100% of your power supply is from on-site renewable energy solutions
Implement and share the results of your energy use and conservation plan quarterly, both within your organization and publicly
Implement and share the results of your comprehensive water use and conservation plan quarterly
Become a completely remote company, requiring no office space or regular transportation to/from work
Ensure all suppliers/vendors adhere to your company’s environmental commitments and standards and do not engage in any practices that are environmentally or socially harmful
Install or lease from a building with a heat recovery system that converts waste heat to energy
Purchase 50-100% of products and services from green-certified or Green Business Benchmark vendors
75-99% of your workdays are remote
Your home is powered by on-site renewable energy
25-74% of company vehicles are electric
Own/lease a business space that has a green building certification such as LEED, BREEAM, Green Globes, WELL, Energy Star, Green Star, or another standard in your area.
Source 100% of energy from a third-party renewable power provider
Use a tankless or otherwise highly efficient home hot water heater
Upgrade from older fluorescent T12, T8 and T5 lamps to LED alternatives
Purchase 25-49% of products and services from sustainability-certified or Green Business Benchmark vendors
Rent or purchase a building that is close to public transportation stops and bike paths
Compost your home food waste
Use an alternative/natural refrigerant (non-HFC) with a global warming potential less than or equal to 10 for your home refrigerators, freezers, and HVAC systems
Have a composting program for your business food waste
Implement a green procurement policy
50-74% of your workdays are remote
Implement a comprehensive recycling program including education, proper sinage, and monitoring
Implement a sustainability process and standard for all meetings, conferences, and events
Opt-in to receiving 100% renewable energy from your power provider
Track and measure your company’s impact on the environment along your supply chain
Optimize your on-premise servers and business systems by ensuring the hardware is up-to-date and energy efficient
Create a pathway program for local youths to intern and eventually become employed at your company
Create an executive leadership team with women, minorities, and people from underrepresented communities in top leadership roles
After completing the energy audit/assessment, develop a comprehensive energy use and conservation plan
Install or choose a building with electric charging stations on site
Develop a comprehensive water use and conservation plan with measurable goals to optimize water usage
Implement home performance and efficiency improvements based upon your home energy assessment
Buy home office electronics that are energy efficient, ENERGY STAR, EPEAT, ROHS, etc.
Use a hybrid personal vehicle
Meet if not exceed Federal and State regulations for your industry
Eliminate all single-use paper, styrofoam or plastic cups, plates, and utensils in the kitchen area. Use reusable mugs, dishes, and silverware instead
Schedule regular maintenance on company vehicles to ensure each vehicle is operating as efficiently as possible to reduce emissions
Perform a yearly assessment of all suppliers/vendors’ environmental and social practices in comparison to your company’s commitments
Provide a product or service, as part of your company’s core strategy, that delivers a social or environmental benefit and/or focuses on an underserved part of the community.
Provide a living wage for all employees, at all levels of the organization including both full time and part time workers
Carve out a “no meetings” day during the work week
Have a four-day work week
Properly recycle all household waste according to your local regulations
Create a detailed risk management plan for projects and programs
Identify and manage risks related to your suppliers’ sustainability performance
Purchase and serve 75-100% local, organic, and fair trade food and drink
Prioritize working with business partners, service providers, etc. that are women-led, minority-owned and local small businesses
Define, institute, and clearly communicate a policy to prioritize employee diversity, equity, and inclusion
Install a programmable thermostat to automate your home HVAC or A/C system
Use chlorine-free and FSC-certified paper products
Switch to low-pressure and highly efficient showerheads and faucets
Implement a supplier code of conduct policy
Purchase all office paper products made from 50-100% recycled materials
Arrange the workspace to take advantage of areas with natural sunlight
Purchase offsets for the travel emissions and in-person work days that can’t be reduced
Purchase or lease used or recycled office equipment and furniture
Philanthropically donate a percentage of your revenue or profits and/or company time to an environmental cause
Reserve at least one day a year when your company volunteers for local environmental or community projects (e.g., Habitat for Humanity, Earth Day, Save a Tree)
Purchase ENERGY STAR qualified or similarly highly efficient appliances
Have a clearly defined policy that specifies how you will screen partners and vendors to ensure that their business operations are socially responsible and eco-friendly
Provide an annual public report or update on your company’s environmental and social responsibility efforts, initiatives, and improvements
