Green offices

This intermediate Business English lesson plan is dedicated to the topic of green offices and sustainable practices in the workplace. Students will learn essential vocabulary to talk about sustainability initiatives in the workplace, will watch a video with interesting suggestions for creating an environmentally friendly office, and will discuss and suggest ideas about making their workplace more sustainable. You can combine this lesson with other Business English lessons on the topic of sustainability, such as “Corporate social responsibility”, “Patagonia founder gives away the company”, and “Greenwashing”.
Speaking: The lesson starts with an initial discussion about the term green offices, and the importance and benefits of sustainable practices in the workplace.
Vocabulary: First, students match 6 expressions to the correct photo (low flow taps, reusable cups, motion sensors, LED bulbs), and discuss how each item might contribute to a more sustainable office. Then, students create common collocations when talking about green offices (carbon-neutral, carbon offsets, office waste, zero-waste, paperless office, etc.). To practice them, students complete 8 statements with the correct word, and then discuss the statements.
Listening: Students watch a video “8 sustainable practices in the workplace”. Before they watch the video, they share their ideas about 6 questions. Then they watch the video and write down the information from it.
Functional language: Students learn expressions to make suggestions and evaluate ideas by placing the expressions given in the correct group. After that students use the expressions to talk about ways to make their workplace more sustainable.
You can use the conversation cards for further practice of the target vocabulary, as well as speaking practice.