Partnering to make it easier to have greenery in your workspace — with less of a carbon footprint

This Earth Week, Upflex launched #GreenerWorkspace — a partnership with eco-conscious greenery start-up Zauben to help make it easier —?and less environmentally impactful — for employers and workspace providers to include and maintain wellness-boosting plants in the office.

Mounds of research show that green spaces into offices, building lobbies, meeting rooms and amenity areas contribute to healthier and more inviting and uplifting work environments. Plants purify the air. Plants enhance design. And studies show green features like plants and green walls can boost mood and productivity. The hang-up? Plants can be wildly expensive — and effective plant maintenance can cost offices hundreds or thousands of dollars per month, putting these benefits out of reach for many workspaces.

That’s why we were so intrigued by Zauben , which leverages technology and smarter, more eco-conscious staffing approaches to solve these challenges for employers and workspace providers while supporting DE&I and keeping tabs on the measure of carbon emissions reduction.

A Harvard study found 70% of employees believe views of nature improve their work performance.

?“Coworking spaces often face the tough decision to remove plants due to high maintenance costs, with initial expenses per plant ranging from $350 to $750,” said Zauben CEO and cofounder Zachary S. . “But our case studies with Industrious show that plants significantly enhance design, air quality, and employee well-being. We believe that a healthier office environment is a fundamental right, not a luxury. That’s why we are committed to providing plants to coworking spaces at no cost, helping them create greener, more vibrant spaces. And our dedication to sustainability and DEI is reflected in our operations; our technicians use bicycles or public transit, deeply connecting with and representing the communities they serve.”

Zauben and Upflex launched a partnership this week wherein Upflex community members in the U.S. —?including operators across our space network — opt in to Zauben’s technology-driven, cost-cutting monthly plant maintenance program and then receive free plants (with the ability to choose the size and style based on the goals you hope to accomplish having plants in your space); free pots and planters, and free plant delivery.

A University of Exeter study found foliage in office settings creates a 47% boost in employee wellbeing.

For every 20 coworking spaces we reach through this partnership, we eliminate 5,000 metric tonnes of CO2 from landscaping trucks, according to Zauben’s data.

Zauben has rigorous social engagement and DE&I staffing policies that mean hiring great workers who live close to office buildings and who can commute via public transit, on foot, or by bike. Their plants are monitored through smart technology that senses plant health and humidity, so service comes when — and only when — it’s needed, saving costs and carbon. They work with local and independently owned nurseries — as opposed to buying plants that ship cross-country, and bringing landscaping trucks in from some distance for regular plant maintenance that may not even always be needed.

“On the tech side, what each of these planters do is they have sensors and they’re connecting hotspots that measure humidity, temperature, moisture,” Smith said. “We can eliminate the guesswork as to whether the plant needs to be watered, but also, for our technicians, eliminate the unnecessary transportation.”?

From day one, sustainability has been at the core of everything we’re building here at Upflex — from the technology we build to help employers cut commutes, use existing workspace more efficiently, and reduce energy waste, to our work to ensure a tree gets planted with every single Upflex workspace booking.?

NASA’s Clean Air Study found plants can contribute significantly to healthier indoor air, improving IAQ by as much as 85.8%.

We’re excited to partner with Zauben to offer more workspaces access to plants and green walls — a known wellness enhancer in the workplace — in a strategic, efficient way that reduces a workspace’s environmental footprint, instead of expanding it.?

Zauben anticipates the Upflex partnership will offset hundreds of thousands of tons of carbon emissions — and all participants will be part of the number-crunching and reporting for carbon offsets in the coming months.

Here’s who the partnership is for:

Workspace providers who are building out something new

If you’re building out new spaces, Zauben can help you design a plan.

Workspace providers looking to significantly cut costs on existing plant maintenance

If you’re looking to cut on your operations, this could help you renegotiate your contract and you’ll get free plants. (Zauben says they guarantee at least 20% savings on existing contracts.)

Workspace providers looking to boost DE&I and sustainability goals

Zauben is helping spaces with plants and green walls to meet their sustainability and diversity, equity and inclusion goals by eliminating extraneous transportation-related carbon emissions, and through boosting DE&I.

Join Upflex and Zauben this Earth Week in greening your workspace and setting a better example for the industry in the process. Together, we can make a more inclusive and eco-conscious built world.

Ready to green your workspace? More details at upflex.com/zauben-greener-workspace-benefits-of-plants