Back to school time

I was just chatting with a teacher friend of mine who was getting ready to go back to school. She took great delight in showing me her wrist, where there was no watch tan, where there had been no watch since June.

We were brainstorming for ideas on how to motivate her student council to become a leader in the school community. We talked about the concept – which I think pertains to any group, whether at school, in offices or at home – that true leadership really is about conveying ideas and getting everyone excited to participate in their diverse ways. As a teacher years ago, I used to start my classes with the following proverb, a good reminder for us all.

 When a true leader has finished his or her work, the people say, “Look what we ourselves have done.”

-Chinese proverb (as remembered by me)

 Happy back to school, or return from vacation. Time to strap that watch back on!

Just had to bag it

Writing this blog is really starting to cramp my style.

 While shopping in Chapters yesterday, I spotted a great laptop bag. Everything about it spoke to me – I needed one, it was the right size, I liked the colors and design, and… it was 75% off! A shopping dream.

 Then the wake up call. The label read, “PVC coated”. After all my recent reading and blogging about PVC, I automatically associate the letters PVC with ‘poison plastic’. Now the label read: “poison plastic coated”. “No, no” I wanted to say.

 I walked away and am still wondering, was that really necessary? I’m still considering what Confucius had to say:

A fool despises good counsel, but a wise man takes it to heart.

 

*this isn’t the bag, but it looks like it and it’s also coated in PVC

Refillable Markers for a Retro Back to School Look

Harkening to a bygone era when pens had personality and were considered items of refinement and craftsmanship, refillable pens and markers are making a cool comeback. “It’s not only the retro feel of refilling your markers,” explains Kerry Tuttle, the North American distributor of AusPen eco-friendly markers, “it’s also the green appeal that is captivating a younger generation.”

 In North America alone, teachers throw away over 500 million plastic dry-erase markers per year. Clogging up local landfills, markers made of PVC –the ‘poison plastic’ – find their permanent home. Generation Y is well informed, and they see this as a big waste, a threat to their future, and a lack of creativity.

The future is retro for the teens, twenty and thirty-somethings. While this cohort of consumers loves all things vintage, they are not willing to abandon their eco-mindedness and turn onto polluting products of past years. That’s why products that have retro sentiment but are made of modern materials or technology are making a splash.

Students at high schools and colleges are taking action to bring the non-toxic, refillable, recycled aluminum AusPen dry-erase markers into their classrooms. “They are tapping into their social connections and using social media to create an awareness of this alternative green product,” says Kerry Tuttle. “They are raising money through fundraisers, posting videos on You Tube, and creating action-oriented school clubs to reduce their exposure to toxins found in places like the pink soap in washroom dispensers, the janitor’s cleaning products, and toxic dry-erase markers”.

Savvy researchers and online shoppers as they are, Generation Y consumers search out the retro look they like, then figure out how to get the same look or feel as a product from yesteryear, but with a modern and green cutting edge. The sleek and futuristic look of the AusPen starter kit carrying case, made of 100% recycled polyethylene plastic, is reminiscent of the space age design craze of the 60’s, and the popularity of refillable pens evokes memories of the days of the original refillable fountain pens, like the ‘Parker 45’ in this 1967 ad.

Going green to get back to school or work is a top priority for young consumers. But if this altruistic passion can be combined with a retro look, then treading lighter on the earth has never looked so cool.

Green School Supplies – A Back to School Guide for Students Going Green

Looking for ways to tap into the market of green school supplies rather than tapping natural resources? Back to school shopping can be an opportunity to make the switch from conventional resource-intensive products to modern eco-friendly school supplies, and start the year on the right foot. Turning to some alternative school supplies will steer you away from harmful toxins and wasteful products and help you create a greener, healthier 2010/11 school year.

 Clearly the classroom is the place where the future begins to unfold. What better place than schools to use greener, healthier products and model environmental sustainability? The market is teeming with earth-friendly school and office supplies, guarding the health of students and their teachers. Non-toxic school supplies make a real difference in the quality of the indoor air and the level of toxins that we expose our children to daily. Why not shut the leading polluters – PCVs, BPA, lead and xylene – out of class? A new generation of green school supplies can send them packing.           

Many school supplies are made out of PVC – a plastic that contains chemical additives such as phthalates, lead, cadmium and/or organotins. These chemicals pose a threat to our health and are harmful across its whole lifecycle, from production, to use, to disposal. Also known as the poison plastic, PVC is found in vinyl products like lunchboxes, binders, markers, backpacks and raingear, and may take as many as four centuries to decompose in a landfill. Identify this leaching plastic by its three-arrow recycling symbol with the number 3, or the letters V or PVC.

