When I first came to my law office in the Westshore district of Tampa five years ago, there were no recycle bins anywhere to be found. Most people in the office did not really think much of it and never really inquired about it. I thought this was a bit odd since this was a ten story building housing many offices that use tons of copy paper on a regular basis.
Low and behold, after one phone call to Property Management, we found out that there is in fact recycling for the building and it was a free service when requested by an office! When they brought up the paper recycling bins just a day later, I was ecstatic. Then I thought of all of the sodas and cups we use daily for clients and staff and wondered if they also had recycling bins for aluminum and plastics. They did, and it was also a free service for the building when requested.
So next time you are in your office and you are annoyed that you have to throw that piece of paper in the garbage because there is no recycling in your building, make sure you double check with management if there is recycling available- they may surprise you. If they say no, inquire to them about looking into a recycling program for your office. Within a few weeks, you may have just started a new, eco-friendly trend at work.
This article appears in Apr 15-21, 2009.
