21 Reasons to Go Green

21 Good Reasons To Go Green

Why go green? Everywhere you go people are talking about going green and how it impacts the planet. From plastic bags to chemical products, people are trying to come up with new and impactful ways that they can go green. While there are a number of ways in which to go green, there are also many reasons which are often forgotten. Taking the time to understand these reasons will hopefully motivate you to follow this very popular and important trend.

Going green is a personal choice that is embraced by individuals to contribute towards the betterment of this planet and make this place a better place to live for future generations to come. Here are 21 good reasons why to go green.

WE DO NOT INHERIT THE EARTH FROM OUR ANCESTORS, WE BORROW IT FROM OUR CHILDREN.
– NATIVE AMERICAN PROVERB

1. Increase Value of Your Home: You could significantly boost the overall value of your home just by making your home eco-friendly. By installing solar panels on the roof top or adding a water-saving toilet and shower, you will not only save money but create a perk for new buyers should you ever sell your home. Moreover, green homes use sustainable materials that have low impact on the environment.

2. Massive Savings in Energy Costs: The U.S Department of Energy states that if buildings were all green-improved that the U.S. would use $20 billion less energy every single year. You can also receive discounts by making your home a greener one. These energy savings can come up as part of fixing small things in your home or office that can reduce your energy consumption. For e.g.: just by running your washing machine full loads, you can reduce significant amount of water and power during each cycle.

3. Save money on your water bill: You can also potentially save hundreds of dollars on your current water bill. Purchasing Energy Star appliances as well as water-saving plumbing systems will consistently save you hundreds of dollars on your water bill on an annual basis.

4. Green Homes are More Durable: When you create an eco-friendly home, you are creating a more durable one. Recycled products have the tendency to last over five times longer than traditional materials. This also means that you will save more money on maintaining your home.

5. Improve Your Health: By purchasing an eco-friendly vehicle and home you could be decreasing the amount of pollutants that get into the air. This makes both the indoors and outdoors have cleaner air for you to breathe. Ultimately, you will be breathing better air. Improved health means less spending on insurance products and hospital bills.

6. For Your Kid’s Future: In the long run, you are doing the right thing for the environment. You are creating a cleaner and brighter future for your children and generations after.

7. Clean and Green Environment: When you go green, you are effectively reducing your carbon footprint. By reducing pollution, you are reducing the amount of energy that is being used and creating a greener and cleaner environment.

8. Recycling Helps You To Be More Creative: Not only do you save energy as well as money but you have the opportunity to create useful items out of recycled materials. This helps you to become more creative and come up with new ways to be energy and material efficient. Buying less and buying used products are also Green choices.

9. Breathe Healthy Air: Using all-natural products makes you a healthier person. When you will be healthy, you are going to be more productive at workplace. The less chemicals the products you use have in them, the less toxins you and your family are breathing in. Everything from household products to cosmetic products can be purchased as an eco-friendly product. Green homes have better indoor air quality as paints and cleaners are low in volatile organic compounds which makes it comfortable for home-owners to breathe.

10. Self-Sufficiency: Going green can help you to be less reliable on fuels and other harmful toxins. You will become self-sufficient and be able to create new and innovative ways to get back and forth to work and save energy in your home. Living a sustainable life requires make use of renewable energies and other resources.

11. Boost Economy By Eating Green: Eating green means eat local, organic and seasonal products. Eating green food have global consequences. When you buy and eat organic food and dairy products, you can boost local economy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions required to get that food on your plate. Eating organic food will also make you a healthier person as it does not contain harmful chemicals, pesticides and added hormones. Organic farming means responsible land use and farming practices.

12. Reduce Electric Bill: By switching to renewable energy sources like solar panels, you can save considerable amount of money every month on your electric bill.  Green alternatives like CFL’s, LED’s and energy-saving door and window fixtures use less energy and by replacing traditional bulbs with these, you can save energy and money.

13. Increase Productivity: Going green saves you from toxic products and environmental pollution. This helps you to live a healthier lifestyle which eventually increase your productivity both at workplace and at home. When you breathe polluted air, you are actually inhaling toxic chemicals present in the atmosphere that could affect your body’s immune system to fight against infections.

14. Save Rainforests: Every year a large area of rainforests goes towards developing of roads, highways, townships, and agriculture. In short, due to increase in urbanization, people are using the areas covered by rainforests for their own interests. Similarly, several trees are axed to produce a ton of printing and writing paper. Rainforests act as air purifiers and are lifeline for thousands of plants and animals.

