What are some eco-friendly workplace design practices that reduce costs and improve well-being?

The presence of natural light in a workplace is truly beneficial, breaking away from the usual boxed-in setup. Natural light not only aids in relaxing the body but also rejuvenates the mind, making the workplace more inviting and appealing to potential hires.

It's important for all workplaces to have access to natural daylight. Promoting well-being by ensuring a healthy work environment will enhance productivity and increase workplace satisfaction. However, building designs must also consider individual needs, as each user may require varying amounts of daylight or glare control, visual connection to the outside, and colour rendering of complementary artificial light.

Connecting to natural light is not only calming, but it grounds you, taking you back to your "baseline". This can shift your perspective, and contribute to your creativity and approach to problem solving.

One of the easiest and cheapest improvements to wellbeing and employee happiness is to introduce real plants into the workspace. Large easy to maintain houseplants like ficus Benjamin [weeping fig], swiss cheese plants, variegated spider plants, rubber plants, or even the Victorians’ favourite the aspidistra, all contribute towards the physical and emotional wellbeing in so many ways and on so many levels.

It is crucial for our establishment to embrace green building practices and consistently strive to innovate and redesign our existing structure to enhance its environmental friendliness. The installation of solar panels in our building is a relatively straightforward process that significantly reduces our carbon footprint. Furthermore, prioritizing the sourcing of local products not only minimizes carbon emissions associated with transportation but also promotes sustainability. In addition, fostering awareness among our employees is a vital aspect in driving all these initiatives forward.

The most sustainable material is the one that you don't use. Offices tend to consume more space than they actually need to. Embrace flexible working, consolidate floor plates (or buildings), and use only what is actually required for your people to perform at their optimum.

Be aware of not greenwashing your space and the hidden emissions catching you out. Look further down the supply chain, purchase certified products and avoid "marketing chatter".

Fully agree with Simone, pay attention to industry wide and solid certifications that audit deep into the supply chain. Some certifications do not require fully disclosing the make up of a material or product. It is important to research and educate each case thoroughly.

Sustainable materials aren't always expensive, but investing in high-quality, eco-friendly products is always wise. Choose materials that suit your needs and last longer, reducing waste and saving you money in the long run.

Be careful to balance green up front vs capabilty of recycling at end-of-life. Some carbon-neutral products are not recyclable. Think about long term effects of the specification, not just initial impact. Also take into account human sustainability. Too many do not realize that, in some parts of the world where these green products originate, child labor is used to gather or source the components that are needed.

Including plants in the workplace improves air quality and reduces stress, leading to increased productivity and user well-being. However, companies must implement cleaning and care regimes in order to maintain these benefits.

I just brought my lettuce and a few other plants into my work space from my garden. We had a frost and I wanted to save them since they were doing so well. Having a garden is such a wonderful hobby. I highly recommend it.

Everybody loves a plant - a green, luscious, oxygenating one. Don't go and put a load of plants in without looking after them!

Avoid falling into the trap of using products or materials simply because they are in vogue or fashionable. Longevity and minimal environmental and negative social impact is the key. If selecting furniture or fit out elements look for materials and products that have a complete life cycle already in their design (for example, Cradle to Cradle certification).

Encourage behaviours from your team members too. Some small things to implement could be: - Having central waste bins, not at desks (they get up and move, and recycle into the right bin!). - Supply reusable bags, how about some lovely branded tote bags in the office for people to grab when they go out for lunch? - Food waste is a big issue. Monitor waste and look to donate items. - If you're doing an office fit-out, look at what you can repurpose and check out excellent companies like "Waste to Wonder".

49% of workplaces will need to be reimagined due to hybrid working and the amount of noise due to so many on teams calls and not enough conference rooms. The number one way to recycle and reuse your furniture is to donate to charity, a resale or please consider recycling the files and metal cubicles. So many are throwing away unwanted furniture, teachers treasures will take furniture for classrooms and teachers as well.

We typically consume more space than is required often providing a desk and a chair for every employee. If you want to remove waste from the system survey your employees to find out what they need to accomplish their jobs and how often they need to come into the office.

Waste Recycling needs to go further than just the trashcan. Make sure the sorted waste is in fact collected and transported to the relevant recycling facilities. Some countries still have a way to go in terms of government driven effective waste recycling.

Gamifying and rewarding will work wonders here for your team, not just on the green front but engagement, morale and retention too.

It's a fine line to tread, ensuring the promotion of green transportation without compromising on the essence of community and teamwork that thrives in a shared workspace.

Be aware of packaging waste of a furniture order, a tile order, a sample order. It's a factor we have not addressed as an industry. Same for how much demo waste guys into a landfill. As a society, we have a long way to go. We tout green transportation while meanwhile we order multiple modes of transportation to bring us something everyday from Amazon, food delivery, apparel deliver, grocery delivery. Track your next personal order and calculate the fuel consumption and environmental impact. Awareness needs to be a wider arc.

Location is everything - central, convenient and close to different public and active transport options (think a train station, bus stop and cycleway). Not only can it mean shorter commutes to work (improving the door-to-door employee experience), but it also means reduced emissions.

Rethinking the layout and controls for heating and cooling systems can go a long way towards occupant comfort and productivity. Using temperature and humidity sensors to control thermostats automatically, harvesting solar gain through windows during colder weather months and reversing that activity during warmer weather months with automated window coverings can improve comfort and reduce operating costs and in turn the organization's opeartional carbon footprint.