 Here are some safer alternatives to the common school supplies:

 Binders are often coated in or made with PVC plastic. Try binders that are made of corrugated cardboard, such as the ReBinder, which can be found online through The Green Office. Avery also makes PVC-free binders and can be found at Staples and Target. 

 Lunchbags and wraps that are PVC and lead-free will make lunch go down a little easier. Canvas or organic cotton lunchbags and wraps are a food-safe alternative, and they have the added bonus of eliminating all the waste associated with plastic baggies. Greenfeet.com, Ecobags.com and Reusablebags.com all offer lunch bags and wraps, and Wrap-N-Mat stores your lunch and then opens up to a placemat for a clean eating surface. For a retro look, tin lunch boxes like the ones from Tin Box Company can be found in many retailers and are starting to make a comeback thanks to sightings of celebrity toddlers with tin lunch boxes.

 The stainless steel drinking container is a must, since many reusable water bottles can leach bisphenol A (BPA), a hormone-disrupting chemical, and should be avoided. Thermos sells plastic and steel food jars that are BPA and PVC-free.

 Markers and pens are one of the most commonly discarded items in the classroom. Every year in North America, teachers throw out over 500 million dry-erase markers into their local landfills, where the PVC plastic cylinders will never decompose. In addition, the common chemical solvent in markers is xylene, a harmful neurotoxin which can be associated with headaches, asthma and fuzzy thinking. As a green alternative, try a class set of AusPen eco-friendly dry-erase markers which are not only made from 100% recycled aluminum, but they are also refillable with low-odour, non-toxic ink.

 Art supplies can be a source of toxic material too. Modeling clays such as Fimo and Sculpey should be on the chopping block and replaced by Crayola’s PVC-free air-dry clay or Mary’s Softdough, which has a chemical-free formula. And while the humble crayon appears inoffensive, crayons made from soybean oil, like the ones from Kid Star and Prang, are non-toxic, biodegradable and safe for the environment… and curious mouths.

 As for back to school clothes shopping, certain retailers help take the worry out of our selections by claiming to only carry PVC-free clothes and shoes. H&M, Nike and Asics products contain no PVC, while Jansport and Land’s End backpacks and rain jackets have scrapped the poison plastic.  

 Whether it’s a lead-free lunchbox, xylene-free marker, BPA-free drink container, or PVC-free binders and backpacks, the choice is clear. Choosing non-toxic school supplies pays off in the health of our schools, children and environment. This year, back to school shopping can be a little more reassuring, knowing that green alternatives to toxic school supplies have got our backs.

The Back to School Shopping Guide

Thanks to the Center for Health, Environment & Justice (CHEJ) for including AusPen eco-friendly dry-erase markers in its healthy back to school shopping guide. The guide is full of ideas and products to avoid PVC plastics. Known as the Poison Plastic, PVC finds its way into many of our school supplies such as lunchboxes, backpacks, binders, notebooks, pens and dry-erase markers.

For the 2010 ultimate non-toxic back to school shopping guide, check out:

http://www.chej.org/publications/PVCGuide/2010/PVCFree.pdf?key=42863561

Back to School by the numbers

It’s hard to say exactly what ‘back to school expenses’ are, but some families are claiming waxing, teeth whitening and tattoos as part of their back to school budget. I really don’t remember getting much more than hand-me-downs and the occasional tougher-than-rawhide jeans. Hopefully this year parents and teachers will be taking advantage of the ever-increasing variety of non-toxic and sustainable school supplies on the market, like AusPen non-toxic, refillable dry-erase markers. Here are some random fun facts about hitting the books again:

$550 The amount that the average American family of four plans to spend in back to school shopping this season.

$310 The average Canadian household spending on back to school.

$7.2 billion The amount of money spent at kids clothing stores in the United States last August

$70 The amount that 18% of families plan on spending on teeth whitening, and 9% of families plan on spending on tattoos

$14,915 Average tuition, room and board (for in-state students) at the nation’s four-year public colleges and universities for an entire academic year, more than double the amount from 1990.

$10,262 The national average cost per student in Canadian public schools.
$9,666 The national average cost per student in American public schools.

7.2 million The number of practicing teachers in the United States — from pre-kindergarten to college.

