Sustainability at Winston

Winston & Strawn believes our workplace can and should focus on sustainability. The firm's new WISE (Winston Initiative for a Sustainable Environment) Committee reviews operations and practices that will help encourage good environmental practices. It also seeks and reviews recommendations that allow attorneys and staff to be as productive and high-performing as possible within an energy-efficient environment.

The WISE Committee, which includes partners, associates, paralegals, and administrative staff, has initiated efforts to help reduce waste by installing duplex copiers throughout the firm. It also is reviewing the ABA/EPA Law Office Climate Challenge, which recommends ways to be better environmental and energy stewards, and is investigating other energy-saving technologies and practices.

The recruitment department's extranet and the firm's intranet, SilasNet, demonstrate ways in which Winston has become more efficient and environmentally respectful. The extranet allows fast, two-way communication between the firm and summer associates, before, during, and after their internships. For example, summer associates can retrieve the latest news about the summer associate program, post information about themselves, find information about the offices and cities where they'll be working, and respond quickly to firm questionnaires and forms. Using SilasNet, summer associates can find orientation materials, helpful articles and links, committee listings, and photos of summer events.  The firm saves time and money by eliminating print correspondence, helps create a lively online community, and enhances strong communication in real time.