Going back to school and being green has never been easier, nor has it been more hip. More and more eco-friendly products are entering the market due to the high customer demand. Here are some easy and readily accessible products you can look for in your local stores (P.S. if they don’t have them, ask for them, demand them!). We had a lot of luck at main stream office supply stores. Here is a small sampling of some of the fun things we found:  

• Pencils and pens made from recycled or biodegradable material
• PVC-free binders and page protectors
• Paper, post-it notes and notebooks made from recycled paper
• Mouse pads made from recycled rubber tires
• Backpacks made from natural and recycled cotton in very cool colours
• Solar-powered cell phone charger

Before you purchase new, make sure that last year’s supplies would not suffice or just need to be added to; so many people buy new when they still have supplies from last year that would work just as well. How many new rulers and pencil cases do we really need?
 
Here are some more eco-tips for going back to school: 

1. Car pool or take advantage of bus options
2. Turn your car off instead of idling when dropping your kids off or picking them up
3. Purchase gently-used clothes from consignment stores: there is a treasure trove of quality goods out there and the cost savings really add up
4. Commit to going plastic-bag-free this year – use reusable containers and lunch boxes
5. For beverages, give up on all the drinking boxes and plastic bottles and invest in a sturdy stainless steel water bottle – way healthier for your kids and a relief for the planet
6. Walking or riding a bike to school with the family, weather and time permitting, gives you a nice workout to start your day, and your body will thank you
7. Choose organic fruits and vegetables for your child’s lunch whenever possible
8. Check out your local organic food delivery service, if available, to make it easy to always have nutritious snacks on hand; it also reduces the number of times you have to go grocery shopping
9. Send your kids with home baked healthy snacks rather than pre-packaged, high-sugar, commercially-produced products – another money saver and better for your family’s health 

The list goes on and on. The point is to make the greener choice whenever possible. The more we purchase the green option, the more companies will compete to create more green products for us in the future. If you can’t find a labeled green or eco-friendly option, weigh what they do have using your own good judgment: natural materials over plastics, organic over non-organic, re-use over buying new, and so forth. It is not that hard being greener, but it does take some forethought and creativity sometimes to do things a new way. But the benefits to our health, our pocketbooks, and to the planet are well worth it!