The Business of Earth Day | Interview with Doug Platts

As a business, Gardenuity takes our Earth Day and Earth Month initiative extremely seriously. Being a company that is always pushing our audience to adopt healthier, more mindful, and greener lifestyles means that we also need to partner with companies who have the same interests and values. 

This Earth Month, we have expanded our celebrations to partnering with some fantastic companies in order to promote greener living. Whether this means growing garden kits across organizations, facilitating meaningful conversations, or enjoying the gifts of a successful harvest together, we are working to make a lasting impact in our celebrations. We had the chance to sit down with Gardenuity COO, Doug Platts, to discuss what Gardenuity is doing, as a business, to celebrate Earth Day, and what other businesses can also do to keep the trend going. Keep reading to find out!

What is Gardenuity doing for Earth Day?

Gardenuity has been partnering with companies such as Cigna, Uber, and PepsiCo / FritoLay to instill the values of growing good with their teams. In addition to this, we are also hosting a virtual gardening experience that is available to anyone who wants to join. On Earth Day, April 22nd, at 1pm CST, join us for a container gardening virtual workshop where everyone will be planting our Growing for Good garden, while we also engage in conversation about environmentalism, and how we can take steps towards a greener lifestyle. Celebrate with us, get greener with container gardening!

“Anyone can register and garden along with us; celebrate, and join in on the conversation so that we can all move forward with helping to restore our Earth,” says Doug.

Green Partnerships

“I worked with Gardenuity to host a desktop garden workshop for my team to celebrate sustainability throughout the month of April. Our session with them taught us valuable tips to take care of our plants — even our beginners felt confident by the end of it. We’re looking forward to checking in with them in a few weeks to see how our plants are thriving and to get any plant care questions answered!”

Jerome C – Multinational Technology Company

“The biggest thing that we’re working on,” Platts explains, “is helping teams bring the benefits of gardening to their home and office life – in an easy and accessible way. This includes our desktop gardens, as well as our outdoor gardens.”

Take a look, as Doug explains a little bit more behind what Gardenuity has been up to this Earth Month.

• Growing with Cigna: “With a range of Cigna’s clients we are building gardens across the US throughout April to celebrate Earth Day. We will also be using our garden workshops to talk about Earth Day and living greener; it’s a catalyst for a conversation about Earth Day.”
• Growing with Uber: “With Uber, we have a number of workshops going on within various teams – they are really enjoying our Desktop Gardens. Uber has been partnering with Gardenuity through many different planting workshops. This has been a means for them to engage in hands-on, off-site initiatives as ways to channel discussions around Earth Day, and growth in general”
• Growing with PepsiCo / Frito Lay: “PepsiCo / Frito lay is celebrating Earth Day by planting a Salad Garden. This is going to be a lasting part of their Green Initiatives.”
• Growing with Skadden Law Firm: “ We are doing a 2 part planting workshop with Skadden Law Firm. We will be planting the Taco Toppings Garden Kit during the week of Earth Day. When the garden is ready to harvest in June, we will come together for another workshop that involves harvesting the produce, making delicious tacos together, and then planting another herb garden for the summer season.”

“What we’re finding is that people want to do more two-part workshops,” shares Doug, “this is so you can celebrate the harvest and also the experience of planting the garden in the first place. Enjoying the building of these gardens helps companies to bring their teams together, and also provides an opportunity to celebrate the harvest and the growth. Growing a garden together makes for great incentive to stay in touch, and to build up the workplace community around gardening.”

What can Businesses do to be Greener?

When it comes to sustainable and environmentally friendly practices, there is always work to be done for corporations and small businesses alike. While it is wonderful that we have an entire holiday devoted to starting this conversation, you can always adopt greener practices for your business – it’s an all year round affair. 

“As important as it is to have a day that celebrates our Earth, we love to see our clients, throughout the year, have a desire to develop initiatives that bring the wellness benefits of gardening to their teams and clients. We love that our audience wants to do their part to benefit the Earth.”

Doug Platts – COO of Gardenuity

When asked what businesses can do to start on a path towards a greener existence, Platts answered, “The smallest, simplest way is always to start with a conversation. You do also want to have some way to catalyze that conversation. What we do is an efficient way to start the dialogue in a meaningful way; talking about growing your own, live gardens filled with fresh herbs and veggies, and sustainably sourced plants, which is what we have.” 

“You want people to consider, ‘What are small, sustainable changes that I can make on a day to day basis, that will positively impact our planet?’” Doug explains, “You could start by using your own coffee cups, and then move up to growing your own herbs and veggies at home, or in the office. It starts with fewer trips to the grocery story, but can grow into adopting an overall plant based diet, which is significantly better for the environment.”

Start your Journey

If you have been looking for a way for your business to grow in the direction of a sustainable existence, start with a container gardening workshop. You will be surprised to witness how deep the roots of gardening run when it comes to motivating your team to work better together, and think more often about how to live a greener lifestyle. Reach out to us for your next team-building workshop, and see how your team grows towards greatness.