What: Dandelion Organic Teething Blanket

Features: The bear on this blanket has knotted appendages and wiggly ears for infants to touch, feel and teethe on; the soft material makes it the perfect bedtime companion (or anytime lovey!)

Green Factor: Made with the good stuff (100% certified organic cotton and natural dyes), not the bad stuff (pesticides and chemicals). Packaged in recycled materials.

Bonus: Baby Green Sprout only chooses products from companies that employ fair-trade and sweatshop-free standards.

Find It Here: Baby Green Sprout

Made by women at a co-operative in New Delhi, these cell phone cases are fashioned out of antique saris that would normally be burned for their gold and silver. Each beautiful case is intricately detailed and completely unique. They’re equipped with a strap that can be hooked on to your purse, backpack or belt for safe keeping and are traded fairly from India. Choose from three colors – green, brown and turquoise.

Buying one of these cell phone cases is something you can feel good about. The women who create them earn the money they desperately need to raise their families and The Rainforest Site will preserve 1145.0 sq. ft. of land for each one purchased. So for just $16, you’re not only getting a one-of-a-kind case for your cell phone, you’re saving the lungs of our planet and putting gorgeous antique saris to good use.

Find It Here: The Rainforest Site Store

Here in our household, we’re gearing up for back to school. My kids hit the hallowed halls this week and I’ll be back to packing lunches and blowing my children curb side kisses within a few days. My kids are excited for school to start and I’m looking forward to the year that’s awaiting them, but with one exception: the fundraising.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m all for raising money for the school, but over the last couple of years I’ve often wished there was a fundraising campaign out there for schools that was a bit greener. I mean, I want to raise money for my kids’ as much as the next mom, but does it have to be by selling plastic bags or wrapping paper?

Enter Koru, a fundraising platform that not only benefits schools and their communities, but the environment as well. Koru offers natural, organic products that are fair trade and non-toxic. Their goal? To lead by example to inspire the leaders of tomorrow. Seventy-five per cent of Koru’s products – which range from bracelets and cosmetics to spices, household items and pet toys – are $10 or less, and all of them are green. They’re original items, too – you won’t find boxes of chocolate bars or packs of Christmas cards in Koru’s catalogue. What you will find, though, are unique products that you can actually USE. And that? Is reason enough to suggest greener fundraising with companies like Koru at your next PTA meeting.

Find It Here: Koru Fundraising

More:  EcoLabel Fundraising, Ecobags Fundraising

When I buy Basmati rice, I get it in the big, ten-pound bags that are outfitted with handles, a zippered top and a colourful, festive elephant on the front. When I get home, I dump the rice in a reusable container and save the bag – they’re sturdy and durable, and they’re great for lugging groceries around in.

With that in mind, I love the thinking behind these factory-reject rice bags that have been re-fashioned into fun and funky laptop bags! The Child Health Site has seen the potential these awesome bags have to offer and have come up with a great way to stop the duds from winding up in a landfill somewhere. Why carry your computer around in a dull black bag like everyone else when you can have a bag that’s not only unique and stylish but recycled, as well?

Each bag is hand-held and has two zippered compartments and compared to other options that I’ve seen elsewhere, are reasonably priced at $22.95. They’re made and fairly traded in Thailand, and not only that—with each purchase, The Child Health Site donates 20 cents to The Bamboo Watch Ring, an organization that benefits children who are infected or affected by the HIV virus.

Find It Here: The Child Health Site

When I got an email from the peeps at Imagine Childhood asking that I take a look at their site, I clicked over and instantly fell in love—like “WHERE have you been all my life”? love. Why? Because their site reminds me of my childhood, of being outdoors, of exploring and learning and playing and life’s simpler pleasures. If you haven’t yet heard about nature deficit disorder, you soon will. It’s a hot topic and one that plagues my mind when I think about my own children’s distinct lack of free time spent outdoors (mostly for reasons beyond my control). Imagine Childhood may not be able to fix nature deficit disorder but damn if it isn’t a great place to start trying because they carry so many things that are geared toward free, imaginative, explorational and outdoor play. And the books they carry? Pure awesomeness. I urge anyone with kids to hop over there and take a gander and also note that Imagine Childhood is not just a storefront. It’s also an inspiring blog totally worth bookmarking.

Find It Here: Imagine Childhood

Win It: We’ve partnered with Imagine Childhood to give away a super cool Nature Study Kit and the amazing book I Love Dirt. Click here to fill out our simple entry form. Just enter IC6 as the giveaway name and provide the answer to this question: What are one of the five questions the folks at Imagine Childhood ask themselves when choosing new products? Enter by 6/22/09. $50 value. Open to residents of US. Winner will be notified by email. Contest closed. Congrats to Steven!

Some of my favorite times with the kids are the lazy days when we just stay in, relax and hang-out playing together. And on those days, I’m all about wearing comfortable clothing, which for me, means nothing with buttons, zippers, etc. That’s why I am now in love with a new shop - Rattled - that specializes in simple, mix-and-match children’s pieces in a variety of colors. Made of 100% organic cotton under fair-wage practices, these pieces are ultra soft and totally lounge-worthy. Choose from hats, pants, onesies and tees (short and long-sleeved). Perfect for layering on colder days…or lounging and cuddling on any day.

