Make Business Travel Greener: Five Ways to Lighten Your Corporate Travel Carbon Footprint

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Published Date: 2011-10-31

Your mantra at home may be “reuse, reduce, recycle,” but when you hit the road for business travel – whether you stay in corporate housing or a hotel – do your environmentally friendly tendencies tend go out the window?  Remember, being green while traveling for work doesn’t have to be hard if you commit yourself to thinking differently. Here are five simple ways to lighten your carbon footprint when on the road for business: 1.)  Dine In – Restaurants can be wasteful, especially the fast food varieties.  With all of the paper packaging and huge portions, your contribution to landfills can be significant in just one meal.  Instead, stay at a corporate rental, which offers full-size kitchens (including dishes and silverware), and stock up on foods at the local grocery store that you can prepare in-house that are healthy, nutritious and less wasteful.  Making meals at home (even a brown bag lunch) is easier on your wallet, waistline and the world at large. 2.)  Hoof It – When booking your accommodations, choose a location that is close to your office, work site or local transportation (such as buses and trains). You won’t need to rent a car and you may just get some exercise and a walking tour of your new city all the while reducing your carbon footprint. 3.)  Regulate the Temp – Mind the thermostat for times when you are not at home to save on energy.  Keeping blinds drawn and turning lights off when not in use will help too! 4.)  Reuse Linens – Reusing the same sheets and towels daily will save water.  If you’re staying in a hotel, often your towels and sheets are collected daily for laundering, wasting energy and resources on sheets that aren’t dirty at all.  If you are staying in a corporate rental, it’s easy to keep washings of things like towels and linens to a minimum. 5.)  Recycle on the Road – Recycling bins and receptacles are pretty common now and can be found on the street in major cities next to trash bins. Try to hang on to easy to recycle items until you come across a place to deposit.  If you are staying in a corporate rental, some landlords may already offer the option of recycling. Be sure to ask your landlord if they participate in a recycling program, and if they don’t perhaps you can inspire them to do so for you and future tenants. With just a few simple actions, you’re on your way to maintaining a greener lifestyle while traveling for business.