Free fruit, renewable energy suppliers, a paperlite office; just some of the ways local businesses of all sizes can move to a more sustainable, greener existence, as our managing partner Peter Hopkins explained at a recent workshop.

The Greening Your Business workshop – part of Great Big Green Week – saw Peter and other Henley speakers share the changes they’ve made. For Mercers the outcomes have been significant, with our carbon emissions in 2024 down 65% since 2021*.

At the workshop Peter went through some of the practical steps, from minor to major, that have worked for Mercers.  

• Get the conversation started! Posters round the office, if pitched right, can open up the conversation. Peter particularly recommended one from Bonkers for the Planet which provides options for a greener lifestyle at home and at work.  
  
  
• Drive healthy eating. A weekly fruit and veg run for the office shows staff that being planet-friendly and caring for your staff go hand in hand.

• Sign up to local green initiatives. Many local organisations are out getting their hands dirty with tree planting, conservation and rewilding (something Mercers’ own staff are doing this summer).
  
  
• Encourage green pledges. Companies and their staff can pledge to make a particular change. These could be anything from installing a water butt at home to swapping to a vegan diet. Pledge for the Planet offers this via their app, and local organisations will also sometimes promote pledge events.

So that’s the low-hanging office fruit out of the way (sorry). What about bigger, longer term changes, within your business?

• Take advice. It is daunting planning and transitioning your organisation to a more sustainable existence, so consider contacting the Legal Sustainability Alliance (for law firms) or a sustainability consultancy (for other businesses). Local conservation charities and campaign groups may also be able to help – Peter pointed out we are lucky to have Greener Henley guiding and driving change in our own town.
  
  
• Think about larger, more impactful changes. This could mean changing to a renewables utilities supplier, working towards a paperless office, and looking at local or b-corp businesses for office supplies.
  
  
• Lead from the top! Of course much of this won’t work without leadership willing to demonstrate their own commitment with a move to a more sustainable, planet-friendly business.

*Mercers is a member of the Legal Sustainability Alliance (LSA) and we measure our carbon footprint using the LSA carbon calculator, which converts the emissions of all greenhouse gases into C02 equivalents (tC02e). The emissions have been broken down into three markers: gas, electricity and resources. Resources include water usage, paper purchased and both non-recyclable and recyclable waste generated. Gas and electricity values are based on figures obtained from our suppliers, while the resources figure is a “best estimate”.