The publisher, which recently came second in the Sunday Times' UK's Greenest Companies list, is already encouraging its staff to walk more by removing waste paper bins from desks and with plans to restrict use of two of its three office lifts. The purpose, says Kitty Corrigan, deputy editor for Country Living, is to encourage staff to reduce their carbon footprint.
"We've put pictures of Brad Pitt at the recycling space to see if that helps," she says.
Natmags was London's 100th company to join the Green500, an initiative started by then Mayor Ken Livingstone to encourage 500 companies to cut 1.5 million tonnes of carbon emissions from their businesses in time for the 2012 Olympics.
All of the organisations joined so far will win a prize tonight. But going one better than the bronze, silver and gold available at the Olympics, Corrigan, who is also Country Living's eco editor and writes its green page, hopes to pick up the platinum award.
"To become a part of the Green500 is a rigorous process with detailed evidence of reduced environmental impact. But it's worth it and we really hope to win, as it's something we can use to show that, even in a recession, it's worth investing in green initiatives," she explains.
Along with Diane Thorpe, Natmags' facilities director, Corrigan drives forward the company's environmental practice. She got things going with recycling in 2003 and there are now 40 environment champions in the company who meet every quarter with the chief executive and finance director to suggest new plans.
"We try to have someone on every floor and in every department, so they can keep an eye on things, and encourage people to keep going with their commitment," she says.
"The committee works well, because as we're meeting with the chief executive ideas from the staff can feed through quickly."
The fact that ideas come from the staff and not the management is critical to Natmags' green credentials.
"What we've certainly seen is that the plans work if they're bottom up, so we encourage that. We have a monthly competition where anyone can suggest an initiative, and if it's workable, they get £50," says Corrigan.
So far ideas have included a Country Living meadow on the roof; time out from the air conditioning; and a wormery - although there was no waiting around to see if the directors agreed with a living compost site in the building.
"Initially we did that without permission," says Corrigan.
"In Country Living we did a 'Wiggly Wrigglers' feature on wormeries and decided to put one on the roof without asking, as we never would have been allowed if we had asked. It was only when people started noticing others running up to the roof with bucketfuls of scrap food that we confessed."
Those buckets are leftovers from the Good Housekeeping recipe testing, an example of how environmental practices extend to editorial.
In May, Natmags ran a soft launch of their 30 Days of Green Living, where Country Living and five other magazines developed a coordinated editorial programme to encourage readers to take steps towards low-carbon lifestyles. It was a success which they hope to repeat next year.
Corrgian agrees that green practices in the workplace have definitely had an effect on what the magazines produce.
"I think across the publisher you'd be hard pushed to find a magazine that doesn't have a green correspondent," she says.
"That's a great thing, that it's gone mainstream and isn't just left to niche magazines. I think it's because of climate change - you can't help but read about it. We believe that individual people can really make a difference. As a publishing house talking to millions of people, we can have a major impact."
Corrigan believes that green messages wrapped in a glossy feel-good magazine make them all the more powerful.
"People don't want to be lectured, they get enough of that," she says.
"What's important, for my readers at least, is that they see that a lovely home can also be a well insulated home; that they can have the home they want and be green; and that green doesn't mean minimal. Our reader panels tell us that, although it's not the main reason they buy the magazine, they like the green awareness - as long as it's done with that light touch and remains enjoyable."
Breakfast seminars from the likes of Futerra's Ed Gillespie on the subject of Greenwash also help editorial staff develop better environmental practice.
"Now our editorial teams know what to ask when PRs call pushing 'green' products for us to cover. 'Is that wrapper biodegradable?', for example," she explains. Natmags' own polybags are made from 100 per cent biodegradable material.
Whatever the colour of the prize tonight - bronze or platinum - Corrigan and Natmags will continue to make the publishing company one of the greenest in the UK.
"It's Country Living's 25th anniversary next year and we're going to take on 25 projects for a 'good home' - and while they might not all be directly about environmental issues, they will all be good things people can do that will reduce their footprint," she says.
"For the company, our next project is rainwater harvesting, to flush all the toilets in our two buildings. This needs investment, of course - rainwater harvesting costs £12,000 - but it pays for itself in just three years.
"Some of the other magazines are getting their own 'roofs' - there's going to be a coastal balcony for Coast, and maybe even one for Zest, our healthy living title."
All they need after that, perhaps, is a cross-country track around the roof for the team at Runners' World.
Alex Lockwood is a journalism lecturer at the University of Sunderland specialising in the practice and theory of environmental journalism and the experience of global environmental change. He writes on environment, journalism and the media at www.alexlockwood.net.
Finance reporter - property
