Green Office Certification Profile - Elliot L. Emmer
Green Office Certification Profile by Mary Ann Wilson
Elliot L. Emmer
Administrative Specialist, Marketing Area
UCLA Anderson School of Management
How did you get involved in the Green Office program?
One of Nurit’s interns, Monica Rowland, introduced me to the program.
How long did it take you to complete certification?
About a month, month and a half. It was spotted work -- do a little, contact her, do a little more, contact her. The form they have is well interconnected and answers a lot of questions but for more specific questions I contacted her.
How would you characterize the initial response to implementing these changes?
Generally positive. For UCLA and Anderson in particular, sustainability is kind of a well-known word and the kind of an issue we try and implement, and so it being driven from the campus and particularly the Anderson Business School, then it’s kind of expected that we would also.
If you felt any resistance to making changes, were you able to overcome it?
Generally they were fine with it. There wasn’t any reluctance; it was just a matter of fitting it into scheduling. We already have a lot of the major infrastructures in place: we have double sided printing, and we have lights that shut off automatically (all the faculty rooms and offices all have lights that automatically shut off). We only have two offices with two people so I didn’t need to survey.
Did you have any up-front costs to implement any of these changes?
We only bought four smart power strips. We pretty much had the infrastructure in place. We already were buying the recycled paper.
What are the challenges, if any, in maintaining a green office?
No challenges. Double sided printed is standard. Lights shut off automatically. Most of the infrastructure was already there so it was just kind of tweaking a few things and changing a couple things, like water bottles. We have canteens instead of actual plastic water bottles. They’re just there for faculty and guests when they want them, but in terms of office usage we don’t. For speakers and guests we’ll give them a plastic bottle. We keep those on hand but they take a long time to go through.
Have you gained any insights from implementing this program that may be helpful to others?
No strong epiphanies. Sustainability is very logical, just because it’s more efficient, you’re not wasteful, it’s generally more thoughtful, and so doing it shouldn’t be any more difficult, it’s just adjusting a couple of things that you take for granted. Like instead of just reaching for a plastic bottle you get up out of your chair you get a little exercise walking 50 feet to the water fountain and filling your canteen so you don’t create plastic waste. Double side printing requires less paper and it’s less paper to carry when you have to go places cause it’s double sided, so it makes sense. You just have to think about it, do it and then make it a routine.
Published: Monday, November 07, 2011
