Green Your Back-to-School Routine: A Sustainability Guide for Families

As we bid farewell to the final days of summer, there is a feeling of excitement in the air as families prepare for the back-to-school experience. Part of that buzz for kids is the fun prospect of the fresh gear and supplies usually required for the new school year.

For sustainability-minded families, however, choices may be different these days. People are realizing that transitioning to Earth-friendly back-to-school supplies, clothing, lunch/snack items, and other gear is a powerful step towards a more eco-conscious lifestyle.

Eco-ethical shopping is easy, fun, and manageable on almost any budget, whether you prefer to scout bargains, go DIY or splurge on innovative, new green products. For sustainability and savings, seek out recycled, upcycled or pre-loved items from thrift stores and second-hand markets. You may also want to prioritize sustainably healthy lunch and snack items.

The following tips can significantly reduce your family’s ecological footprint and help ensure a positive experience for your kids.

Sustainable Back to School Planning

Go green with school supplies

The most cost effective way to eco-shop for necessary academic supplies is to be thrifty, literally. Start by taking an inventory of what useful items remain from the prior academic year and determine what your child still needs. Then, make the rounds of Goodwill shops, second-hand boutiques, Dollar Stores and garage sales for binders in good condition, packaged paper, pencils, pens, erasers, markers, notebooks, etc. Make it a fun quest for kids and share your enthusiasm for eco-smart thrifting!

If you prefer to purchase all new items instead, opt for school supplies that are made from recycled materials with minimal packaging, and which seem durable enough to last for years. Check out Earth Hero for many cool, Earth-smart, back-to-school basics, from backpacks and binders to pencils, pens, and paper, glue, erasers and much more.

Opt for eco-cool clothing, shoes & backpacks

For those back-to-school wardrobe basics your kids may need, consider purchasing gently used items. You may have already taught your little ones the art of thrifting; if not, it’s worth sharing how positive and fun it can be to help the Earth while also saving cash. How much does buying used apparel help the environment? Well, according to the World Resources Institute:

• Making a pair of jeans produces as much greenhouse gases as driving a car more than 80 miles.
• Discarded clothing made of non-biodegradable fabrics can sit in landfills for up to 200 years.
• It takes 2,700 liters of water to make one cotton shirt, enough to meet the average person’s drinking needs for two-and-a-half years.

Given that the used clothing market has expanded in recent years, from online thrift stores and social media platforms to high-end resale sites, you can find a wide variety of used clothing options for kids of all ages. Another way to make this approach fun is to give kids a modest amount of cash and let them see for themselves how far that goes when buying second-hand wardrobe items, shoes, backpacks and more. It is a very illuminating exercise!

Choose Earth-friendly arts & crafts accoutrements

Creative expression is developmentally healthy and important, whether your child participates in school, at home, or ideally both. When stocking up for fall, seek out non-toxic, eco-friendly art materials, such as water-based paints, recycled paper sketchbooks and refillable markers. Second-hand shops, Dollar stores, and bargain marts often carry arts and crafts supplies, from paper, to paints, brushes, sketch books, stickers and many other creative accessories.

If you want new items, consider these eco-cool products for toddlers and younger kids, which are also safe and non-toxic. For kids of all ages, Earth Hero has an awesome selection of “green” art supplies. A sustainable approach helps ensure a healthier environment for artists and the planet.

Seek sustainably healthy lunches & snacks

Kids need to be well nourished to ensure they have the energy to make it comfortably through the school day−physically, mentally and emotionally. Sending healthy goodies along works well, since kids often have little time to eat, and even less if they must stand in lunch lines.

Protein-rich, concentrated munchies tend to be easier to consume than larger meals when break time is short. Ensuring that your kids have tasty, filling “small bites” to nibble as time permits helps keep blood sugar levels balanced so little ones can run long and strong. Packing wholesome fare also saves you money and allows you to control the nutritional content.

