrading faucets, toilets and other water fixtures to efficient water-saving models.
- Check for leaks in the bathroom, breakroom and equipment and have it fixed as soon as possible.
- Educate staff on best water conservation habits such as not letting the faucet run and filling a reusable water bottle versus purchasing single-use plastic bottles.
- Collect rainwater and use it for landscaping and/or exterior cleaning.
- Include drought-resistant plants in your landscaping and choose a low-flow irrigation system.
- Hire janitorial companies that specialize in water-saving cleaning methods.
- Never dump chemicals down the drain and avoid the use of pesticides, herbicides, synthetic fertilizers and other toxic lawn care products that get washed away with runoff.
National Agriculture Day – March 22nd
Next on the list of incredibly important resources is FOOD! From grape tomatoes and green beans to chocolate and Swiss cheese, supermarkets grant us convenient access to a diversity of foods from all over the country and the world.
National Agriculture Day celebrates the innovations made in agriculture and the hardworking farmers and ranchers that cultivate the food supply we rely on every day. National Ag Day also raises awareness on the environmental issues facing agriculture and how more sustainable, less intrusive methods of farming are critical to preserving soil health, supporting plant and pollinator biodiversity, cutting emissions and conserving water.
Here are some ideas for getting involved on National Agriculture Day:
- If possible, choose a “farm-to-table” restaurant to cater your next company event or partner with a community garden to deliver fresh produce.
- Organize a company cookout that includes only seasonal, local ingredients from your community.
- Have a documentary screening of Kiss the Ground to learn about the importance of regenerative agriculture or The Biggest Little Farm that follows two farmers who transform an arid landscape into a flourishing, biodiverse food forest.
- Research agricultural issues affecting your region and discuss with your team.
- Consider creating your own company garden or building an onsite compost bin.
You can find other environmental awareness days to celebrate year round on our blog!
