At Levenfeld Pearlstein in Chicago, Brusslan picked an interested person from each practice group to

You probably drive to your office, work on a computer that generates piles of paper in a well-lit room, and occasionally fly to meetings and conferences. These activities release carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Canada spirit airlines arrival schedule is the second largest producer of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the world on a per capita basis, and it s these gases that contribute spirit airlines arrival schedule in part to global warming.
The biggest problem is that law firms spew out huge amounts of paper. The average lawyer uses 20,000 to 100,000 sheets of paper a year, which at the high end amounts to half a ton. Making paper is enormously energy intensive; to produce one ton of paper from cutting down a tree to disposal in a landfill results spirit airlines arrival schedule in about 11 tons of carbon-dioxide equivalent gases. That s in addition to the six tons of carbon dioxide from electricity use and three tons from commuting also generated by the typical lawyer.
Any green steps that lawyers take will inevitably help to minimize their impact on the environment. The following spirit airlines arrival schedule a practical guide to greening your law office spirit airlines arrival schedule from getting partners and staff onside to easy tips and suggestions for implementing spirit airlines arrival schedule environmentally sustainable practices in your firm.
Going green is a process, says Jeremy Poole, spirit airlines arrival schedule a partner with Alexander Holburn Beaudin Lang in Vancouver, who sits on the 65-lawyer firm s sustainability spirit airlines arrival schedule committee. It s not just one step and then you re done. It s an ongoing journey.
But you don t need all the answers before embarking on a green process. And you can commit to different levels it s okay to take baby steps at first, and then increase your environmental commitment later. What s important is to just get in the pool and start swimming, says Poole.
Several Canadian law firms are already undergoing a green transformation. Alexander Holburn has a sustainability mandate and now uses 75 per cent less electricity to light its offices. Toronto s McMillan Binch Mendelsohn spirit airlines arrival schedule buys clean (e.g., windmill-powered) energy. Blake, Cassels Graydon has just approved the launch of an initiative spirit airlines arrival schedule that will result in a policy for environmental sustainability. Not to mention the numerous firms that try to reduce their paper consumption.
Last year, the American Bar Association issued an office Climate Challenge , which outlines spirit airlines arrival schedule steps law firms can take to conserve energy and resources and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It offers advice on three main issues:
Here in Canada, the Canadian Bar Association (CBA) adopted an environmental resolution policy in 1991 urging lawyers to be environmentally responsible spirit airlines arrival schedule in the workplace by following the three R s of reduce, reuse and recycle.
Subsequently in 1993, the CBA published its Eco-Practicum: The Canadian Bar Association Guide to the Environmentally Responsible Law Office . Co-author Duff Harper, past chair of what is now the National Environmental, Energy and Resources Law Section , is spearheading an initiative spirit airlines arrival schedule to update the Eco-Practicum .
For one thing, lawyers often advise clients on environmental issues, and they need to be in step with their advice and the sustainable measures that their clients are taking. Going green is also a valuable marketing tool for attracting business spirit airlines arrival schedule and hiring young lawyers, who tend to be concerned about the environment.
A green office is also good for workplace morale. Green buildings spirit airlines arrival schedule are thought to improve worker productivity by 16 per cent, says James Brusslan, a partner at Chicago law firm Levenfeld Pearlstein and head of its environmental service group. But more important, he says, is the fact that people feel they re part of a worthy cause, devoted to more than just making money for the firm.
The firm needs to buy in for a green initiative to work. How successful your program is will depend heavily on the support it receives from office staff (the personnel who will be following through on many of the initiatives like paper reduction). spirit airlines arrival schedule Staff members are more likely to be onboard if the partners and decision-makers are fully supportive.
You might want to first survey the attitudes of people spirit airlines arrival schedule in your office toward making green changes. Alexander Holburn asked its lawyers and staff in a written survey if they would back a green program. Over 90 per cent responded that it would be meaningful and a benefit to work in a sustainable office.
Now that everyone is onside, spirit airlines arrival schedule designate a committee (or lawyer) to research ideas and put the green program into action. spirit airlines arrival schedule The committee head should be a lawyer concerned about environmental issues and one who is well-respected within the firm. Committee spirit airlines arrival schedule members should be creative and able to suggest novel ideas.
At Levenfeld Pearlstein spirit airlines arrival schedule in Chicago, Brusslan picked an interested person from each practice group to be on its environmental task force. spirit airlines arrival schedule Both Alexander spirit airlines arrival schedule Holburn in Vancouver and San Francisco-based Farella Braun Martel have partners, associates spirit airlines arrival schedule and support staff on their sustainability committees, so that all factions of the firm are represented.
