Green Office Guide
In an ongoing effort to optimize energy consumption, reduce the University’s Carbon footprint, and costs associated with utilities, waste management and disposal, the following Green Office Guide was created to help offices throughout the University, become more responsible and sustainable with regard to resource use.
These guidelines will assist you and your office in embracing the 3R’s—Reduce, Reuse and Recycle—in every aspect of your daily life. By reducing your initial resource consumption, reusing non-depleted resources and correctly recycling appropriate material(s), you will ultimately help in propelling the University towards being a Greener and more sustainable institution.
Explore the guidance by topic below, or download and print the guide for your records. You can also review our Green Office Checklist for some quick-hit takeaways from this guide.
Energy
Electricity is a key component of any office setting and is used to power everything from internet servers to coffee machines. It is also one of the most wasted resources within offices due to the number of appliances that are dependent on electrical power to function. By embracing the following guidelines, your office will become more energy efficient and cost-friendly.
Energy Recommendations
Use smart power strips and/or unplugs devices when not in use in order to reduce phantom loads. The term “phantom load” describes any power that is used by an electrical appliance/device after it has been switched off or put into sleep mode. Although the electricity used per device/appliance may be negligible, the combined load of all office appliances becomes significant. Smart power strips are those that automatically detect devices in standby mode and cut the flow of power to these devices.
- If you use power strips in your office, make
sure that they are “UL listed” as these adhere to the University’s Fire Safety Code. - Do not “daisy-chain” power strips. Connect a power strip to another power strip.
Make use of natural lighting instead of light bulbs where possible. Natural lighting is known to stimulate the brain more than artificial lighting and more importantly, it’s free. Be more productive and sustainable by opting for natural lighting whenever possible and in turn reduce or even eliminate artificial light in certain areas.
Uses hand dryers instead of paper towels where possible. All hand dryers installed in University restrooms are energy efficient, less expensive to operate over time and are more
environmentally friendly than paper towels. Given the option to choose between the two, always opt for hand dryers.
Use energy saving appliances and electronics that are Energy Star or EPEAT certified. Energy Star certified products are more energy efficient and are designed to use significantly less electricity than non-certified products. Similarly, EPEAT certified electronics are designed to meet a rigorous list of standards which ultimately reduce a product’s environmental impact from manufacture to end of life.
Eliminate unnecessary electronic appliances and devices. Contact your Department Administrator to report any unnecessary electronic office appliances/devices. Request a pickup of departmental electronic equipment for recycling.
Have occupancy sensors installed in restrooms, common areas and office spaces. Occupancy sensors automatically turn lights on when you enter a space and off when you leave; this is an efficient and cost effective way of saving electricity.
Contact the Facilities Customer Services Center at x3-4567 or 273-4567 if you would like occupancy sensors to be installed in your office or submit an online work request.
Switch off lights when leaving a room for more than 15 minutes and at the end of the day. A sure way to save energy is to manually switch off the lights whenever leaving a room for extended periods of time, even if you have occupancy sensors installed.
Consider the use of overhead or personal fans instead of air conditioning where possible. Overhead fans and Energy Star certified personal fans use less energy than conventional air
conditioning (AC) units. Where possible, opt for fans instead of air conditioning.
Keep all windows closed in air conditioned buildings. For AC units to work optimally, air must circulate within a relatively contained space. Open windows allow for conditioned air to escape and unconditioned outdoor air to enter. This in turn forces AC units to work more to maintain the desired air temperature which uses more electricity. Keeping windows closed facilitates the even distribution of conditioned air and allows for the maintenance of a constant room temperature.
Only use energy efficient Light Emitting Diode (LED) or fluorescent light bulbs. LEDs and energy efficient fluorescent lightbulbs can use up to 70% less energy than conventional incandescent lightbulbs, whilst achieving the same lighting effect.
To have your lightbulbs changed or replaced, contact the Facilities Customer Services Center at x3-4567 or 273-4567 or submit an online work request.
Have optimized thermostats as per University temperature setbacks recommendations. AC units are the most energy intensive appliances in most office settings. It is recommended that you set your thermostats to a maximum of 68 degrees during winter and a minimum of 76 degrees during the summer (except in patient care areas).
For any thermostat servicing and calibration requests, contact the Facilities Customer Services Center at x3-4567 or 273-4567 or submit an online work request.
Waste reduction and recycling
Waste is an inevitable by-product of any work environment and offices are no exception. Fortunately, most office waste is reusable and/or recoverable through recycling. Although reducing initial resource consumption is the most sustainable action you could take, recycling correctly might just be the next best thing. The following section outlines simple procedures and provides resources that will enable your office to make the best use of its resources, from cradle to the grave.