15. Reduce Carbon Emissions by Green Travel: When you choose green mode of transportation either by car pooling or public transportation, you actually reduce your carbon emissions which helps you to reduce your carbon footprint. Using less number of vehicles on road means less pollution in air and less money spent on gasoline and car maintenance.

16. Making Stuff Requires More Energy: Preparing a stuff from scratch requires more energy and thus has an environmental impact. By choosing green products that are made up from recycled materials you can reduce your carbon footprint and that will also reduce the amount of waste that goes to landfills.

17. Green Products are Non-toxic: Green cleaning and skin products do not contain toxic and harmful chemicals. When you choose to use traditional products, think of all those chemicals that enter your body

18. Increase in Business if Product if Eco-friendly: If you are running business, going green can help you to attract more customers. Consumers will jump on board if a company or product is eco-friendly. If you market your business as an environment-friendly one, then people are definitely going to buy your product.

19. Set as an Example For Others: If your business goes green, your employees will be much happier. Employees will grow to appreciate the gestures and see that you care about the environment and you may even be able to pass good habits onto them.

20. Nature Took Care of Us; Its Time To Pay Back: The world is not going to be around forever. The longer that you take care of it the longer it will last. Taking small steps such as recycling and saving energy will benefit the Earth for a much longer time.

21. Going Green Will Make You Feel Happy: Going green makes you a happier person. You will feel better about yourself as well as the people and environment around you. You will feel a sense of accomplishment for doing something positive for our earth. By going green you are teaching a valuable lesson to your children as well as their children. You are teaching them how important it is to be kind to nature and the environment which is something that can be passed on for generations.

Going green can make a big difference in how you perceive the world around you. Taking a few small steps at a time can make a big impact on the people and the world around you. These are all viable and easy ways that you could go green. It does not take much time, just a little compassion and effort.

Pro's and Con's of Going Green

Throughout the world, consumers are turning to companies who care for the environment so more and more organizations are opting to “go green”. However, there are many pros and cons to consider in this decision. Let’s take a closer look at both sides to help you decide whether going green is a wise choice for your business. 

Pros of going green

First, let us begin with all the pros of making your business more green.

Less waste

One of the first things you will notice is the fact that far less waste is generated and ultimately, this can lead to massive savings over time. Waste factors into every part of your business. For example, by turning computers off every evening, you will notice savings on your electricity bill each month.

Cutting down on waste can be applied to every aspect of your office. From saving energy (turning off office lights at night), to simply recycling paper, not only are you helping the environment but your bottom line as well.

A healthier workplace

By going green, your workplace can become a far healthier environment. This can have a significant impact on man hours and result in a decrease in sick leave taken by staff. There are benefits in other areas as well such as increased productivity levels and less money paid out for medical benefits. To make your workplace healthier, start small. Provide organic food in the cafeteria and keep the green theme by using cleaning products that are not harmful to the environment.

Lower costs

By simply encouraging staff not to print emails and other documents unnecessarily, significant savings can be made on printing and paper costs. Printer ink is expensive and having it last for a longer period will lead to savings over time, money that can be invested elsewhere into the business.

Tax credits and grants

The US government offers many incentives for organizations to turn green, including tax credits which can certainly help improve profits. To receive these, companies must use business practices that are acknowledged as environmentally friendly (for example using renewable energy sources) and by converting fleet vehicles to hybrid or electric for example.

New businesses starting out can also receive grants such as the EPA government grant that require businesses to implement some green criteria. Other grants include 30% price cuts on solar panels as a power source for the business.

Good PR

Other than saving money, going green has more implications for your organization. One of these is the fact that an organization’s reputation improves in the eye of the general public.

This can be used favorably in a public relations perspective especially if you continue to engage and promote in further actions as part of your green campaign. Marketing campaigns should specifically mention the green changes made and those planned for the future. By doing this, you may even draw like-minded green customers from competitors who they feel are not doing enough for the environment.

Consumer demand

Many consumers are demanding green products and services throughout the world. This can be used to your advantage by ensuring the products/services your organization provides are indeed green. Again, this means more and more people will turn to your green offerings over those they consider harmful to the environment.

Sustainable

Companies that start out green when they begin or turn green during their lifetime are far more sustainable than those who choose not to. According to Gary Langenwalter in his book “Sustainability a Better Brand of Business,” if a business combines social and environmental components in their day to day running, they will do far better than those that do not.

