Earth Friendly Angel

By Alexis Siemons
Editor at Large, MavenMag

On a typical afternoon walk around the city, Paige Wolf’s attention isn’t focused on the weather but rather on the increasing number of recycling bins that line Pine Street like a tiny green army protecting the city. Her attention to green detail is not just a reflection of her personal eco enthusiasm, however, but is also the focus of her business, Paige Wolf Media & Public Relations.

What began as a simple film screening of An Inconvenient Truth would prove to be an environmental awakening for Paige, who states, “I realized [after seeing the film] I was misinformed and started to passionately change my lifestyle.” From changing light bulbs to recycling, composting and using all natural products, she began making efforts to “constantly find new ways of greening [her] life.” Paige also joined a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) which offers its members monthly and weekly “subscriptions” to fresh, farm-grown goods such as eggs and produce.

Her dedication didn’t stop at her personal life. Soon, her focus on going-green extended to her PR business, which she re-branded to offer “eco-friendly and community-conscious lifestyle public relations services” and would soon become the only green focused PR company in Philadelphia. Paige slowly rebuilt the foundation of her business to remain true to the following three principles: Community — Proud to be in the City of Brotherly Love; Identity — We Love You Just The Way You Are; and what truly separates her from the rest, Environment — Green Isn’t Just the Color of Money. Paige remembers being pleasantly surprised by the response from both the local community and her current client roster at the time these principles came about, stating “I was fortunate that my choice made my job a lot more enjoyable. I started working with clients that I was passionate about and whose environmental actions did not weigh on my conscience.” This allowed Paige to feel like she was contributing to something truly positive.

After joining the Sustainable Business Network, an organization focused on growing successful economic and socially-responsible businesses, Paige’s eco-conscious reputation continued to spread throughout the city and she soon accumulated several clients with sincere green ideals.

The effort that Paige spent greening her business includes outfitting her office in an eco-friendly manner (buying recycled office supplies-paper, ink cartridges, etc), and, more importantly, educating the clients whom she had worked with prior to making the eco-friendly shift. Although she made a “commitment to serving clients using the most ecologically friendly and sustainable methods available,” she would first have to educate her hesitant clients about making eco-conscious choices. Fortunately, Paige found that the majority of her clients were not only receptive but also thankful.

However, there were the few that did not see eye to eye with her green methods, prompting her to add a stronger eco-conscious voice to her newsletter, The Paige Turner, which not only highlights noteworthy clients, but also offers green advice in an effort to continually educate her clients along with the Philadelphia community. In fact, she joyfully notes that she has already seen a change in some previously apprehensive clients; in one case she returned to a client’s office the day after a meeting and noticed that the pile of regular paper had quickly been replaced with a stack of recyclable paper. Therefore, the percentage of Paige’s eco-conscious clients, which at the moment is 90%, is not only testament to her desire to make an eco-friendly change in the PR community, but is also a reflection of her dedication and ability to educate those around her.

In addition to offering environmental expertise to her clients, Paige also lends her PR skills, knowledge and time to a well-known community based non-profit organization, Career Wardrobe, which she views as “green by the virtue of who they are,” as it recycles work clothing to support women who cannot afford interview or every-day professional outfits. Paige’s presence has made quite an impact on this organization, as this year’s annual fundraiser on June 3, A Perfect Fit: Recycle a Suit, Renew a Woman's Life, will highlight the green efforts of the organization such as their change to recycled tags on the clothing.

In addition to her involvement with the Career Wardrobe, Paige was asked to share her expertise as a speaker during the “Green Your Life Seminar,” which was part of the Go Green Expo in Philadelphia. The expo took place from March 13-15 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center and invited “both consumers and business owners to learn more about the latest earth-friendly products and services to make our community greener.”

Paige’s reputation for being a strong “green” advocate in Philadelphia is continually growing. Through her speaking engagements and dedication to other local eco-friendly initiatives, she is not only speaking out for a better economy, but working hard for it as well. To learn more about Paige’s green ideals, visit her website and sign up for her informative newsletter, The Paige Turner.

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Photo provided by Susan Beard Design.
www.susanbearddesign.com