Our Blog: where do you stand?

What We're Thinking: Sustainability Tips

By: Nick Sargent | 08/25/2011

Sustainability isn't just a value we help our clients communicate; it's something many members of the Standing Partnership team embrace in our own lives.

Earlier this summer, my wife and I purchased a used push reel lawn mower for handling our small south St. Louis yard. It might seem like a minor way to make an impact on the environment, but we felt good about ourselves when we learned that lawn and garden equipment accounts for as much as five percent of air pollution, according to the U.S. Environmental Production Agency.

This month I asked other members of the Standing team to share the ways they're making a positive impact on the environment.

Julie Layton

My husband began a worm composting process (technical term is "vermiculture") in our house-we kept hundreds of red worms in two Rubbermaid bins in our basement and fed our kitchen scraps to them. In turn, they created the most nutrient-rich soil and worm "tea" for the plants in our garden. (But let us never mention the Great Tsunami of 2011 that killed our whole population. When we've healed, we may try again.)

Jessica Hartman

At my house, we try and turn on as few lights as possible and make sure only necessary lights are on to conserve electricity. We also try to be mindful of our paper usage and reuse paper for writing down grocery lists and to-do lists. If the paper has only been used on one side, there's no reason to recycle it just yet!

Gretchen Schiltz

I put my coffee grounds straight out on our garden, and we also have a compost pile for all other plant waste.   

Anne Walker

We share baby/children's clothing/items among family and friends. It's much cheaper and it also just feels good to know that you are not filling landfills with items that are used for a month or two per child.

 Mihaela Grad

We are big on teaching our kids to turn the lights off when they leave a room - it's slowly catching on. We are also keeping the thermostat settings at reasonable levels. If it's hot outside, you should not be wearing a sweater indoors!

Ashlyn Brewer

Since I have a fairly long commute to Standing, I carpool with a co-worker once a week to reduce our energy consumption. It's a win-win situation - I gain great company for my drive while reducing my carbon footprint!

Cathy Dunkin

We recycle all of our soda cans in the Standing Partnership office, and I take the cans to my church, where they are sold to support Epworth and Kingdom House. I take the can tabs to church, where they go to Ronald McDonald House to help the kids. And I take cardboard boxes from the canned soda to the Humane Society or Animal Protective Association, where they use them for beds or litter boxes.

What are some of your favorite ways that you're making a positive impact on the environment?

Posted in Sustainability