Cons of going green

Now, let us look at the cons of turning your business green.

Going green takes time

As a well-established company, choosing to turn green is not something that will happen overnight. In fact, it can take some time to implement across the board. Also, it will require constant monitoring and effort to ensure all systems that can be converted, are. The time it does take is worth it in the long run, however.

Initial costs can be high

Although going green is not a new concept, much of the technology associated with it is fairly new and certainly more expensive than conventional technology. This means that steps to become more environmentally friendly can be costly initially.

Take installing solar power for example. This is a costly investment, especially if large systems are needed. Sure there will be many savings made once installed, but initially, costs can be very high.

High cost of products

Often, choosing green products over conventional ones will result in more money being spent. This translates straight back to the consumer as the prices of products or services supplied by the organization are increased.

Customer backlash

Even though customers will, on the whole, be happier that a company has decided on the green route, it is imperative that no false claims are made regarding their green efforts or their products, both intentionally or unintentionally. This is known as “greenwashing” and can lead to a major backlash if found to be untrue.

You may need to find new vendors

Although a company may make an effort to go green, it does not mean that their vendors or suppliers follow these ideals as well. For this reason, organizations will need to research potential new partners that fit into their green values and this can take time and effort.

Complex business models

Many business models take one main thing into account – profit. When changing to a green outlook, more factors need to be balanced along with the bottom line of the company for example, the companies impact on not only the planet but people as well. So ultimately, going green needs the careful balancing of three factors: profit, planet, and people.

Going green takes effort and dedication

Along with an extended time to turn a business green, it also takes much effort and intense dedication to do it properly.

As with anything in life, choosing to go green has numerous pros and cons. In the end however, it is well worth the effort in the eyes of most business owners. If you are interested in getting a business loan to help with your green efforts, online options are a great way to go. Doing so allows for happier customers, less damage to the environment, and a business that is sustainable for years to come.

Why Going Green Is Important

Did you know the environment isn’t the only thing that benefits from the use of green energy? While it’s true that going green reduces global warming emissions and pollution, the use of green energy offers a number of other social and economic benefits that often go overlooked. Below are just some of the many benefits of green energy.

1. Green energy has less service disruption

Green energy services can actually be more reliable than traditional energy services. Green energy systems like wind and solar power are less likely to experience large-scale failure because they are distributed (spread out over a large geographical area) and modular (made up of multiple units of equipment). That means problems in one geographical area, like severe weather, or problems with one piece of equipment won’t do as much to disrupt service to an entire region.

2. Green energy creates more jobs

The growing appreciation for and technological development of green energy means that more jobs are being created in the renewable energy industry every day. According to a report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), green energy production created an estimated 7.7 million new jobs around the world in 2014. If this trend continues, IRENA predicts that number could soar to more than 16 million jobs by 2030.

3. Going green results in lower healthcare costs

It’s no secret that air and water pollution from fossil fuels can cause cancer, breathing problems, heart attacks and other serious health issues. Replacing fossil fuels with green energy sources helps reduce harmful emissions and clean up air and water quality, which improves public health and lowers overall healthcare costs.

4. Go green for a stronger economy

Green energy services do more for the community than just power homes more efficiently. Many local governments collect taxes from renewable energy projects, which can be used to improve public services. New jobs directly created in the green energy industry create a ripple effect that benefits other related industries. Even businesses that are unrelated to the green energy industry often benefit from rising incomes across households and businesses.

5. Green energy means energy independence

Because most green energy sources (like wind, sunlight, and water) don’t need to be imported, utilizing green energy helps reduce our nation’s dependence on foreign imports like oil. Even more than that, by utilizing more green energy sources, many states can dramatically reduce their need to spend money importing coal and oil from across the country or from foreign countries, leading to greater energy independence.

6. Renewable energy is an inexhaustible energy source

Green energy sources are renewable, meaning they are replenished naturally and relatively quickly. Natural resources like wind, water, sunlight and geothermal heat could potentially supply the entire country’s energy needs with surplus. And unlike our finite supply of fossil fuels, renewable energy sources are inexhaustible and in continuous supply.

IGS Energy is proud to offer green energy services and products that give consumers a simple, cost-effective way to go green. Our goal in offering green energy services is to not only meet our present energy needs, but to also prepare for future generations.