Aisles of back to school shopping are beginning to sprout up in stores nationwide, encouraging a level of consumerism that is not particularly green. Estimates expect $17.6 billion to be spent on back to school shopping for students entering kindergarten through college.
Blogger Robin Shreeves of Sustainablog urges readers to reassess their back to school shopping habits.
Whether it's stuff for a college student or a kindergarten student, many of the "must-have's" simply aren't. When parents shop like this for kids when they are young, it's no wonder college freshmen expect so much and retailers make it so easy for them to buy it in one shopping trip in one section of the store. [...] Reuse last year's backpacks and lunch boxes and sneakers and dorm bedding. When you do need to buy items, buy with long term in mind so things won't go out of style.
Blogger Kelli Best-Oliver of GreenOptions recommends purchasing green products, reusing items from last year's book bag and learning about the environment.
* If last year's backpack is in good shape, choose to reuse instead of buying a new one. Same goes for lunch bags, binders, pencil bags, and rulers. If you must buy something new, choose vinyl-free items to eliminate the dioxins involved when using PVC.Product: Companies like Rawganique and Ecolution are producing hemp, recycled rubber, and recycled plastic bags.
* When buying paper goods, always look for recycled notebooks with a high post-consumer waste percentage.
Product: New Leaf Paper company sells a wide variety of recycled printer and notebook paper.* Did you know most crayons are made from petroleum? Fortunately, Prang makes 85% soybean oil crayons.
Product: pencils made from recycled denim, Paper Mate has recycled pencils, and ForestChoice makes pencils certified by the FSC.
The Eco-Fabulous Blog has a list of questions to consider before purchasing green products.
* What is the product life cycle? Will the manufacturer take the product back or will it need special disposal?
* Is it made from plant-based materials?
In 2006, college students alone spent over $3.6 billion on dorm room decor. Low Impact Living considers a green dorm room to be the stepping-stone necessary for college students to develop a lifelong concern for the environment.
If back-to-school now means back to college, dorm rooms and new apartments are ripe with opportunity for getting kids off on a green foot. In addition to the school supplies discussed above, think about things like organic cotton bedding and biodegradable cleaning supplies.
Blogger Kelli Best-Oliver encourages her college-aged readers to live greener in college.
* Eat Greener.
* Choose Green Cleaning Products. When cleaning in their dorms, whether it be the bathroom, their room, or their laundry, choosing biodegradable cleaning products keeps petroleum use to a minimum and minimizes toxins in their environment. Check out products from Mrs. Meyer's, Method, Seventh Generation, or make your own.
* Recycle. Furnishing a dorm room with two separate receptacles, one for trash and one for recyclables, makes disposal a breeze.
* Reuse.
Related:
::Green Shopping List For Incoming College Freshmen from the Huffington Post.
::Read about the nation's greenest colleges from the Huffington Post.
::Shaky Economy Hits Kids Going Back To School on the Huffington Post.