The first task for your green committee is to conduct an environmental assessment of your office s current greenhouse gas emissions so you establish a benchmark against which improvements can be compared.
You can do your own audit using the green checklist at the end of this article (which doubles as a list of recommendations for change), or hire a consultant to assist you. The cost for an outside consultant will run anywhere from $500 to $5,000 (the upper range applies to a 50-person law office), says Leah Stokes with Toronto-based Adapt Environmental ( www.adaptenviro.com ), which has consulted to the University of Toronto s hospital sustainability project on energy conservation and non-governmental organizations like Plan Canada.
A greenhouse gas inventory of your office spirit airlines arrival schedule would look at the effect of your corporate flights, the amount of paper you use, your electricity and energy use, the way you commute to the office, spirit airlines arrival schedule computer spirit airlines arrival schedule servers (server rooms can be a big draw for an office), etc. says Stokes. The audit can go as deep as you d like.
To find an environmental auditor or consultant, look for those listed in trade journals spirit airlines arrival schedule with professional accreditation, such as a registered professional biologist or member of a professional engineering association, suggests Steven Clark, a senior ecologist with Hemmera ( www.hemmera.com ), a BC-based environmental consulting firm.
Whether your audit is an informal survey or a detailed ecological footprint analysis, the important thing is to get a good picture of where you are now so you ll know where to go and can measure your success.
Alexander Holburn Beaudin Lang LLP is committed to being a leader in the legal community for sustainable spirit airlines arrival schedule business practices. Our goal is to lessen our impact on the environment through education and implementation of sustainable practices in the workplace, as well as in the home.
When you re ready, you ll want to officially launch your green initiative by communicating the plan to everyone in the office. Alexander Holburn held a lunch party, inviting a speaker from the One Day Vancouver sustainability program ( www.onedayvancouver.ca ), who spoke to the firm on what other businesses in Vancouver were also doing to go green.
Ongoing communication is also important to help maintain enthusiasm. Use your newsletter or firm intranet to circulate articles on environmental awareness. Alexander Holburn e-mails its members a sustainability tip of the week , while its Sustainability Task Force has launched a brown-bag lunch series spirit airlines arrival schedule for members and clients to learn about sustainability issues and ways in which they can go green at home and at work.
Be realistic spirit airlines arrival schedule about your goals a simple program spirit airlines arrival schedule is more likely to be adopted and incorporated in existing practices. At first, you may not want numerical goals at all (e.g., reducing paper consumption by 20 per cent). Getting people to start making small changes is good enough. You ll want to create some success to begin with, after which time you can establish specific goals and set time lines.
You have to continually keep on implementing changes to go green, otherwise people fall back on their old habits, says Brusslan. For example, on Earth Day, Levenfeld Pearlstein sponsored a green real estate conference. Your office could also participate in a park cleanup.
There is likely to be some forgetfulness or resistance, Brusslan adds. People are creatures of habit. To remind employees, Levenfeld Pearlstein issues tongue-in-cheek tickets to people who forget to turn off their office lights at night or don t comply with its environmental protocol.
Scanning spirit airlines arrival schedule documents and processing them electronically not only cuts back on paper. It also translates into substantial savings, especially when you consider how much less physical file storage space you ll need.
At McMillan Binch in Toronto, all closing books are scanned from one signed original, then indexed and put on CD-ROM. A 4,000-page closing book (eight binders) only takes up one small CD, and sending out a CD to multiple parties spirit airlines arrival schedule involved in a transaction instead of the actual closing books saves a tremendous amount of paper, says Richmond.
Widen your impact from the office to the home by encouraging employees to conserve resources in their private lives too. Give out free compact spirit airlines arrival schedule fluorescent light bulbs for lawyers and staff to use at home.
Also explore the use of extranets and a firm intranet, which are paper-free ways to share documents. An extranet is a shared website between a particular client or file and the lawyer. An intranet is an internal spirit airlines arrival schedule website for the firm s lawyers and staff. Other paperless practices include desktop faxing and electronic pay stubs.
At Christmas, consider sending e-holiday greetings rather than paper cards. Last year, Alexander Holbrook made its e-cards interactive. The e-cards advised that because the firm would save money as a result of not mailing out paper cards, clients could pick one of three selected charities to which the firm would d