Reduce Your Waste

In a work environment, addressing waste and recycling can bring about positive staff engagement and an opportunity to demonstrate the benefits of collective action. We all notice the harmful impact of plastic pollution for instance. Waste is a great entry point to action on climate and sustainability and may be the very place your start in your net zero journey.

Waste is an important part of reaching net zero and climate resilience. The disposal of organics and paper from our offices to landfill produce methane. Additionally, our resources are precious and material production is energy and resource intensive. Lastly, understanding your waste is an easy step to later understanding your scope 3 emissions.

Manage waste using the waste hierarchy: avoidance is most preferable, then re-use, recyclability, recovery, then lastly disposal. An office waste management plan will evaluate all items consumed by the tenancy and seek to minimise the creation of wastes according to the waste hierarchy. By necessity, the plan will often involve engagement with multiple stakeholders, from procurement to building occupants, cleaners, building managers, waste contractors, and waste facility operators.

Key resources

Coffee cup toolkit - overview and introduction

Read an overview of the Choose.Reuse. campaign with tips on running a successful campaign in your office.

Waste signage for your workplace

Here's a suite of signage to help your workplace put materials in the correct bin.

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CitySwitch Signatory of the Year and New Signatory Awards - category judging criteria

  • Delivering outcomes as demonstrated by an improved or maintained current NABERS Energy rating and achieved energy savings* (up to 28 points)
  • Implementing one or more energy saving initiatives (up to 10 points)
  • Demonstrating leadership by undertaking innovative, creative or progressive office energy efficiency activities (up to 10 points)
  • Engagement of staff/ customers/suppliers and/or stakeholders to educate and create market transformation (up to 10 points)
  • Participation in CitySwitch local program activities (up to 10 points).
Note, new Signatories submitting for New Signatory of the Year Award need only complete an indicative rating – all other submissions must be accredited.

CitySwitch Partnership of the Year Award - category judging criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Submitted projects should:

  • Involve more than one registered company 
  • Demonstrate that they are  innovative and over and above “business as usual”
  • Demonstrate that they catalyse “market transformation” and or “address a market barrier”
  • Deliver a reduction in energy consumption and carbon emissions within the built environment 

Judging Criteria

  • Delivering outcomes as demonstrated by an improved or maintained current NABERS Energy rating and achieved energy savings* (up to 14 points)
  • Implementing one or more energy saving initiatives (up to 10 points)
  • Demonstrating leadership by undertaking innovative, creative or progressive office energy efficiency activities (up to 17 points)
  • Engagement of staff/ customers/suppliers and/or stakeholders to educate and create market transformation (up to 17 points)
  • Participation in CitySwitch local program activities (up to 10 points)
  • The submitting entity MUST be a CitySwitch Signatory
Note, Signatories submitting for the Partnership of the Year Award may submit an accredited NABERS tenancy, whole building or base building rating.

It’s easy and free to join the program. Your good-will commitment to the program is an acknowledgement of the business sector’s role in
contributing to environmental sustainability and your intention to reduce your own energy consumption and associated carbon emissions.

As part of this, Signatories to the program commit to achieve an accredited NABERS Energy tenancy rating (between 4 and 6 stars) and
work with CitySwitch to improve their tenancy’s environmental performance.

Find out more about how obtaining a NABERS Energy rating ensures you can benchmark your performance, better manage your progress
over time and promote your star rating achievement.