September Green Events in Chicago
News Room | 
Aug 29th, 2008 | 
- Thursday, September 4: Growing Chicago’s Green Business and Clean Tech Economy
- Saturday, September 6: HCCRF Open
- Tuesday, September 9: C3 Teacher Club Orientation
- Tuesday, September 16: Greening Your Office seminar
- Saturday, September 20: Environmental Resource Event
- Save the Dates: Sunday, October 5 and October 26: Sunday Parkways
- Chicago2016 Call for Submissions: Tell the World “Why Chicago”
- Smart Home Green + Wired: Museum of Science and Industry
- Recycle Your Cell Phone: It’s An Easy Call
Growing Chicago’s Green Businesses and Clean Tech Economy
- Tuesday, September 4 from 8:30 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
- Cost: $75; registration required
Within the next three years, one city will emerge as the center of America’s green business/clean tech sector. Will it be Chicago? Please join us for a high-level discussion on September 4 from 8:30 am to 2:00 pm about Chicago’s leadership in the growing green business/clean tech sector at the University of Chicago’s Gleacher Center. The event is co-hosted by the Environmental Law & Policy Center, the Chicagoland Entrepreneurial Center and the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce. Register online at www.elpc.org/greenbusiness/. Space is limited. $75 registration fee. Questions? Contact Jaclynn Jutting at (312) 795-2709 or jjutting@elpc.org. This should be a great event and some of the GreenWerks team will be present.
Household Chemicals and Computer Recycling Facility Open
- Saturday, September 6 from 8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
- 1150 N. North Branch St.
Rid your home of unwanted paints, chemicals, and computers at our Household Chemicals and Computer Recycling Facility, 1150 N. North Branch (two blocks east of the Kennedy at Division St.) For more information and a complete list of accepted materials, visit www.cityofchicago.org/environment and click on “Household Chemicals and Computer Recycling Facility” on the right-hand side. This facility is great for those looking to recycle those items like paint and electronics.
CPS Teachers: Start a Chicago Conservation Corps (C3) Student Club at your school
- Mandatory orientation September 9
Teachers receive a stipend, materials, project guides, staff support, and other resources from the Chicago Department of Environment to run an after-school environmental service club for CPS 8th through 12th graders. Program includes year-round staff support and environmental
leadership workshops.
To learn more and apply, attend the required orientation session: Tuesday, September 9, 2008
5:00pm - 6:30pm @ Chicago Center for Green Technology 445 N. Sacramento Blvd.
Greening Your Office: Tips on How to Make Your Workplace Eco-friendly
- Tuesday, September 16 and October 28 from 12:15 p.m. - 1:15 p.m.
- Chicago Architecture Foundation, 224 S. Michigan
- Registration required, greenofficechallenge@cityofchicago.org
Ever wonder how your office could be “greener”? Do you put paper in the recycling bin but you’re not sure if it actually gets recycled? Are your office lights turned on 24/7? Join us for a Brown Bag lunchtime lecture series where you’ll learn how to “green” your office. The series will focus on waste reduction, energy conservation, green transportation, property management engagement, how to start an office “green team”, and more.
Lectures are geared toward Green Office Challenge participants, but all are welcome. Co-sponsored by the Chicago Department of the Environment and the Chicago Architecture Foundation To register for the lectures: email greenofficechallenge@cityofchicago.org. Include your name, workplace address, phone number, email address, and which event you plan to attend.
Environmental Resource Event
- Saturday, September 20, from 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
- City Parking Facility, 900 E. 103rd St.
Be safe at home. Participate in the Department of Environment’s fourth Environmental Resource Event of the year and take the opportunity to:
- properly dispose of your household hazardous waste
- recycle your old computers, monitors, laptops and cell phones
- bring in your expired or unused medications and keep them out of our water system
- pick up a free compact fluorescent light bulb (limit one per household)
- purchase a $30 outdoor compost bin or $40 rain barrel (available to
Chicago residents only, must pay with check or money order, limit 1 per household)
Call the Chicago Department of Environment at (312) 744-7606 for more
information.
