Back to School

Create Car-Pool Rules for Your Neighborhood Car-Pool

In a previous post we looked at how to start organizing a car-pool. If you are organizing a car-pool, your group will need some rules. Car-pool rules are easier to implement right from the start – if you just skip merrily along, making up rules as you go, your car-pool won’t be as useful or [...]

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Organize a school car-pool in your neighborhood

According to Safe Routes to School, “In 1969, approximately 50% of children walked or bicycled to school, with approximately 87% of children living within one mile of school walking or bicycling. Today, fewer than 15% of schoolchildren walk or bicycle to school.” Not only does this promote a country full of overweight, inactive kids, but nowadays, [...]

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ABC’s of Back-to-School – How to Go Green to Kick off the School Year

The good folks at Uncommon Goods just sent me an email about a killer back-to-school post they’ve got going on – Environmental ABC’s: 26 Ways to Go Back to School Green. I love ABC posts (those suckers take some major dedication), and this one is packed with excellent green back-to-school tips. Below are three of my [...]

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CLIF Kid partners with Safe Routes to School to encourage kids to get moving and reduce carbon

Hey all. It’s been chaos around here. My roommate fractured both his heels, leaving him wheelchair bound and unable to drive for a minimum of three weeks – in our very not wheelchair minded home. Thus, I’ve been way busier than normal. That said, since school is kicking off soon, I did want to stop [...]

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How much have school lunches improved over the last two years?

It’s been a while since I wrote The Massive Disgusting School Lunch Issue. Some folks hate that post. I’ve gotten emails claiming I’m out to get schools and that most schools DO serve quality food to kids. So, I figured it’s time to update the stats. I wrote the post linked above back in August of [...]

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2012 eco-friendly back to school guide

Get ready for the best, greenest school year yet, with eco-school tips galore. From back-to-school basics, to waste-free lunch ideas, to greener homeschooling and more! Green your school What is a green school? Green School Audit: School Cafeteria Green School Audit: Eco-Friendly School Grounds Green School Audit: School Waste Reduction School supplies Eco-Friendly Backpacks Gear [...]

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New & Somewhat Healthier USDA School Lunch Guidelines

Supposedly, school lunches are going to be getting a healthy makeover. At least, that’s the rumor circulating around first lady Michelle Obama and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. Also rumored is that the first lady is running into some problems because last year congress blocked the Agriculture Department from making healthy changes such as limiting french [...]

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Are you following green back-to-school basics?

Can you believe school started? Summer flew by. Actually I’m more shocked that all this Halloween stuff is popping up already, but that’s another story… Since school is in full kick-off mode, and your family is getting good and settled in, make sure you’re keeping it green and happy with the following green school tips. [...]

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Green Product Review: PlanetBox Complete Reusable Lunch Kit

Review summary: Bento box or laptop style lunches for waste-free lunches are popular, but used to freak me out a bit, because I worried about spills. However, when Cedar and I got the chance to review PlanetBox last year we found out that overall PlanetBox is a handy and fun way to pack a waste-free [...]

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Eco-friendly & reusable insulated lunch bags for kids

There are many reasons to pack a homemade lunch for your child. School lunches have been found time and time again to be heavy on packaging waste and not very healthy besides. However, with the news that most home packed lunches are packed incorrectly, you do need to pack your child’s waste-free lunch safely. And [...]