To be more sustainable, the first thing you need to do is understand what 'sustainable' actually means.
Sustainability is about making sure we have enough resources for the future, not just for use in the present. It means being able to sustain something, to keep it going or to keep using it — a resource, an activity, a society — over time, without running out of resources or causing damage.
That doesn't just mean 'saving the planet', it means creating a world where resources are available for future generations. This includes reducing waste, such as food and single-use materials, and reusing or recycling as much as possible, from clothing to food. It also means being aware of where energy comes from and how it is used — for example, oil, gas and coal are not sustainable forms of fuel as they are finite resources, but solar and wind are sustainable because they will not run out.
Sustainability also encompasses the transition to Net Zero, as this helps to leave the planet in a safely usable state for the future. See our blog about Net Zero to find out more.
It can also apply to society in other ways, such as economically, societally or health, and making sure people are able to live securely for decades to come.
For many of the resources on which we rely, there is only so much of it available before it runs out, including food, forests, fossil fuels and space, and the population of the planet is growing, requiring more use of these resources. Without replenishing these resources (such as planting more trees) they will all get used up, which is a problem if people still need to use them in the future. Some things cannot get replaced, such as the amount of physical space available on which people can live, and fossil fuels — once it's gone, it's gone.
With regards to the environment, the increased production of greenhouse gases is contributing to making habitation on Earth less sustainable more broadly (through increasingly inhospitable effects of climate change), which in turn is impacting the production of food. In this case, the unsustainable resource is the liveable nature of the planet due to detrimental changes in the atmosphere and the effects they cause.
However, becoming fully sustainable is not an easy thing to do. The way the world works now, and the processes, systems, technology and societal norms that are used, a significant change is needed across every aspect of modern life. Sourcing sustainable materials and food and producing fewer greenhouse gases is only a part of solving the sustainability problem. Supply chains and transport, heating and lighting, living and working conditions, and every other part of life needs to be looked at and modified to improve sustainability.
Sustainability is generally agreed to be a good thing, despite the undertaking being a complex and intensive process. This means that people and businesses who say they are being more sustainable are viewed in a more positive light, despite sometimes not actually being particularly committed to sustainable practices.
Some businesses claim to be sustainable to appeal more to customers and the public, but may actually have changed very little about their processes and do not use overly sustainable practices. This is called 'greenwashing', and if a company is found to have done so, it can result in negative press and a drop in customer confidence.
Incorporating sustainable practices and supply chains doesn't just look good and attract more interest, it can also help to make the business more resilient to change — such as increasing energy prices due to global events, which in turn raises the cost of transport and goods. There may also be financial benefits for introducing more sustainable practices, such as using greener energy.
To avoid accusations of greenwashing a company needs to be able to prove their green credentials by actually improving their processes.
There are many sources of funding for improving your energy-efficiency and sustainability. Grants, loans and financing schemes are available across the UK for different aspects of sustainability. Take a look at our Grants and Funding Page for some of them.
You will need to carry out your own sustainability audit for your business to see where you could improve, but some examples include using more sustainable suppliers, reducing waste from food and packaging, decreasing the amount of printing, encouraging employees to drive less or work from home, and saving water. It may also help to hire an external company (such as Crew Energy) to professionally audit your business.
Prepare a plan to lay out when you want to achieve specific goals, and present it to the company in a way that emphasises how the actions involved will benefit them and the company as well as the planet.
Do you waste money by leaving lights, equipment or machinery on overnight when no-one is using it? Does the heating in your office come on over the weekend when there's nobody there to benefit? Are you losing heat through poor insulation or single-glazing?
Making your energy use more sustainable can help to increase your company's sustainability as well as save you money on energy bills. This is where HeatingSave can help.
Monitor your energy usage and how much it costs, and analyse the data to work out which parts of your business are the most energy intensive and the most energy efficient.
Also review your energy bill to ensure you are paying the right price for your energy; look around for anything that might be cheaper or more appropriate for your premises.
Using more renewable energy sources can also help to increase your sustainability, as well as reduce costs. Installing solar panels on your property could be a good way of supplementing mains energy, particularly during the sunnier months. Our blog about different types of heating system may provide some ideas.
HeatingSave can monitor your energy use and determine the efficiency of each room or zone, using internal and external sensors to analyse and report on where your building is losing heat and wasting energy, and what times of day are most energy-intensive.
See how much your energy is costing you, and how much you save when using other forms of energy such as solar, and monitor in real-time with minute-by-minute data on energy usage to find the cause and effect of wasted energy.
Replacing traditional incandescent light bulbs or fluorescent strip lights with LEDs can provide a significant saving. Ensuring they are only used when necessary can also have an impact on energy use, although with LED bulbs this is relatively small. Use motion sensors to switch off lights in vacant rooms; control them with HeatingSave to automatically turn them off when required.
Another relatively easy way to save energy is by making sure all your devices and appliances are switched off when they aren't in use. This means fully switched off at the socket, not just left on standby — 'phantom power' in standby mode uses energy too.
Where possible, use the eco setting on appliances, and keep fridges and freezers kept at the appropriate temperature. Regularly check equipment to make sure it is at optimum efficiency and health, and it may be worth finding out if your appliances and devices are newer, more eco-friendly models rather than more energy-intensive older versions.
Heating can be a significant cost to both your finances and your sustainability goals. If it's left on unnecessarily or is set at too high a temperature it can be a significant drain on resources.
Using a building energy management system like HeatingSave can give you the control you need to ensure your building, or parts of a building or site, are only heated or cooled when required. It optimizes performance and improves system efficiency across sectors, and provides granular management of heating and air conditioning from the HeatingSave app to plan when to switch it on and off on a room-by-room or zone-by-zone basis.
HeatingSave can be fitted to most existing heating and cooling systems for properties of any size, and for older, less-optimized systems it could save upwards of 25% on energy bills.
By reducing heating times and temperatures and optimizing energy use, your business can also reduce its carbon output — thereby helping to reduce the strain on available resources.
Discover what HeatingSave can do for you — talk to one of our experts today.