Throughout the year, we've been sharing our tips and tricks on how to make your lifestyle eco-friendly and zero-waste. With summer well underway and back-to-school fast approaching (too fast!), we thought we'd put together this little guide to an eco-friendly back-to-school. You'll see that, thanks to a few little tips, you'll be ready and zen for the return to school and work. What's more, all these tips are economical!
School supplies
Before slipping the list of school supplies requested by the school into your commission bag, take a few minutes to take an inventory of what you already have on hand. Here, at the end of each school year, we sort through the materials and put aside what's still good to reuse the following year.
After that, opt for recyclable and reusable materials for items such as rulers, pens and sharpeners. Also, choose sheets or notebooks made from recycled materials and opt for non-toxic glues.
The start of the new school year often means the need for new clothes, because as we all know, children grow up at an incredible rate. Before planning a trip to the mall, scour online resale sites, visit thrift stores or ask around.
This tip also applies to your discontinued items: move on to the next one, and the donation chain will grow.
Lunch boxes
Every year, we pack nearly 200 lunches for each child! Our first tip for an eco-friendly lunchbox is to say goodbye to individual, ready-to-go packaged formats. For example, swap the applesauce pouch for homemade applesauce in a dish or a reusable pouch, use a reusable water bottle or juice box instead of disposables, and replace the Ziploc bag with a reusable lunch bag. For other essential tools, we invite you to read our article on 10 practical tools for a zero-waste lunchbox.
Our second tip is to cook vegetarian meals, because as we explained in our article Ecological footprint of our plate , eating meat has a major impact on the environment. For example, you can prepare a Greek salad, a vegetarian chili, a quiche, a chickpea couscous or a vegetable and hummus sandwich.
The final tip concerns compost. As you've no doubt heard on television or radio (the ad where the word banana was repeated 20 times!) in the RecycQuebec ads, composting organic matter helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Remember to bring in your leftovers, and ask the kids to bring in theirs for composting.
Electronic devices
As we explained in our article Reducing digital pollution, our digital choices have an impact on the environment. We invite you to read that article to learn about all the actions we suggest you take, but here are just a few: buy recycled or reconditioned devices, recycle our end-of-life devices, optimize our e-mail inbox to limit our digital footprint.
Transport
In addition to consumer goods, the mode of transport we use to get around has an impact on the environment. By opting for active transportation (walking, biking, scootering) or public transit, you can generate nearly 100 times less CO2 per kilometer traveled. If possible, create or use a trottibus or bike route to get to school.
For those who have to travel long distances to school or work, carpooling is also a great option for reducing the ecological impact of your journeys.
In conclusion, discuss these tips with your family members and their environmental impact. It will be easier to implement them if everyone understands the repercussions of our individual choices on the planet.
Ecologically yours,
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