Laura Lusson, Marketing Representative -- Between March 15 and October 15, companies participating in the St. Louis Green Business Challenge will receive points on a scorecard for initiatives to be green, recording their baseline practices and challenging themselves to do more. Staff from the EarthWays Center, a division of the Missouri Botanical Garden, will serve as consultants and provide advice to the green teams, and we’ll all celebrate our results (progress, really) in November.
At Tarlton, being green will not be new to us; we began recycling before it was in vogue, we work in a LEED Silver building and we’ve completed seven LEED projects to date, with three more under way. But because we’re not starting from zero, the challenge will be all the more challenging for us. Still, we know we can do better, day to day, in all sorts of ways – from how we get to work to how much paper we use.
With Tracy Hart, our president, leading the way as chairman of the RCGA’s Energy and Environment Committee, and Senior Project Manager George Fujii as our team champion, how could we go wrong? And then there’s Jean Tedesco, our office manager, and Duane Priest, manager of information services, who have led us by purchasing sustainable products and services, from ENERGY STAR computer equipment to a green office cleaning service.
When Tracy and George called a company meeting to lay out the challenge, it came as no surprise that they opened with the WHY of it all, since that’s what gives it meaning. Why is the RCGA undertaking this initiative, and why should we get involved? Because we all want to live in greener communities.
I’m proud that Tarlton wants to be a big part of the HOW. That’s the fun part – coming up with the ideas and deciding how to best implement them. We’ve got the support, creativity and determination, so we’re off and running. We’ll let you know how it goes.