How Earth-friendly is your nonprofit or foundation? Take this quiz to find out

Second, RVC is launching a naming rights campaign. We aim to name everything in the office—from the conference room to the fridge to the microwave to each of the cabinet drawers. Support RVC’s work developing leaders of color, and immortalize yourself, by naming a white board or shoe rack. 

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Earth Day is coming up, and despite our sector being full of thoughtful and amazing people doing awesome work, let’s face it, many of us suck at being green. I was at a fundraising dinner with 500 attendees or so, and noticed that everyone got a 30-page glossy program booklet. Barely anyone took it home at the end of the event, which means that 489 program booklets ended up in recycling or trash. Multiply this by one billion events we have each year as a sector, and we’re basically destroying whole forests.

Maybe we should think about having only one or two booklets per table, and figure out other ways to recognize our sponsors. Plus, since they’re rarer, people might actually want them! 

We also use a lot of disposable utensils for events: Cups, plates, forks, etc. They’re convenient. But maybe we should try to cut back, or use compostable stuff, or do both. And why isn’t edible utensils a thing yet?! I’d love to be able to just eat the plate and napkins when I’m done with my meals.

Anyway, I asked the NWB Facebook community, along with colleagues such as Paul Beaudet ofthe Wilburforce Foundation, for suggestions, and have synthesized these tips into an easy quiz. Go through it with your team and see how your organization does. Actually, because I can’t copy and paste into this blog post without it screwing up the formatting, please use this PDF.  (But maybe try not to print it out if you can).

Keep in mind that this is nowhere near comprehensive, and may change with further suggestions. Its purpose is to spark some conversations about how we can be more environmentally conscious in our daily nonprofit work.

Because none of us want our grandkids to invent a time machine and come back to slap us.

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