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It is so cool to be green…and I do not mean envious.
My generation of young people have grasped onto the green movement, slapped on sustainable t-shirts, made rally posters on recycled paper and rode our bikes to work yelling at all of the smog producing, gas guzzling drivers. Well, we aren’t all this proud, but being eco-friendly and aware of the environemnt has been a great shift for new generations.
I debated writing this post (shout out to NatureMoms who inspired me to do it), because many of your youngens probably know more about being green than you with all of the new school initiatives and pro-earth Facebook groups (I am a member of like 15!). My freshman dorm was super pro-environment and had benches made out of used seat-belts, giant cisterns to collect rainwater to water the plants outside, solar panels, and I constantly had to battle with the timer light in the bathrooms (you had to take your shower in under 5 minutes or the lights shut off).
So, here are some other ways to encourage your kids to be mindful of the wonderful earth god has given us.
1. Buy ebooks or go to the library
Encourage your kids to use ebook readers (there are cheaper ones than the Kindle, although I am dying to get it) and have them start reading ebooks instead of buying a bunch of books they will grow out of anyway, or have them use the library or a book sharing program–these are great!
2. Recycle used cell phones and all electronics
Kids go through electronics so fast, make sure they realize they can recycle all of these, especially the batteries!
3. Recycle ink cartridges
I get all of my ink cartridges re-filled at Office Max which saves money and produces less waste
4. Change Bathroom Etiquette
Turn off the water while brushing, have a little night, light so you do not have to turn on the big light when you go pee at night and “if it’s yellow leave it mellow, if its brown flush it down.”
5. Start a Compost
If you have young boys, they could really like this messy weekend project.
6. Get them in the habit of turning off the light…
…and unplugging the TV, and turning off the computer. Get them in this habit and they will keep it for life and it saves soooo much energy!
7. Do It Yourself!
You have to also do these things, lead by example. I always complained so much when my dad made me trudge back upstairs to turn off the hallway light, but then when I got to college, I would yell at my roommate when she did it (frightening actually how similar we sound).
8. Make Lunch Better
Well, please please please make your own lunch, it is so much healthier than cafeteria food and we all know what a health nut I am, but also the amount of disposable trays and plates–awful. Get a lunch box instead of a paper bag and use tupperwear and washable plastic silverware– not ziplocs and foil!
Just talking to them about this can be really really helpful, lets work together to be more aware of what we are consuming
Vanessa
This post is sponsored by our friends at Respect RX.
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3 responses so far ↓
1 Sunday Reading // Apr 13, 2008 at 11:07 am
[...] I recently threw out all of our old cleaning supplies and bought green supplies. And I’ve begun to buy organic foods. Now I have seven ways to help my kids be more green. [...]
2 Tricia // Apr 13, 2008 at 3:43 pm
Green is becoming a way of life. So teaching our teens to become green is a great idea.
Our children learn from watching us.
3 Carnival of the Green #123 | Natural Family Living Blog // Apr 14, 2008 at 7:54 am
[...] is one of my readers and she recently shared with me a post she wrote outlining 7 Ways To Help Your Kids Be More Green. She has some good [...]
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