Source: the dailygreen.com

It’s hard to believe that summer time is coming to an end and “back-to-school” is here. Whether you’re helping your children get ready for school or going to college/university yourself, this year plan ahead and go back to school in eco-style.

Reuse supplies from previous years
Before you hit the store, do an inventory of any school stuff from previous years. Most supplies, such as sturdy backpacks, lunch kits, pencils can last more than year, so you don’t need to buy them every year. If you do have to buy, look for items that are sturdy, long-lasting and contain recycled materials (see below for more tips).

Moving on?
If you’re moving away for college/uni, ask your family or friends for unused furniture or household items. If you do have to buy, check out your local thrift store or on sites like Craig’s list and Kijiji…it’s cheaper than buying new and you’ll be recycling!

Litter-less Lunches
When preparing your kid’s lunches, think litter-less! Not only does it save money, since you won’t always be purchasing brown bags, but it also reduces the amount of waste you’re producing! For older students, its easy to fall into the trap of always eating at the cafeteria, but if you bring your own healthy homemade lunches, not only will you save money but you’ll also avoid the freshman 15!

School Green Clubs

Last but not least, encourage your kids to join the school’s green club and if there isn’t one, help to start one! In elementary school I learned a lot about environmental issues through my school’s green club. Most colleges/unis also have environmental clubs… they’re a great way to take part in environmental causes as well as to network and meet people in the environmental field! I found my first environmental job through my uni’s green club.

Here are some more ideas for back-to- school prep:

- Buy a sturdy, comfortable backpack that you or your child can use year after year. Avoid backpacks made of nylon or new plastics, especially PVC (vinyl), and look instead for bags made from recycled materials or natural materials, such as hemp.

- Purchase recycled paper – then try to use both sides to reduce waste even further.

- Reuse last year’s pencil case. To make it look new, decorate it with fabric paint and create a new look.

- Buy beeswax or soy-based crayons, water-based paints, and water-based markers and glue, all of which are better for the environment than oil-based products.

- Buy in bulk and avoid individually prepackaged items.

- Healthy lunches and snacks are important for children and help with concentration and learning, so pack nutritious lunches with vegetables, fresh fruit, dairy, protein and water.

- Have your children walk or take the bus to school. If you do need to drive your kids to school, try to start a carpooling initiative with other neighborhood parents and kids.

- Encourage a non-idling policy for your school, so school busses and parents picking up their kids are not idling in front of the school.

By: Prabhjit

Hello Cheryl,

Just a few questions. At my age (80) do I still replace my refrigerator, home heaters and car, considering the energy and resources used for new appliances? I live in a rural town, alone, in my own small home, and am very concerned about the environment. I am trying to replace my older car with a more economical one, no success so far. I have been following a green lifestyle for quite a few years.

I have cut back my driving to a bare minimum, am buying carbon credits for special occasions, but am still feeling guilty about my energy use. What do you suggest? I would love to put it out of my mind, forget about it, but do not seem to be able to.

Regards,

A Friend of the Earth

~

Dear AFOTE,

You made the right call about your car. Driving less is the best solution. Purchasing a used, more fuel-efficient car would be sensible; however, buying a brand new hybrid or fuel-efficient car creates a much larger footprint due to the energy intensive process involved in the production of a new car and the disposal of the old one.

It’s hard to go wrong with energy-efficient appliances, as they are a wise investment if you can afford it. And of course if you decide to sell your house, newer efficient appliances can increase the house’s value. As a responsible environmental citizen, however, you must be thinking about the trade-off of dumping working appliances before their shelf life is over. That is a personal decision you will have to consider.

There are many energy savings related activities that you can do to reduce your home energy use…insulating, caulking around drafty windows, applying weatherstripping on doors, unplugging appliances when not in use, using powerbars to hook up your electronic equipment, lowering your thermostat in the winter, raising it in the summer if you have air conditioning.

Keep up the good work and let me know if you are needing more ideas!

It may be the growing environmental awareness out there, it may be the gas prices, but car-centric attitudes are looking really dated these days.

Take drive-throughs for example; Waiting in your car with the engine running just to have food handed to you is convenient, but also pretty foolish and indulgent. Not only does the practice burn fuel wastefully, but the emissions pollute the air and the atmosphere.

Idling is so offensive these days, it’s kind of like what you’d expect the villain to do in a kids’ cartoon.

A man from Markham, Ontario decided to do something about his distaste for

drive-throughs. He and a colleague did an inventory of all the drive-throughs in town (29!) and clocked the average wait time for an idling car. Based on that information and a formula he borrowed to calculate fuel use and CO2 levels, he projected that over a year at all 29 drive-throughs in Markham, this adds up to 21,759,152 minutes of estimated total idling time, using 435,185 litres of fuel and releasing 118 tonnes of carbon dioxide.

What’s the easiest way to stop idling? Stop driving! But if you’re not quite there yet, there are plenty of things you can do when you operate a vehicle, to put an end to idling for good.