If you find that, like many busy parents, you lack the time to prepare lunches from scratch each morning, stocking up easy-packing, nutritionally positive options that kids will enjoy eating is a winning scenario. Think in terms of components, opting for a balanced array of tempting items, plus a healthy drink along with water. This fun New Wave Enviro Alkaline Refillable Water Bottle can help renew enthusiasm for daily hydrating. As for healthy choices kids will dig, share this list and see what appeals to them:

Protein-rich meal & snack bars:

• Larabar Gluten Free Fruit & Nut Bar in many cool flavors, including: Peanut Butter Cookie, Banana Bread, Blueberry Muffin, Cashew Cookie, Cherry Pie, Orange Sorbet, Chocolate Raspberry Truffle, Chocolate Chip Brownie, Coconut Cream Pie, Lemon Bar, Peanut Butter & Jelly, Mint Chip Brownie, Pecan Pie, and more.
• NuGo Nutrition To Go Bars in Vanilla Yogurt, Chocolate Banana, Coffee, Peanut Butter Chocolate, Orange Smoothie, and more.
• Health Warrior Chia Bars Mixed Berry with Acai
• That’s It Fruit Bar on Apples & Pineapples, Apples & Cherries, or Apples & Mango
• Plum Organics Jammy Sammy Snack Bars Blueberry + Oatmeal
• Pamela’s Products Whenever Bars in Cranberry Almond, Raisin Walnut Spice, or Chocolate Chip Coconut.

Savory nibbles:

• Biena Roasted Chickpea Snacks in Rockin’ Ranch, Barbecue, Honey Roasted, Habanero, Sea Salt, and Lil Bit of Everything
• SunButter Sunflower Butter On the Go Cups Creamy
• Brami Snacking Lupini Beans Chili & Lime
• GimMe Organic Premium Roasted Seaweed Snacks Sea Salt
• Seapoint Farms Dry Roasted Edamame in Sea Salt or Spicy Wasabi
• Unisoy Vegan Jerky in Hot ‘n Spicy, Cracked Pepper, or Smoky Chipotle.
• Mighty Lil Lentils in Pink Himalayan Sea Salt
• Pirate’s Booty Aged White Cheddar Rice Corn and Puffs

Cool crackers:

• Annie’s Organic Cheddar Bunnies Baked Snack Crackers Cheddar
• Simple Mills Seed & Nut Flour Sweet Thins Snack Pack Honey Cinnamon
• Better with Buckwheat Gluten-Free Crackers
• Back To Nature Cheddalicious Crackers Cheese

Dried fruit, nuts & seeds:

• Wholesome Medley Nuts & Fruit Mix
• SkinnyDipped Almonds Lemon Bliss
• SunFood Raw Organic Whole Cashews
• Simple Truth Roasted & Salted Almonds
• Shiloh Farms Organic Bing Cherries
• Simple Truth Freeze-Dried Apples Cinnamon
• Simple Truth Freeze Dried Mixed Fruit & Strawberries and Bananas Variety Pack
• Solely Organic Fruit Jerky in Mango or Pineapple
• Natierra Organic Freeze Dried Mangos

Good-for-you beverages:

• Orgain Organic Kids Vegan Nutritional Shake – 23 Vitamins & Minerals in Chocolate and Vanilla
• Simple Truth Kids Juice Boxes in Apple Carrot, Raspberry Spinach, and Strawberry Kale
• GoodPop Sparkling Juice No Added Sugar in Orange or Lemon-Lime
• Almond Breeze Chocolate Milk– 4 Pack

Healthy sweet treats:

• Simple Truth Organic Smoothie Melts
• Absolutely Gluten Free Raw Coconut Chews with Chocolate and Cocoa Nibs
• The GFB Gluten Free Bites in Dark Chocolate Coconut, Coconut Cashew Crunch, Chocolate Cherry Almond, and more.
• YumEarth Non-GMO Organic Vitamin C Pops

As you can see, your options abound if you are committed to maintaining a small carbon footprint with back-to-school purchases. This approach usually works best when kids can make their own selections, from shoes and apparel to lunch/snack options.

We can collectively create a healthy, green, sustainable future for generations to come, so let’s do it!