76 million The number of U.S. residents enrolled in schools — from nursery schools to colleges.
1.1 million The number of students who are home-schooled in the U.S., or 2 percent of all school-age students ages 5 to 17.

100% The number of public schools with internet access. In 1995, the proportion was 50 percent.

$83,144 Average annual earnings of U.S. workers age 18 and older with an advanced degree. This compares with $58,613 a year for those with bachelor’s degrees, $31,283 for those with a high school diploma only and $21,023 for those without a high school diploma.

Most stats from: U.S Census Bureau, American Express Spending & Tracking report, and Statistics Canada

We’re better consumers now, right?

Check out this old ad. Did consumers believe it? At the bottom it reads:

How soon is too soon?

Not soon enough. Laboratory tests over the last few years have proven that babies who start drinking soda during that early formative period have a much higher chance of gaining acceptance and “fitting in” during those awkward pre-teen and teen years. So, do yourself a favour. Do your child a favour. Start them on a strict regimen of sodas and other sugary carbonated beverages right now, for a lifetime of guaranteed happiness.

I think today’s equivalent ads are the ones that deceptively link themselves with images of being natural and green. Like when I am convinced to lighten my hair with Herbal Essences and my lips tingle and go numb after a treatment.

In 2002, a corporate watchdog, CorpWatch came up with the Academy Awards for Best Greenwash. Would you like to guess who got top nod? It was none other than BP for their “Beyond Petroleum” rebranding campaign.

Message in a bottle

On my recent vacation through the breath-taking Gulf Islands on the West Coast of British Columbia, a novelty gift caught my eye. It was a message in a bottle kit, complete with wax beads to seal the bottle and keep the message within it dry. What a sweet idea for the children on our trip to send a message in a bottle and forever wonder who may have read their letter!

The nostalgic hand-drawn pictures on the kit showed the bottle floating on the waves. Then, it dawned on me. What a terrible idea!  Images of the Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch, a.k.a., the continent of floating garbage came to mind. Even if this bottle didn’t get sucked into the Pacific vortex of trash, who would possibly notice floating debris, let alone holler with joy, ” Look! A floating bottle. Where could it have come from? What can this mean? Let’s go retrieve it!”

The novelty, as they say, has worn off. 

Even Sting tried to send out a message in a bottle, to send an S.O.S to the world:

Walked out this morning, don’t believe what I saw
Hundred billion bottles washed up on the shore
Seems I’m not alone in being alone
Hundred billion castaways, looking for a home

I’ll send an S.O.S. to the world
I’ll send an S.O.S. to the world
I hope that someone gets my
I hope that someone gets my
I hope that someone gets my
Message in a bottle, yeah

Mad as a Hatter

Johnny Depp is truly mad as a hatter in the latest installment of Alice in Wonderland. My children were (mildly) interested to find out that hatters invariably inhaled vapors from mercury – used to cure animal pelts – given off during the hat making process.

 During Lewis Carroll’s life in England from the mid to late 1800’s, hatters were commonly seen to be disturbed and confused, with distorted vision and befuddled speech. Fitting for an author who, though not exposed to mercury poisoning himself, would become known for creating the genre of literary nonsense.

A low-level, long-term write off

Tip #4: Our final tip in our mini series on How to Reduce Toxic Exposure is (surprise!) switching to non-toxic office and school supplies. AusPen eco-friendly dry-erase markers will clear the office or classroom air of harmful toxins. Xylene, a chemical solvent and neurotoxin found in conventional markers, is polluting indoor air and creating the conditions for headaches, asthma, fuzzy thinking, and memory loss. Scientists are increasingly turning their attention to the health effects of low-level, long-term exposure to harmful chemicals such as xylene. This is certainly the case in any indoor space where a whiteboard is being used.

 We began these How to blogs in search for simple ways in our daily lives to limit the ever-present chemicals we are exposed to. On the grounds of the Precautionary Principle – the need to take action in the midst of uncertainty – and for the sake of a cleaner lifestyle, here is a summary of the 4 best ways to control our everyday toxic exposure. 

EcoSmart’s Top Tips At a Glance: Tip #1: Buy organic when buying ‘Dirty Dozen’ produce; eat more of the ‘Clean 15’ produce Tip #2: Avoid commercial cologne and fragrances that interfere with our hormones and pose other health risks Tip #3: Follow homemade recipes for all types of regular cleaning chores Tip #4: Switch to AusPen non-toxic markers in the office or classroom

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