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The Axium Green Team
Going Green and Beyond!
Axium realizes that wise usage of available resources makes sense for Axium, the local community, and its employees.
The focus of our Green Team is on three specific areas:
- Take a 2nd Look
- Take it Home
- Take it into Your Community
Take a 2nd Look
Axium, like most companies has focused its Green Effort on areas such as Recycling, minimizing components in its software shipments and reducing its energy usage.
The Green Team, however, sees an opportunity to "Take a 2nd Look" and reassess the current programs in place, like recycling, and see how we can do it better.
The City of Beaverton, Oregon, recently launched a city ordinance that all businesses within its jurisdiction must implement a Recycle at Work program by October 2010.
- Main goal is to expand recycling efforts to now include: All paper, cardboard and containers (glass/plastic bottles, jars)
While Axium is already meeting these targeted goals, Axium’s Green Team met recently with the City of Beaverton Recycling Coordinator to review Axium’s current recycling program. We discussed recent changes in the State Law regarding recycling, better ways to communicate these changes and how to provide a host of educational/reference materials to help Axium establish a Green Library available to Axium staff.
Overall, the Green Team hopes to track metrics on:
- Pounds of recycle materials kept out of the landfill
- Savings in paper costs – encouraging staff to go paperless
- Energy savings in heating, air conditioning and electricity
Take it Home
The abundance of information available on topics ranging from Sustainability to Worm Bins is beyond the ability for one person to handle.
Collaborating with Axium’s internal Communication Gang we are developing an internal SharePoint site to enhance communication within Axium. With this vital tool we can post articles and links to established websites that promote Sustainability, Worm Bin projects and ideas.
One such site, recently mandated by the Oregon Legislature, is the Oregon Electronics Recycling Program, www.OregonEcycles.org. This site provides useful information for Oregonians on how and where to recycle home electronics for free.
In addition, Axium plans to invite local organizations with a Sustainability Focus to present Lunch and Learn topics to Axium Staff.
Take it into Your Community
This area of focus is really an off shoot of "Take It Home". Being involved with community events or even hosting an event is the focus of this area. Projects the Green Team is exploring:
- Reuse-A-Shoe Drive: Program that recycles your old running shoes into Outdoor and Indoor Basketball Courts, Indoor Volleyball Courts and Tracks, Tennis Courts, Playgrounds, etc...
- Recycle Electronics Days
- Community Clean-Ups
- Oregon Beach Clean-Up
It is important for all of us to take a look at our workplace, home and community to see how we can be more Green. This is an ongoing project that we should all focus on for the betterment of our environment.
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