Claude cowork simply feels like you have a coworker a new team member and worth every cent you might spend on, but to even be able to use it, you must set it up and here is your step by step guide. Not a generic one, but made for sustainability managers.
Step 1: Install and open Cowork
1️⃣ Go to claude.com/download. Download the desktop app, without it is not possible to access cowork.
2️⃣ Sign in with your Pro account ($20/month. Or $17/month if you pay annually). [this is 100% not a paid promotion, but Claude is worth every cent]
3️⃣ Inside of the desktop app you will find a toggle on top, you must click on cowork. You want to know the difference, read here.
Congrats you are now in.
Step 2 — Build Your Context Folder
Now you are in but it is time for the real setup that every sustainability manager must spend at least 60 minutes on.
Why is this important? To be able to benefit from one of the most powerful features in Claude Cowork.
1️⃣ Create a folder and call it “Claude Cowork”
2️⃣ Create your md. file inside of your “Claude Cowork” folder
Claude will have access to this folder, it reads this file first and uses them as permanent context for your work.
Instead of repeating the same background information every time you prompt or ask for something to be done, you can store that information in simple Markdown (.md) files.
Think of it like onboarding slide deck to onboard a new employee.
When someone joins a company, they need to understand the environment they operate in — the industry, the company structure, the regulations, and the type of work they will be doing.
Without this onboarding, they would constantly need to ask basic questions before they can contribute effectively.
The context folder works the same way.
It gives Claude the initial briefing it needs to understand your professional environment.
For sustainability professionals this is especially useful because many prompts require the same context:
industry background
regulatory environment
supply chain structure
company scale