Find it Here: Rattled

Win It! Win a Short sleeve onesie and hat of winner’s size and color choice, courtesy of Rattled! Click here to fill out our simple entry form. Just enter SR43 as the giveaway name and provide the answer to this question: How does Rattled give back to the community? Open to US residents only. Enter by 1/19/09. $32 value. Contest closed. Congrats, Christina G.!

Stumped about what to stick in that cheery holiday sock (assuming coal is not an option)? Then Glee Gum just might be the green alternative you need to reward all the sweet-toothed members of your family—from the young to the young-at-heart on your “nice” list. According to the folks who make Glee Gum, not only is their gum gluten-free and vegetarian, but the chewy goodies (emphasis on good) provide employment to chicleros in Mexico and Central America who sustainably harvest the natural gum base, or chicle, to help create Glee Gum products. I was also delighted to learn that this gum contains no artificial preservatives or sweeteners such as aspartame or saccharin. You can choose from traditional flavors including peppermint and spearmint or try tangerine or triple berry. If your children are older than mine, you might also love Glee’s three “Make Your Own” kits, which allow you to cook up a lesson on teamwork, math, and chemistry, with a dash of rainforest ecology-nomics, all while testing tasty recipes for chocolate, gummies, or chewing gum! Mmmm…it’s educational and tasty!

Find It Here: Glee Gum

Who said being un-wasteful means being un-cool? Personally, we think the coolest lunch containers are not made of plastic. Take these fair wage/fair labor cotton lunch sacks from Print Pattern Paper. They come in a number of original prints, including some very cool robot designs for kids. Today we’re giving away a Print Pattern Lunch sack AND  a coordinating 100% organic cotton napkin, a reusable disposable 7″ Bambu brand bamboo plate, and a reusable bamboo fork, knife and spoon utensil set!

Win It! Click here to fill out our simple entry form. Just enter “PP66” as the giveaway name and provide the answer to this question: What is your favorite lunch sack design? Open to US residents only. Enter by 12/16/08. $30 value. Contest closed. Congrats, Lisa W.!

This Halloween, think green. Naturally, that means monster skin, toads — and chocolate. Chocolate! How can chocolate possibly be green, you ask? It’s easy with Sweet Earth Organic Chocolates. The chocolates crafted by this California company are 100% organic and fair trade. Sweet Earth offers everything from wedding favors to green gifts and Halloween-themed candies, including their 65% chocolate, which is also vegan and lecithin-free and are available in “Very Scary Halloween Chocolate” (the skull variety, of course) which sounds wicked good. I can’t wait to tickle my sweet tooth with these boooo-tiful chocolates!

Find It Here: Sweet Earth Organic Chocolates

Try as I might to avoid battery-operated toys, we still have several of them in our home. Not surprisingly, most of these toys don’t work because I’m notoriously bad at replacing batteries — hence, my love for anything not battery-operated. Plus (and I think this goes without saying) batteries are pretty ungreen and thus when we highlight toys on The Green Mom Review, you’ll pretty much  never see “batteries required” on the packaging. Take these finger puppets available from Best Baby Organics. If you’ve got fingers and an imagination, you’re ready to play! Now, that’s my kind of toy! Hand-knitted by Peruvian Artisans in the Andes Mountains, these fair-trade finger puppets come in over 90 different animal and characters including jungle, farm, domestic, exotic, ocean animals, insects, cartoons and more! You can designate which five puppets you’d like or let Best Baby Organics pick for you and be surprised.

Find It Here: Best Baby Organics

Win It! We’re giving away a $25 gift certificate to Best Baby Organics! Click here to fill out our simple entry form. Just enter “BB65” as the giveaway name and provide the answer to this question: What is your favorite eco-product available from Best Baby Organics? All readers eligible. Enter by 10/6/08. Contest Closed. Congrats, Susan!

If you have school-aged kids, then you’ve probably already experienced the joy of THE FUNDRAISER. Wrapping paper, books, candy, cookie dough and holiday cards are just a few of the typical items sold via school fundraisers and while the money is generally for a good cause (what school doesn’t need more money???) wouldn’t it be awesome if the products sold were organic, fair trade and sustainably-produced so as to help the school and do good in the world? Of course it would and that’s why we’re so psyched about Equal Exchange’s school fundraising program. Their eco-friendly program offers coffee, tea, powdered cocoa, hot chocolate, chocolate bars, nuts, dried fruit and more and all fundraising materials are printed on 100% post-consumer waste paper. Equal Exchange is a win-win for schools, farmers and the planet. Who could say no to that?!

Find It Here: Equal Exchange

Since 1988 Global Exchange, has taken a stand against exploitive, corporate-based retail and raised awareness about fair-trade activism, as well as environmental, political and social justice. Through their brick and mortar stores, Global Exchange has proven that purchasing from companies that produce fairly traded food and crafts items can be profitable. These same products are now available through their fair-trade online store. By remaining steadfast to their pledge of operating according to socially conscious fair-trade criteria, Global Exchange offers a wide selection of sweatshop free products and staples such as coffee, tea and chocolate can be delivered to your door, as well as various gift baskets, jewelry, books, crafts and clothing. Chocolate? Fair trade? Delivered? YES!!!

Find It Here: Global Exchange