Most companies today takes steps to ‘do their part’ in protecting our environment, and try to do what they can to conserve, recycle or give back. Any steps taken to reduce a company’s environmental impact can be seen as good in the eyes of stakeholders. The problem is, it can be hard to figure out how to start, or do more. One solution may be smartphone apps.

Here are four great apps that can help you and your employees make your company a little more green.

1. GoodGuide

GoodGuide is an app that can help you find out more about products. Utilizing a barcode scanner, it can provide you with information like where the product comes from, whether it’s safe and if it’s green.

With over 170,000 ranked products in the app’s database, it’s a great way to start learning about sustainable and environmentally friendly products. The only downside of this app is that it currently focuses on the US only, and there is no word as to when, or if, service will expand. You can download it to your Apple devices or Android devices for free.

2. PaperKarma

While we are living in a digital age, we still get a lot of paper-based junk mail. This is incredibly wasteful, as most people just throw the mail away. PaperKarma is an app that aims to reduce or eliminate waste paper.

Here’s how it works. You take a picture of unwanted mail and submit it. The developers will then contact the distributor and ask that they stop sending mail to you. This app could go a long way in helping to reduce the amount of paper your office uses, which will mean lower costs for you and less trees felled. It’s really a win-win. You can download it to your iPhone or Android device for free.

3. iRecycle

An important part of any green initiative is recycling. The problem is, it can be hard to find out what, how and where to recycle. iRecycle is an app that aims to set this straight. It provides information on how to recycle almost everything and the nearest recycle points to you.

The app also provides you with recycling-centric updates, news, and tips to help encourage you to do more. It’s available for iPhone and iPad and Android devices for free.

4. greenMeter

If your company uses a fleet of vehicles, you are probably always on the lookout for ways to make them more efficient. greenMeter is an app that could help. What it does is use your iPhone’s accelerometer and manually entered data to assess your vehicle’s power and gas usage.

While driving, this app provides real-time feedback on how efficient your driving is and how much gas you are using. This will help you conserve fuel (as you can see when you are burning more than usual) which will reduce operating costs and negative environmental impact. It’s available for the iPhone and costs USD$5.99.

These are just four apps that can help your company go green. What other CSR initiatives do you take in your company? Let us know! And if you would like more tips on how technology can help you reduce your environmental impact, let us know, we can help.