Save the Dates: Sunday Parkways
- Sunday, October 5 and Sunday, October 26
- Chicago’s Boulevards
Come discover what happens when your streets turn into parks. The first-ever Sunday Parkways, will close streets to cars and open them to people for walking, biking, skating, dancing and playing. Sunday
Parkways runs along Chicago¹s historic boulevards, connecting Logan Square, Humboldt Park, Garfield Park, North Lawndale and Little Village neighborhoods, and displaying the vibrant culture of Chicago¹s
communities along the way. The route will be lined with physical activity stations where people can come together for exercise and fun. The space will be free for all to enjoy and build healthy bodies and
communities. For more information, visit www.biketraffic.org/sundayparkways.
Tell the World “Why Chicago”
- www.chicago2016.org
Supporters of bringing the Olympic Games to Chicago in 2016 are invited to visit the newly unveiled Chicago 2016 Channel (accessible via the Chicago 2016 Web site (www.Chicago2016.org)) and post their own videos about “Why Chicago” is the best city. Participants, including performers, songwriters, artists, or anyone with a video camera or web cam, are encouraged to make their videos fun, unique and loaded with Chicago flavor. The best videos will be chosen by the public and highlighted for
special recognition. Stay tuned to the Chicago 2016 Channel, which will also feature fun videos being created by a cross-section of rising stars from the Chicago improv community.
Smart Home Green + Wired
- Museum of Science and Industry, 57th St. and Lake Shore Drive
- Open until January 4, 2009
You’re invited to explore a real, three-story modular and sustainable “green” home in the Museum’s own backyard to learn about the ways, big and small, that you can make eco-friendly living a part of your life. Celebrating exciting new directions in sustainable living and spectacular, environmentally-friendly technology, Smart Home offers guests guided tours of the 2,500 square-foot home and grounds, located in a park on the east side of the Museum. Bring your family to discover
the latest innovations in reusable resources; smart energy consumption; sustainable gardens and green roofs; and clean, healthy-living environments in a contemporary setting.
Recycle Your Cell Phone: It’s An Easy Call
Did you just get a new cell phone? Are you wondering what to do with your old one? Instead of stashing it-recycle it! Recycling or donating unwanted cell phones, PDAs, chargers, and batteries has never been easier. The Environmental Protection Agency’s Plug-In To eCycling program has teamed up with leading cell phone and PDA manufacturers, network providers, and retailers to offer thousands of convenient recycling drop off locations. For more information on where to recycle your cell phone, visit www.epa.gov/cellphones.
10 Business Practices that reduce your Footprint
Starting a green business (or making an existing one greener) can often seem like a daunting task. As I start my own business, I am compiling a mental checklist of all small, simple things I can do in my day-to-day operations to lighten my footprint on the planet. By building environmentally conscious practices into my work flow from the start, I hope to start off on the right foot and keep taking steps toward sustainability.
There’s always more you can do, but the most important thing is to do something! Baby steps in the right direction are certainly better than going backwards or not moving at all. Thankfully, many green business practices are not only eco-friendly, but they’re friendly on the company budget as well. So even if the benefits to the planet are hard to see, benefits to your bottom line may be more visible.
Since I’m a habitual list-maker, here’s a handy list of ten simple things you can do to make your business a bit more sustainable every day.
1. Printing Less Stuff = Using Less Paper
Paper makes up about 35% of our waste stream - even though it’s one of the easiest materials to re-use and recycle! You can help reduce this waste by using as little paper as possible, and being smart about the paper you do use. First of all, you don’t need to print every e-mail. Just organize your inbox to make e-mails easier to find and reference. You can encourage others not to print your e-mails as well. Make back-up copies of important files and e-mails and keep them on an external drive, instead of storing boxes of paper files. When you do need to print important documents, make sure you use a sustainable paper, and set your printer or copier to print on both sides of the page.
