CloudM | Digital Workspaces & Their Environmental Impact

Thought Leadership Articles From CloudM

Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, all around the world, we have seen businesses adapt a more flexible, hybrid approach to their working environments. Office-goers everywhere packed up their desks, thinking they’d perhaps be right back there in only a few weeks, but two years have flown by and hybrid working is more popular than ever.

At CloudM, we manage digital workspaces for a huge myriad of different businesses, all working in different sectors, all with very different requirements. From behind the scenes, we have watched IT managers work hard to make workspaces accessible to workers across the world. Their hard work has had a huge positive impact on the day-to-day life of office workers everywhere.

Before we dive into the nitty gritty, we want to share with you one of our favourite stories. Picture a long beach, covered in thousands of starfish that have all washed ashore. At the end of the beach you see a lone figure picking up the starfish one at a time. You approach the figure and ask them: Why are you bothering? There are thousands of starfish, you will never get them all back home. The lone figure turns to you and throws another back to the sea and they say to you: Well that one is back home now. They keep throwing starfish back into the sea. They never give up.

The moral of this story is that though our impact might be small, it still matters. With that in mind, let’s take a look at the impacts of the masses working from home and making the most of their digital workspaces.

1. Hybrid Work and the Paperless Working World

Let’s start with paper. Digital workspaces, such as Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace, have become avidly popular. However, before the magic on digital workspaces, the average office worker used 10,000 sheets of paper per year, which is equivalent to 1 large pine tree. Say you work in a small office of 100 - that is 100 trees cut down per year. Imagine that for every office in the world.

Now imagine something different. Think of the forests still standing because hundreds of thousands are embracing cloud-based workspaces. The possibilities are endless.

2. Empty Roads, Clear Skies!

With more working from home than ever before (and by proxy less running to their cars just to get stuck in the morning traffic), roads have been considerably less congested. Now that fewer cars are on the road, we are reducing our greenhouse gas emissions considerably. People are tucked away in their homes, cars parked in the driveway, comfortably working from home and quietly doing their bit to save the world.

3. Mental Health and Solving the Puzzle

Working from home, and using a digital workspace, has shown a huge increase in people speaking on their mental health. There has been a rapid increase in self-care philosophies which have given people the psychological tools and wellness to tackle climate change. With a clear head, we are solving this problem together. We’ve started to acknowledge phenomena such as climate anxiety. This is a huge step in acknowledging the legitimacy of Climate Change and its threats to mankind.

4. Say Goodbye to Fossil Fuels

Due to the decreasing number of cars on the road, there has been a significant dip in the use of fossil fuels, which is a huge contributor to climate change. This has given people the choice to be more responsible with their fossil fuel consumption.

5. Give People the Power

Working in a communal space, such as an office, the average worker wouldn’t necessarily have the power to choose the products they consume, from the lightbulbs, to the communal coffee, to the chairs they sit on. Adapting a hybrid approach to work (and a digital workspace) gives people the power to make an impact in their own way.

In summary, behind the scenes, there are some incredible minds working towards developing lots of weird and wonderful things to ease the effects of climate change. From moors that absorb C02, to plastic eating mushrooms and more. At CloudM, even if our impact is small compared to plastic eating mushrooms and what not, we want to remind you even in the small acts, you are making a difference.

A Message From Our Managing Director

When we spoke to our MD, Gary Bennion, who is personally a huge advocate for sustainability, he said:

“At CloudM, we are constantly looking for new ways to tackle climate change in our own little way. We are vocal to each other about how we can improve and how we can adapt to help nurture the environment. That’s where it starts: a conversation.

We are a clever bunch here at CloudM, and even if the impact is small, I know we can make a difference. More so if we all work together.”

Alongside our proactive effort to keep learning about our changing world, we’ve been working towards being more sustainable with our branded materials and events. This year, instead of buying all new materials for expos, we decided to upcycle the branded materials we already had - this saved thousands of usable items. After that, we invested in buying recyclable paper bags and paper pens for expos. Our visitors were able to leave our stall without any single-use/disposable plastic. At the same event, we also held a poll to donate to three local carbon offsetting charities. Ultimately, the votes were quite evenly spread and we decided that each organisation was equally important. We donated an equal sum to each charity. If you’re interested in knowing more about the charities we donated to, please check out Manchester City of Trees, Woodland Trust and The Wildlife Trusts.

We are hugely passionate about sustainability. Together, through the magic of the digital workspace, we can make a difference. Keep throwing starfish! Every single one matters.