iPads save cash and trees

iPads are changing the way businesses do business

As technology rapidly advances, bookstores are being left in shambles (RIP Borders: tablets are taking over!), and the prospect of a future where jobs are replaced by robots doesn’t seem so far off anymore. But, alas! Sometimes technology does more than help us cut corners and feed into our lazy, time-crunched lives. Mashable reported that iPads are helping the environment by inspiring businesses to “go green.” With the increase of iPads and other tablets comes the ability to cut costs and eliminate resource waste. Paper usage, ink and toner refills and Office Depot runs to restock these products are becoming more infrequent thanks to file sharing and demonstrating on tablets.

One such company jumping on the iPad bandwagon is already seeing cost savings and waste reduction with their shift to the tablet. Architectural firm, BCRA relies on the iPad to reduce their carbon footprint and decrease printing costs. Design firms are typically heavy on paper use, particularly with the mass production of brochures as a means of marketing their portfolios. Before iPad’s introduction to the firm, BCRA’s 150-person staff relied solely on about 200 unique printed pieces to tell its story. Now they are able to showcase presentations to clients and share documents without a paper trail, resulting in an estimated reduction of 80 percent in printed brochures and an annual company savings of $15,000 by year-end.

Think of all the trees they’re saving! And of course, all the green they’re pocketing to be spent on more exciting things than paper.

Do you think we’ll start seeing more iPads surface in businesses in lieu of traditional paper document sharing?

photo: venturebeat.com

Fitness Gone Green

Interested in working out and limiting your carbon footprint simultaneously? Check out this recent article I wrote for LuxEco Living Magazine to see what options you have.

The start of a new year brings motivation to do bigger and better things than the previous year. If improving fitness is one of your resolutions, why not hit a gym that not only helps you shed pounds but also helps the environment? Green gyms and fitness centers are proliferating as we become more conscious of how the health of the planet relates to their own health. Home to endless rows of machinery plugged into walls, buzzing TVs and overworked fans, gyms are an energy-saver’s nightmare. But some businesses are starting to use energy in a more productive way, making their members’ experience a greener one.

Read More…

New beginnings

I’ve undergone some major life changes in the last month or so, one of which involved quitting my full time job and relocating from Boston, MA to Los Angeles, CA to pursue my dreams of writing for a magazine. As part of my journalism master’s program at Northeastern, I’ve embarked on an editorial internship with a start-up online magazine: LuxEco Living Magazine.  The magazine focuses on “green,” eco-friendly living and encourages people to consider alternative lifestyles that help preserve our environment.

In light of the massive recent BP oil spill, there has been a greater focus on the importance of such sustainability. There has also been a lot of finger-pointing and hostility towards BP, Obama and environmentalists among others. While there are many people to blame for what has been dubbed the worst oil spill in U.S. history, this tragedy also serves as an opportunity for us to consider if we as individuals should also carry part of the blame. At the end of the day, we are the consumers who continually fill up our gas tanks despite rising fuel costs and increasing emissions. I spent the last three years commuting 80 – 100 miles a day to get to and from work. Can you imagine multiplying my individual emissions by the amount of other commuters not only in and around major cities, but all across the world?

The BP Deepwater Horizon oil rig engulfed in flames that led to the biggest oil spill in U.S. history.

The BP oil spill is a great tragedy that has led to the loss of many lives, put countless people out of jobs, and created a severely unhealthy environment along the coast that continues to spread. Perhaps it will take such an atrocity for us to hear our wake up call. In this case, change can be very good. Though tumultuous and heartbreaking, maybe the result will be a positive shift in overall environmentally conscious living. Sometimes we need something major to touch our lives, pushing us to make changes for the better, whether that means simply carpooling to work or moving 3,000 miles away from home and writing for a green magazine.

Check out these inspiring articles by some of my co-workers about the BP oil spill:

Oil spill kills gulf coast shrimp season; a culture hangs in the balance

Chemical dispersant Corexit being used in the Gulf

Is it really safe to go back in the water?

Photo from treehugger.com.