New Year’s Resolutions for your business in 2026
As we approach the end of January 2026, personal resolutions like hitting the gym daily or giving up chocolate may already be proving tough—but what about setting some goals for your business? Resolutions that could not only benefit your organisation by cutting energy use and enhancing your green credentials, but could also help the environment and contribute to Scotland’s goal of achieving net zero by 2045?
We have been talking to our experts and with their help we have put together a list of resolutions that you could make for 2026. You may not feel able to take them all on board but committing yourself to one or two changes during the year will earn you a big green thumbs up.
1. Start a monitoring and measuring regime
With energy prices more volatile than ever, it’s never been more important to closely measure and monitor your business’s energy use.
Download our free energy usage tracking spreadsheet to start today.
2. Motivate your colleagues to save energy
Even if you don’t know what to do or where to start, talk to your team about where you want to get to and be realistic about the timeframe for getting there. You will need their support on that journey. Our staff engagement toolkit will be a big help. It contains a selection of free resources, including posters, stickers, staff training presentations and quizzes.
3. Speak to Green Network for Businesses members
This network has over 300 members showcasing the work they have already done to save energy, cut waste and reduce costs. Use the network to speak to similar businesses and learn from their project successes.
4. Put together an environmental policy
If you don’t already have one, now would be a good time to write one. If you do have one, take some time this year to revisit it to see if it needs updating. A good environmental policy will help you communicate your environmental credentials to your staff and customers. The good news? It’s easier than you think.
If you can sum up your organisation’s commitment to reducing its environmental impact in less than one paragraph, you’re already halfway to formulating an effective environmental policy. The most important things to bear in mind are:
- Keep it brief, and to the point – one side of A4 is enough
- Ditch the jargon and meaningless platitudes – if you’re bored writing it, they’re bored reading it
We have produced some examples to help get you started.
5. Train to become a CPD-certified Green Champion
Our online Green Champions training course is already helping organisations across Scotland to go green by providing knowledge, tried-and-tested techniques, best practice examples, and free tools and templates. Written by resource efficiency experts, each short Green Champions training module packs in knowledge and experience that will accelerate your understanding of the benefits of resource efficiency.
Sign up to gain the skills and knowledge more than 4,500 other professionals have already learnt through the Green Champions training course.
6. Calculate your business’s carbon footprint
Understanding your carbon footprint is the first step towards planning on reducing it. And it puts you on the road to developing your own net zero plans. There has never been a better time to do so. These calculations are interesting to do and can highlight areas in your business where you could be a little kinder to the planet – while saving money on your energy bills. If, collectively, we are going to succeed in the ambition of being net zero by 2045, the onus falls on every business to do their bit. Find out how to get started here.
7. Sign up for our monthly newsletter ‘The Bottom Line’
Joining our mailing list is a great way to keep up to date with the latest energy efficiency news, cost-saving resources, training opportunities and available funding. Our monthly e-zine brings everything together in one easy read, so you can focus on your business priorities while still making the most of support to grow a greener business.
We also highlight useful resources to help your employees save energy and money at home.
Join The Bottom Line mailing list today.
8. Boost your staff engagement by joining national campaigns
To bring about and make the most of long-term improvements, it’s important to get your colleagues on board with your energy efficiency goals.
We have rounded up a number of dates for your diary – covering a whole host of environmental themes. There are campaigns you could take part in as a business and others which are designed to engage and educate people about actions they can take at home or in their community.
So, there you have it – new year’s resolutions that you can make and keep for 2026. Start today – your business and energy bills will thank you.
Get the next blog post sent straight to your inbox
If you liked this blog post, make sure you sign up to receive our regular ezine ‘The Bottom Line’. It’s an easy way to keep up to date with all the latest news including grants and funding, free training, case studies, the latest blogs and other useful resources that can help your organisation improve its environmental performance, reduce resource use and save money.