Dream is Green

Green Office

Green Office Program

Green Office

Sign your office up for AU's Green Office program and find ways to green your paper, toner, and other office supplies.

AU's Green Office Program

AU's Office of Sustainability has launched the Green Office (GO) program to help faculty and staff green their office spaces and departments. Each month has related tasks you can carry out in your work space or your whole department. To formally sign up for the Green Office program, email sustainability@american.edu for the scorecard and tracking tool.

Green Office Supplies

Office use a lot of resources, chief among them the paper and ink used to create documents. As offices become more virtual, paper use may be lessened, but there are still many easy steps your department can take to further mitigate the environmental impact of paper, ink, and other office supplies.

Recycled Paper

Buy at least 30% recycled paper, but aim for 100% pcw recycled content. Virgin paper manufacturing contributes to global warming.

Purchasing Guide


Toner Purchasing

Choosing ink cartridge refills or remanufactured cartridges cuts greenhouse gas emissions, solid waste and toxic pollution and can save 20-60% on replacement costs.

Purchasing Guide


Double-Sided Printing

The average office worker goes through 10,000 sheets of copy paper a year. Printing and copying double sided is an easy way to cut paper usage in half.

Printing Guide


Scrap Paper

Rather than toss a one-sided piece of paper in the recycling bin, reuse it yourself. Either feed it back into the copier or collect and use for note paper.

DIY Scrap Book


Paper Margins

Reducing margins to ¾" saves almost 10,000 sheets of paper. If everyone in the US used these margins, more than 6 million trees would be saved annually.

Margin Guide


Vegetable Ink

Request soy- or vegetable-based inks when bidding print jobs. They reduce the amount of volatile organic compounds released (VOCs) during printing.

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