Waste reduction and recycling recommendations
Have recycling bins in common areas and where trash bins are present. To order new or replace missing bins, please call the following numbers in your respective location:
- 273-4567 – River Campus
- 275-6255 – Strong Memorial Hospital
- 275-9203 – School of Medicine and Dentistry
- 275-2082 – Off-site locations
Recycles electronics as per University Guidelines. University IT offers free electronic recycling and secure memory disposal services for University faculty, staff and students. Visit University IT’s Equipment Recovery Program page to learn more about this service.
Recycle used toner and printer cartridges as per University guidelines.
You can mail ink jet and toner cartridges to University Mail Services for free recycling. To do so, please place parts in original or replacement packaging and mail to PO Box 270001.
On River Campus, you can drop off toner cartridges at:
- Campus Mail Center (at the counter)
- Wilson Commons: Common Connection
- Rush Rhees: University IT Center
- Any Residential Life Area Office
At the Medical Center, you can drop-off toner cartridges at:
- Helen Wood Hall Loading Dock Area (1 W219)
- MC Post Office
Recycles batteries as per University guidelines. The University only recycles rechargeable batteries (not alkaline) in accordance with both Monroe County Environmental Services and NYSDEC guidelines.
Contact the Environmental Compliance Unit at 275-3241 if your area is interested in arranging a battery collection location. Alternatively, you can drop off your batteries at the following locations:
- River Campus:
- Rush Rhees Library: University IT Center
- Wilson Commons: Common Connections
- Any Residential Life Office
- Medical Center:
-
- Photo Illustration
- Engineering Stores
- Parking Garage office
- School of Medicine and Dentistry Environmental Services Office: G-6305 (Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.)
Reuse interdepartmental mail envelopes as much as possible. Window envelopes without written information can also be reused instead of being recycled with other paper. You can mail these to Clinical Laboratories, Attn: Lauren Gallucci, Box 608.
Reuse and recycle packaging materials. Most packaging material including packaging peanuts, air cushions and boxes are reusable and can be deposited at the River Campus Mail Center in Todd Union building.
Have designated collection spots for reusable materials and office supplies as possible. Share communal office supplies.
Recycle other office materials as per University guidelines. Visit our Recycling page for a complete guide on how to recycle office materials.
Computing and printing
Apart from electricity, paper tends to be the most wasted office resource there is. Given the integral role it plays in most offices, paper constitutes the bulk of all office waste, University-wide. By following the guidelines listed below, your office will not only be able to be more sustainable with regard to paper use, but will also be able to save money on unnecessary costs associated with replenishing paper and printing supplies.
Computing and printing recommendations
Have set double sided printing and copying as the default setting on all printers and copiers. Consult your Department Administrator to find out if these settings are the default within your office or, contact University IT to talk to an IT Specialist about how to apply such settings as the default on your device.
Use postconsumer recycled paper of at least 30% for all office use. Postconsumer recycled paper uses less virgin material to manufacture and is therefore, more environmentally friendly than non-postconsumer recycled paper.
Reuse single-side printed paper as scrap paper and for draft printing.
Consult your Department Administrator to find out the type of paper your office orders.
Avoid color printing as much as possible. Toner ink for color printers is more expensive than grayscale ink and uses more chemicals to manufacture, some of which are toxic pollutants or are extracted by cutting down trees for dye. Always use grayscale settings when printing/copying drafts and whenever color is unnecessary
Have sleep settings turned on for all computers, printers and copying equipment. Electrical appliances use significantly less energy when they are in sleep mode than when they are in active mode.
As a general rule of thumb, set displays/monitors to switch off after 10 minutes of inactivity, hard disks after 30 minutes of inactivity and full system sleep after 60 minutes of
inactivity with a password required upon wakeup.
Set your printers and copiers to have the power saving option enabled when available.
Consult your Department Administrator to find out if you have office specific guidelines with regard to energy saving and computer system settings.
Send meeting agendas and information electronically and offer online sources of publications and forms. Contact your Department Administrator to find out the alternative communication resources that may exist in your office.
Use electronic data storage and filing as much as possible in order to reduce paper use. Contact your Department Administrator to find out if online storage options (such as shared drives and Dropbox accounts) exist in your office.
- Remove unnecessary cover sheets from all printed documents, and uses narrow margins and small font where possible.
- Makes use of softcopy editing and print preview.