2. Go Digital with Your Documents
A great way to reduce paper use and get contracts and documents signed more quickly is to use electronic signatures. Adobe Acrobat Professional allows you to sign PDF files digitally, as well as create PDF documents with signature fields for clients to sign. Or you could use software such as DocuSign or e-signature to securely sign documents and get signatures from clients and vendors. I send proposals, contracts, and invoices entirely through e-mail as PDF attachments. Clients can then e-sign the documents and send them back, and we both have a signed copy without having to print anything. I also use PayPal to send invoices, which gives me the ability to accept credit cards and receive instant payment.
3. Pull that Plug
You aren’t working all hours of the night (at least I hope not), so why does your computer need to be on? Turn off everything you possibly can before you leave the office each day. I plug my computer, printer, external hard drive, and other office gadgets into one power strip, so I can just turn it off to make sure none of my appliances are secretly pilfering energy. I also program my computer to turn off automatically at a certain time each night, just in case I forget. You can also set your monitor to turn off after a few minutes of inactivity. And never leave things like cell phone chargers plugged in when you’re not using them. They still draw energy, regardless of whether there’s anything plugged into them. Speaking of energy efficiency, make sure you stock your office with energy-saving appliances and compact florescent light bulbs.
4. Get Waste Wise
Recycling is never a chore when it’s easier than throwing something away. Place paper recycling bins in convenient locations all over the office, like right next to copiers and mail boxes. Keep clearly labeled bins in several central locations such as break rooms. Everywhere there is a trash can, there should be a recycling bin. If you have a cafeteria or break room in your office, consider adding a compost bin. An employee or neighbor with a garden wouldn’t mind the free plant food, and worm bins are compact with very little odor.
5. Work With Like-Minded Companies
Chances are, there are businesses in your area that are also going green or certified green. Network with them and use their services when you need them. Part of being a green business is making sure that you do your best to ensure that your supply chain is green, too. Seek out green vendors for your business needs, whether it be printing business cards, hosting your web site, or cleaning your office building.
6. One Word: Freecycle!
Need some shelves for your office and don’t have a budget for new furnishings? You never know what you might find on freecycle. One person’s junk is definitely another’s treasure. If you have a large company, you could even organize an office-wide barter party, where everyone brings items they don’t use any more to swap for things they might need from others. When you upgrade your office equipment after years of use, pass it on if it’s still useful. List it on freecycle or donate it to a charity that may need it.
7. Institute a Company Recycling Program for Electronics
In addition to recycling the usual paper, cans, and bottles in the office, don’t forget about the e-waste that is so essential to businesses and so toxic to the environment. When old electronic equipment finally bites the dust, don’t just toss it, but make it company policy to recycle everything you can. Recycling for Charities makes recycling e-waste like cell phones, cameras, and palm pilots a breeze - and you can choose which charity gets the proceeds from your recycled electronics! Many computer manufacturers offer take-back programs for old computers, so make use of them.
8. Slow the Flow of Junk Mail
Junk mail may be one of the most wasteful things known to man. When the plague of unwanted mailings seems to never end, there is something you can do about it. There are free services out there that will remove you from mailing lists, and you can also remove your name from the Direct Marketing Association’s member prospect list.
9. Build Your Office Green from the Floor Up
If you’re lucky enough to be able to afford an office remodel, go green from the floor to the skylights. Use eco-friendly flooring options made from renewable or recycled materials. Use sustainable fabrics made from hemp or bamboo for window coverings, or get them second hand. Lengths of bamboo make great curtain rods, too. Get lots of green building ideas at Green Building Elements.
10. Educate Yourself
There is always more you can do to make your business more sustainable. And the only way to make progress is to know where you’re headed. Keep up with environmental news and green business trends to identify areas you can improve on. Make your own checklist of green business practices to implement and set deadlines for crossing them off your list. Share green news and tips with your co-workers, employees, and clients. Making yourself an “expert” on sustainability will not only build your green brand, but it will earn respect from potential clients, customers, and your peers. Of course I’m biased, but I can’t think of a better resource than Ecopreneurist for green business tips, so check back often to learn how to keep your business on the path to sustainability.
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