Evaluate your company’s social and community footprint including diversity of supply chain, demographic of suppliers, and physical and financial impact of operations on local community
Use a carbon calculator tool to measure your current carbon footprint. Reassess quarterly as you meet energy use goals
Install bike racks outside of the office or choose a building with ample bike racks on-site to support the amount of employees
Develop an office thermostat policy that maintains internal air temperature within the recommended temperature range, and eliminates A/C and heating usage when the building is not occupied
Provide equitable opportunities to ensure women have equal access to employment, leadership roles, and pay
Provide fair and appropriate breaks for workers based on hours worked and enforce a strict policy that they must take them
Institute a policy for providing training, certification, and professional development opportunities to employees
Ensure all windows in your home are double pane, low-E, and energy efficient
Use washable home electrostatic furnace and air conditioning filters
Use your personal, fossil-fueled vehicle less than 75 miles a week
Purchase produce in-season from local farmer’s markets or co-ops
Establish a process for the board to oversee and assess the company’s performance in sustainability issues
Pay top executives no more than the minimum compensation necessary to ensure productive and effective performance
Determine executive bonuses based company success in areas such as diversity, goal-meeting, stakeholder engagement, and long-term sustainability
Create and implement a human health and safety policy
Adhere to labor, child labor, forced labor, and reasonable working hour laws and practices
Disclose any risks to the environment or the public created by your company’s products or operations timely and publicly
Keep corporate accounting accurate and up-to-date, enabling operation decisions to be made about investing, hiring, and project management
Install water catchment systems to collect rainwater for use in home garden irrigation
Lower the max temperature of your hot water heater from 140 to 120
Properly dispose of all hazardous waste materials including batteries, paint and chemicals, lightbulbs, aerosol cans, and electronics
Properly dispose of all household hazardous waste materials including batteries, paint and chemicals, lightbulbs, aerosol cans, and electronics
Map the product supply chain of at least 80% of your spend
Install a filtered water tap or water bottle refill station that provide high-quality drinking water
Become an annual sponsor, making a substantial contribution to a meaningful event promoting sustainability in your area
Encourage employee carpools
Significantly limit the amount of physical marketing materials you produce
Complete a consumption and waste audit to help identify and quantify the items your business acquires, uses, and discards
Use environmentally-friendly, non-toxic, bio-based cleaning products
Replace regular light bulbs with LED bulbs
Establish a paperless billing program for your customers
Use concentrated cleaning products
Use recycled and environmentally preferred office supplies such as pens, notebooks, etc.
Purchase carbon offsets to become net zero for all emissions
Buy electronics that are energy efficient, EPEAT, ROHS, etc.
Have accessible green space somewhere onsite or in close proximity to grounds
Weatherize your home by ensuring all windows and doors in your home are properly installed, functioning, maintained, weather-stripped, etc.
Use a drip irrigation system for watering your home landscaping
Go completely paperless
Use concentrated home cleaning products
Purchase home trash bin liners made from 100% bio-based or 50-100% recycled materials
Use an eco-friendly home pest control service that minimizes the use of toxic pesticides
Establish company-wide local community volunteer days and create a company-wide challenge to see who can volunteer in the community at a green event the most throughout the year
Conduct multiple quality checks on your products and/or services before distributing to consumers to ensure highest possible quality
Conduct investigations of ethical violations, and when substantiated hand out fair and reasonable consequences
Choose paperless billing with vendors, business partners, and suppliers when possible
Eliminate unnecessary paper usage as much as possible including forms, contracts, meeting agendas and materials, proofs, and drafts
Administer company-wide employee training on sustainability efforts both at work and at home
Conduct exit interviews to gain insights on company culture and operations and make improvements based on feedback
Give opportunity for all employees to provide feedback of any kind and feel secure and empowered to do so
Replace all traditional bulbs with LED bulbs throughout your home work space
Use reusable cleaning products such as sponges or towels instead of paper towels throughout your home
Stop using all single-use plastic kitchen utensils, plates, bowls, and cups
Use reusable bags instead of plastic bags when shopping
Purchase home paper towels and toilet paper made from 50-100% recycled materials
Administer company-wide employee training on sustainability efforts related to home offices and general life practices
Create a company-wide challenge to eat the least amount of takeout for a month
Create a company-wide challenge to use the least single-use items for a month
Fairly compensate board members or their time and effort based on yearly total hours of meetings and expectations for engagement
