The buzz words today are reuse, recycle and recover. These three words capture what we aspire to ensure the sustainability of our world. If these three words are giving us hope then it seems that it is a good idea to infuse these into our daily lives.

In the business world, these three words are also very much relevant. Businesses, either big or small, have to accept the fact that they are members of the community, and that membership involves the recognition of some social responsibility. Corporate social responsibility as defined by Wikipedia ‘is a concept whereby organizations consider the interests of society by taking responsibility for the impact of their activities on customers, suppliers, employees, shareholders, communities and other stakeholders, as well as the environment.'

Business owners have to be responsible for their actions. Going back to this newsletter printing company, they have adopted a few questions to guide their actions:

Are our products environment-friendly? Can they be reused, recycled, or recovered?

Are our raw materials from sources that are renewable?

Do we try to reduce our environmental footprints in our work processes?

How can a company in a newsletter printing business help raise awareness?

Are we communicating the right message to our employees?

Do we inspire our clients and service providers to advocate environmental sustainability?

Inculcating environmentally sustainable work ethics among employees, clients and work processes can only be achieved through perseverance and patience. Often, there would be setbacks like losing interest and cost considerations. Bear in mind however, that these costs are temporary and that the ultimate reward would not be realized in the here and now. Companies can only reap the rewards of their environmentally conscious actions and policies in time. This profit can be realized with the fact that they will still be operating the business for many decades to come.