Charlene Willett, Assistant to Carl Goodman, in the Adult Services Division of the Department of Community Justice (DCJ) has plenty of experience organizing effective team meetings. Now as DCJ’s liaison to the Multnomah County Sustainability Team, she is helping to spread the word across DCJ and its partners on how to make their meetings more environmentally friendly. Here are some simple steps to consider:
Decide if you need a traditional meeting:
Traditionally, conference attendees travel to the meeting site. Think about whether all attendees must be at the same location or whether technologies like video teleconferencing, which allows online face-to-face interactions, can be used to reduce the amount of emissions
generated from attendance. Not only is it green it saves on time and money.
Go Paperless:
Using media and electronic technology can cut down your paper use. Try using audio visual tools to project and display information in the meeting instead of printing out lots of copies of agendas and handouts. Write your agenda on white boards or display on a projector. Make follow-up presentation hand-outs available online. When necessary, print doubled-sided handouts using 100% recycled paper.
Recycle:
Remove unused papers from the meeting room for reuse within your own office or deposit unneeded paper in designated recycling bins. Be sure your conference rooms have recycling bins for plastic, paper, & glass materials. If there is composting place a bin in the room during the meeting.