Aside from the recent proroguing (or otherwise) of Parliament, the big story of the week has been environmentalist wunderkind, Greta Thunberg’s speech at the UN. As well as scathing glances at world leaders, her plea for action on climate change grabbed attention and drew adulation and condemnation in almost equal measure. And, no matter which camp you lie in, a change in our environment is hard to ignore. The impact of humans is reaching critical level and something needs to be done. Whilst world leaders seem to be struggling to action anything, grass roots activism is taking centre stage. So, what, as a small business, can you do to play your part? Without a doubt, CO2 emissions are a huge contributor but possibly one of the easiest changes to make. How? Simply by swapping your commute in a car to a bike. It’ll keep you - as well as Mother Nature - fit and doesn’t produce any harmful toxins. It might not be possible to do this every day but even once or twice a week can make a difference. It’s been made all the easier by the Government’s recent changes to the cycle to work scheme. It’s an initiative that’s been in place for some time now, whereby employees can purchase a bike through hire-purchase, paying monthly installments out of their gross earnings. This reduces tax for the individual and NIC contributions for both employer and employee. Previously, the cost of a bike had been capped at £1,000 because anything above that figure required a consumer credit license. This means that the growing popularity of E-bikes, which may be a more attractive in some quarters than peddling alone, were out of reach. The limit has now been scrapped, meaning bikes from across the market are available. So those who are keen cyclists as well as those new to the activity can benefit, as will the environment. And don’t forget about everything else you can do to make sure your office is as environmentally friendly as it could be. Consider recycling, most materials now can be used again and need to be sorted according to your local authority’s guidelines. Make sure everything is turned off when you leave for the day. It’s tempting to leave a laptop charging or not shut down a computer but all of these devices require power, which is being wasted whilst it is sat dormant overnight. So, whilst big changes need to be made in order to deliver bigger results, making small changes individually certainly add up to make a difference in their own way.