Sex and the Woods: Eco Friendliness in the Workplace

Welcome to this week’s Sex and the Woods: Lifestyle Advice for the Modern Adventurer.  Remember, we’re here to give fresh perspective on age old questions and solutions to new quandaries which means we will take questions on sex and relationships in addition to everything from eco-etiquette to adventure tips. Just email advice@wendmag.com. We answer every Thursday!

This week we tackle the issue of helping a coworker lead a more conscious lifestyle.

Dear Sex and the Woods,

I’ve got this pretty cool co-worker. He’s fun around the office, ultra reliable and competent (unlike pretty much everyone else I work with). However he just doesn’t get the whole I-should-care-about-the-environment thing. Well he cares, he just doesn’t DO anything about the fact that he cares. Like he brings bottled water to work everyday. How can I get him to start manning up and ditch the wastefulness?

-Eco-concious co-worker

Well ECC, bottled water is a huge pet peeve here at Wend’s stylish new offices. Not only do single use plastic bottles quickly find their way to landfills, they’re also harmful to both our and the environment’s health. We’re also huge supporters of Ban the Bag, a campaign to end the use of single-use plastic bags here in Portland. Simply put: plastics got issues yo. Here are some hints to move your co-worker in the right (green) direction:

1. Hack that shit. Nothing’s better than changing someone’s homepage to something they don’t expect. We’re not talking anything vulgar (we know what you did to your roommate’s computer back in your college days). You want eco-changes and to remain employed, so throw up a site with great info they can read, digest, and create positive influence in their lives. Maybe Huffpo’s green section or Wend’s very own Greenery? Want some more sass? Try our personal favorite, Ecorazzi.

2. Educate them. Send them some great, easy to read green living information. Avoid those dire, the-earth-is-dying-and-so-are-we diatribes and empower them to make positive changes in their own lives. Being eco friendly can in fact be fun. For example, you can make messenger bags from plastic bags. Pretty sure that will up your coworkers cool factor. Which in turn will make him more liked by eco hawties, which we fully support here at SATW.

3. Take it slow and make it easy. Your co-worker is going to be much more amenable to little baby steps in the right direction, rather than huge giant leaps towards Al Gore’s ideal citizen. If you really want them to stop using plastic bottles, help them out: invest in a reusable water bottle. But don’t go flaunting your eco friendly ways in their faces by forcing a BPA-free stainless steel bottle upon them. Buy one, wrap it up in some recycled paper, put it in your desk and save it for when they need a little surprise to make their day better. Or surprise them with a nice reusable bag placed on their desk while they’re out at lunch. Everyone loves a green gift every now and then.

4. Lead by example. Here at Wend we believe in the ideal of “people who live in solar powered houses shouldn’t throw stainless steel water bottles“… or something like that. Seriously though, if you want your co-worker to take more environmentally friendly steps, you better make sure you’re doing the same thing, and just drinking your coffee out of a reusable mug isn’t enough. Make this is a great opportunity for you to improve your own green behaviors.

5. Make it worth it. You want someone to compost or buy locally grown veggies? Bring them fresh tomatoes or a seasonal fruit salad. Bribery works every single time. By showing your co-worker the benefits of these new changes you want to inspire, you’ll help them get through the little bit of work it’ll take to get started. Plus you’ll probably make a new friend, or at least someone who will head out on a fair trade coffee run for you.

Good luck!

Anna + Dave