Purchasing
The University of Rochester seeks to promote sustainability not only within its internal operations, but also in the supply chains that feed into it. We live in a highly inter-dependent world and being sustainable goes beyond personal choices and actions, and affects a much larger community. The following guidelines will assist you in promoting sustainable choices both within and beyond your office setting.
Purchasing recommendations
Use University approved vendors for all supply and delivery services. The University has a number of vendors whose practices conform to the University’s Corporate Purchasing
Guidelines. Visit the University’s Corporate Purchasing website to find more information about University approved suppliers.
Purchase durable and reusable office supplies from Staples and other University approved suppliers. Sometimes it’s worth paying more for a product that will last longer, than having to replace it more frequently.
Purchase products containing pre- and/or post-consumer recycled content, those that are ECOLOGO Certified or other environmentally friendly options. Staples uses logos in its catalog to distinguish such products.
Encourage purchasing from suppliers who recycle or use recycled products in their supply chain, or are otherwise committed to sustainability.
Purchase the highest-rated Energy Star products where possible. For assistance with purchasing such products, contact Materials Management at 273-5819.
Buy all materials in bulk and consolidates smaller orders into one large order. Bulk and group purchases are not only cheaper, but also help to reduce the amount of packaging materials used and the greenhouse gasses released during the transportation processes.
Consider buying used office furniture and supplies. The University offers several reuse programs.
Kitchen and catering
Although they tend to be overlooked, kitchens and breakrooms produce a considerable amount of waste that ends up in the landfill. As such, these are key areas where sustainable practices should be ensured. The following are ways your office can be more sustainable in its kitchen and catering practices.
Kitchen and catering recommendations
Have a recycling station in kitchen area and recycle all appropriate kitchen material(s) including boxes, cans, plastics, and all other applicable materials.
Have easy access to clean and filtered tap water. To evaluate the need for a water fountain/filtration unit installation in your office, contact the Facilities Customer Services Center
at x3-4567 or 273-4567 or submit an online work request.
- Have reusable kitchen utensils available.
- Use reusable food containers. When eating at River Campus Dining Locations, make use of the Reusable Clamshell Program instead of using disposable containers.
- Have a set of reusable mugs and/or cups. Make use of the Reusable Mug Program which offers discounted coffee refills at all coffee serving locations on the River Campus.
- Use biodegradable kitchen supplies (cups, plates, mugs, etc.) in the absence of reusable ones.
- Practice a zero tolerance for Styrofoam by not using Styrofoam kitchen products and encouraging vendors to use recyclable alternatives.
- Limit the amount of plastic cutlery delivered by catering services.
- Use non-toxic and biodegradable cleaning supplies.
- Have access to communal rather than individual kitchen appliances such as coffee makers, refrigerators and other kitchen appliances.
- Purchase communal food such as tea, coffee and condiments in bulk.
- Prioritize purchasing fair trade and organic food products whenever possible.
- Hire caterers and suppliers from University approved vendors.
Transportation
The University of Rochester is a commuter friendly institution that offers a variety of ways of traveling between its campuses and to remote locations. With tens of thousands of employees, the University has a significant carbon footprint just from commuting alone. The following are ways in which your office can reduce its transportation footprint.
Transportation recommendations
Have access to bike racks. The Department of Transportation and Parking Management (DTPM) has installed numerous bike racks near all major buildings to allow for a convenient way to secure bicycles. Learn more about bicycling and bike racks on campus.
To evaluate the need for a bike rack installation near your office, contact the Facilities Customer Services Center at x3-4567 or 273-4567 or submit an online work request.
Encourage the use of ride sharing and alternative transportation. Make use of carpooling and ridesharing when traveling to off-site locations Explore alternative transportation options.
The University’s IT department offers teleconferencing options and Zoom web conferencing for all University faculty and staff.
Innovation and education
This guide is by no means exhaustive of all the things you can do to promote sustainability in your office. In fact, there exists many more resources and opportunities that would allow for your office/department to be more sustainable. The following are ways your office can go a step further in promoting sustainability and promoting a “Green Culture” within its members.
Innovation and education recommendations
Have at least one Green Rep in your office. As part of the University’s employees for Sustainability program, Green Reps are employees who advocate for sustainability efforts, liaison between their department and the University Council on Sustainability, and help in raising sustainability awareness within their departments. Learn more about Green Reps and sign up to be a Green Rep for your department.
- Encourage team members to follow applicable actions in this Green Office Guide.
- Consider including this Green Office Guide in new member orientation.
- Have a Green suggestion box for use by all office members.
- Set up an inter-office resource exchange program that shares surplus and reusable materials.
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