You can have a green school start too!

Recently, I started wondering how to have a greener, more environmentally conscious start to the school year. I looked into things and I'll share what I came up with, plus I look forward to hearing your tips!

Save a lot of money right at the beginning – don't be tempted!

The list of school supplies is long, but it's worth taking a good look at it, since a lot of things are in your drawers at home, so there's no need to purchase them again: things like coloured pencils, graphite pencils, paints, brushes etc.

I have to admit that it's a huge temptation, but if you always buy new supplies, you'll just add to all the mess at home – (and yes, you only need 1 eraser, you don't need a 6 pack).

For future first form parents: it's important to make your purchases based on the supplies list provided by the school, since this way you can be sure you're not buying anything unnecessary!

If you must go supply shopping, look for recyclable, reusable products. Particularly in the case of supplies for little children, make sure they contain no harmful materials or toxic ingredients.

Paints should be water-based, glues should be solvent-free and pencils should have no lacquer!

Quality extends to everything: if it's more expensive, it will last longer, so it's worth the extra investment; it will allow children to use the supplies better and for a longer period of time. The range of world brands usually include environmentally friendly products.

School bags can pose the greatest challenge, but be as convincing as you can and unless last year's bag is useless, don't buy a new one!

In the case of primary schoolers, there's no need to insist on long-term items with cartoon characters, since whatever your daughter/son loves wearing in the first form might not be so desirable the following year!

And one more thing necessary for a green school start: a lunch box and a bottle or flask suitable for everyday use. This way, there's no need to wrap sandwiches in aluminum foil or plastic wrap and in fact, you could include a small, washable cloth instead of a napkin.

Here's a few more surefire tips:

1. Wrap your children's booklets and books in plain, recycled paper, which can later be personalized with drawings or stickers – no one is going to have a booklet like theirs!
2. Purchase notepads and booklets made of recycled paper!
3. Did you know that there are school supply and textbook swap events? Go and seek such events out close to your home!
4. Borrow whatever you can (for example, books for required reading)
5. Go to school by bike: this way, the trip to school is a shared event and a cheerful experience and you can spend some quality time together, plus you won't be polluting the environment!

What are your ideas?