groovy goes green…

Oh you thought we were being great just by making stellar content for your marketing needs. Here at groovy, we are also taking steps to go green through the San Diego Green Business Program (www.sdgreenbiz.org).

For me actually getting to “do something” for the environment has been a great challenge to take on. Whether or not global warming is an actual affect it is my opinion that we do have a responsibility to make an effort in taking care of our environment. Ive spent about 6 months with the program so far and we have done everything from recycle our bottles, to changing the type of paper we use, and in the near future even changing the light bulbs. The green certification is actually a lot more in depth. Some of the tasks are easy or simple to complete, others are a little harder and take some thought on how to accomplish.

The Important part is the willingness to change our habits.

This week we have made it “everyone recycle week” and our mantra is “think before you throw”. Most people generally might not think about this but how you throw your garbage away is a pretty important thing. A lot of household brands are designed for one use which individually might seem ok to just chuck, but multiply that out by however many people live here and a real problem can get out of hand. We use Edco as our waste service (www.edcodisposal.com) Its a great service because they hand separate the recyclables for us at the Edco facility. We also have recycle centers set up through out the building to encourage putting recyclables in its proper home.

…Dont miss that killer video on the Edco website.. One of our producers, Bill Hefly made it. On their website they also give information on what can and can not be recycled as well as a term I think should be included with the old adage “reduce, reuse, recycle” which is “Precycle”. According to the Edco website “Precycling simply means that each time you reach for an item in the grocery store, department store, fast food restaurant, or wherever, you consider how your purchase and its packaging will affect the environment.”

At groovy we precycle by offering our staff and crew washable sports bottles to use in the building as well as permanent wear in the kitchen. We also buy in bulk, choose products such as 100% recycled action rain forest certified copy paper among others as examples.

Using permanent wear in the kitchen is a great example of precycling. Buying in bulk, choosing alternatives, using cloth towels instead of paper ones… these are all forms of precycling. The idea being creating LESS WASTE and/or LESS raw materials before you even have to get to the trash can.

You might be asking yourself.. great mike.. soo where exactly can I go to find out more information for things like batteries, oil and paint or the difference between household waste vs. business generated waste? Funny you should ask. Check out www.earth911.org. You can type in your zip code anywhere in the USofA and the site will search your area for the closest facility. The web site also gives nice bits on other environmental “how to’s!”