Use natural light throughout 75% of the day instead of overhead lights
Locate home office in room with ample windows to take advantage of daylighting
Place a company employee on the organizing committee for a sustainability event
Become an active member, either by serving on the board, donating or volunteering time for an organization that continually works to improve the environment
Recycle or sell your used toner cartridges
Purchase recycled or remanufactured toner cartridges
Develop a paper reduction policy that clearly defines when and how items should be printed
Reduce junk mail by removing your organization’s name from national direct marketing databases
Eliminate the use of disposable batteries and switch entirely to rechargeable
Use reusable cleaning products such as towels and sponges, eliminating paper towels
Print and copy double-sided only
Make your business’ sustainability efforts a central part of your message by filling out and linking to your GBB Public Profile and publishing your sustainability commitment on your website
Choose bio-based, reused, recycled, recyclable, or FSC certified boxes and bags for shipping
Reuse, sell, or donate used or unneeded furniture, equipment, and office supplies
Use virtual meeting platforms to replace travel when possible
Communicate your social responsibility initiatives with customers and other stakeholders in a way that clearly defines your company values, policies, objectives and actual performance
Eliminate all physical marketing materials, rely only on digital methods
Add shades/window covering to reduce heat gain
Provide regular formal review, linked to a comprehensive development plan, with clear and constructive feedback to all employees
Require all business leaders to be trained in, maintain current knowledge of, and commit to complying with the company’s environmental, social and employee wellbeing policies and practices
Add shades/window covering throughout your home to reduce heat gain
Change your home HVAC or A/C filters every 90 days-6 months maximum as is recommended by your filter thickness and type
Reduce vampire loads by unplugging non-essential electrical appliances when not in use
Use smart power strips throughout your house in areas of high plug loads
Plant native, region-friendly plants in your home garden
Opt out of receiving home junk mail
Stop purchasing single-use plastic waterbottles. Install a water filter if necessary
Use a shared or centralized printer
Create a board that is diverse and inclusive, made up of members with differences in thought, perspective, cultural and geographical background, age, ethnicity, race, gender, knowledge & skills–representative of the community and stakeholders
Appoint a majority of board members that are independent from the company
Uphold your company’s responsibility to shareholders through shareholder meetings
Establish a clear governance and decision-making structure, including the composition of the board of directors, board committees, executives, and shareholders
Create and implement a policy for protecting sensitive information
Conduct regular cyber/data security checks
Include a specific commitment to a positive social and environmental impact in your corporate mission statement
Accept and evaluate employee’s feedback about violations of your corporate ethics and conduct policy
Create and implement an employee code of conduct
Create and enforce a whistleblowing policy
Create and enforce a policy for preventing and addressing discrimination and harassment
Establish and implement a shareholder rights policy
Minimize air conditioning usage through natural ventilation by opening windows
Train employees on your cyber/data security policies and what to do in case of a potential breach
Assess your current vendors’ procurement practices
Purchase trash liners made from 50-100% recycled materials
Use ceiling fans in place of air conditioning when possible
Reduce “vampire loads” by unplugging appliances when not in use
Assist at least one other business in learning about sustainability, social responsibility, and environmental business efforts and encourage them to join GBB
Commit to inviting, receiving and acting upon customer and community feedback in a welcoming and constructive way at all times.
Use ceiling fans and windows in place of air conditioning
Donate used clothing and furniture
Document board meetings with minutes and final write-up/reports and distributed to all essential members
Implement a conflict of interest policy for your board of directors and senior management
Write and implement a policy and procedure for board member nominations and elections
Write and implement a policy for removing board members who are not fulfilling their duties
Communicate pricing and services transparently, authentically, and consistently to all customers
Disclose information about political contributions and lobbying activities
Organize a sustainability committee to lead your organization’s sustainability program
Complete the GBB getting started steps
Develop a sustainability mission statement for your business and define your company’s core commitments
Populate your company’s sustainability accomplishments in your profile
Announce your commitment to GBB to all employees
Use natural odor elimination
Relax the office dress code to allow for attire that doesn’t require dry cleaning
Eliminate the use of disposable batteries throughout your home and switch entirely to rechargeable