What: The 2010 Back to School Guide to PVC-Free School Supplies by The Center for Health, Environment and Justice (CHEJ)

Features: Lists of the most common back-to-school supplies made out of toxic PVC and safer PVC-free product alternatives in over 20 product categories.

Green Factor: Many children’s school supplies, such as lunchboxes, backpacks and binders, are made out of PVC—a toxic plastic that is dangerous to our health and the environment. The CHEJ guide, in PDF format, helps you avoid it.

Bonus: Comes in regular and wallet-sized versions.

Find It Here:  CHEJ

These days, so many people I know go to the bookstore when they want to read something new. Going to the library doesn’t even occur to them.

How has this happened? I really don’t know. But it’s just another branch of consumerism, and all those books that we read just once become clutter in our lives, collecting dust on shelves in our homes. And then we need bigger and bigger homes to store all those books that we hardly read anyway, because we’re all too busy earning the money to pay for the books that we hardly even bothered to read more than once.

The logic is twisted.

So go get a public library card—when a new book comes out that you want to read, check the online library catalogs before rushing to the bookstore for your own personal copy. You’ll save a huge amount of money over the years.

And while you’re at it, why not take along those books you don’t plan to read again and donate them to the library or a thrift shop so others can read them as well!

Author Leanne Veitch is a mother of two living on an organic farm in New Zealand. She writes about activism, simple living know-how and her experiences on the farm at her blog, Cluttercut

The Certified Humane Raised & Handled® program is the only farm animal welfare and food labeling program in the U.S. dedicated to improving the welfare of farm animals in food production and include all stages of the animal’s life including handling and slaughter. What do the standards require? Read the rest of this entry »

There was a part of me that was afraid to read this book.

I totally wanted to read it, but I was nervous because I knew that I’d probably read things that would freak me out. I was right—much of the facts and statistics in it are disturbing—but Slow Death by Rubber Duck is a highly interesting and informative read. In it, Rick Smith and Bruce Lourie, two of Canada’s top environmentalists, target a handful of common toxic substances and detail the effects on both their own health and the environment. Read the rest of this entry »

What: Best Buy’s electronic recycling program

Features: Did you know that Best Buy will take pretty much any electronic item off of your hands for recycling? From cell phones and video game consoles to big screen TVs, Best Buy will accept it. The web site offers program variations for each state, as well as information on how to dispose of the few items the program doesn’t accept. All US stores, (and stores in Puerto Rico, too!) run the program.

Green Factor:  Last year, Best Buy repaired, refurbished or recycled over 60 million pounds of old electronics. Recycling electronics helps keep toxic waste out of our landfills and water supply.

Bonus: Best Buy has several recycling programs in place as well as an informative FAQ page on their electronics recycling program. Check their web site for information,

Find It Here: Best Buy

When you think of air pollution, chances are you’re thinking of the air outside—but have you ever considered the air pollution inside your own home?

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that the air indoors can be two to five times more polluted than the air outside. That’s a pretty sobering statistic because indoor air pollution is linked to a host of health issues including but not limited to headaches, dry eyes, nasal congestion, nausea, fatigue and allergic reactions, as well as diseases such as asthma, chronic bronchitis and cancer.  Studies have shown that infants, children and the elderly are the most susceptible to air pollutants.

Indoor air quality is compromised, primarily, by particles and gases. Most homes have many potential sources of air pollution such as: Read the rest of this entry »

What: BorrowMe

Features: BorrowMe lets you borrow, lend or rent anything from anybody in your area. Make the most out of what you’ve got, whether you’re looking to buy, sell, rent or lend. Joining is easy; create a quick profile and you’re ready to go!

Green Factor: The benefits are obvious! Not only is recycling and re-circulating the stuff we don’t want cheaper, it reduces consumption. And less consumption = less waste

Bonus: This site’s got something for everyone, with emphasis put on the Frugal Folks, Young Moms and Students communities

Find It Here: BorrowMe.com

Also Check Out: Manny & Simon Wheelie Toy giveaway (ends April 14)

What: Climate Counts web site

Features: Keep tabs on your favorite companies and their efforts to address climate change with Climate Counts, a web site that scores their impact on the environment. Check the scorecard for a ranking of a company’s grade and the ways they’re reducing their carbon footprint (Kraft Foods, for example, is up 19 points from last year and is listed as ‘Striding’ toward their environmental goals. Sara Lee, on the other hand, is ‘Stuck’, meaning they have yet to take meaningful action on climate change)

Green Factor: The goal is clear (and green): to encourage awareness among consumers, and, in turn, within the companies themselves

Bonus: The site is full of information. Sign up for their newsletter, watch videos, contact companies directly, download a helpful iPhone app and more!

Find It Here: Climate Counts

You probably don’t think much about your old t-shirts once they’ve outlived their usefulness as, well, shirts. I know mine generally go to charity and if they’re not even fit for that, I’ve thrown them away. I know. *shameface* But I was recently introduced to to this awesome resource at Hide Your Arms where they have compiled a frillion different ways you can re-fashion and recycle old t-shirts. Seriously, you can make rugs, quilts, tote bags, pet clothes, yoga pants, cloth diapers, wrist warmers, halter tops, toddler dresses and SO MUCH MORE. I challenge you to NOT find something cool to do with your old tees. Now go…get busy. Gift-giving season is right around the corner.

Find it Here: Hide Your Arms

Ever hear of carpet tiles? How about green carpet tiles? Simply Green’s carpet tile is a great alternative to regular carpeting because each tile is made from recycled, renewable and environmentally friendly materials.

Quite honestly, there’s a whole whack of reasons why carpet tile is worth checking out, but in the interest of brevity, I’ll touch on a few of the ones I thought were the coolest. For one, Simply Green uses domestically grown soybeans to replace 90% of the petroleum based polymers that are found in polyurethane carpet backings. Celceram, a highly-refined material recovered via coal combustion, is used for the tiles’ backing, adding to their durability. The tiles are built to last and easy to clean, and compared to regular carpet, are less likely to absorb moisture by over 80%. Simply Green’s tiles have 30% less petroleum than standard carpet made with nylon, which I think is fantastic—the less reliant we are on foreign energy, the better.

If all of the above doesn’t make you think twice about installing regular carpeting again, consider this: carpet tiles are far easier to install than wall-to-wall. With all of the work that goes in to laying standard carpeting, lifting the tiles out of the box and putting them on the floor is a breeze by comparison. And with less work comes less waste—this method will reduce the amount of waste that a typical carpet install would generate by up to 20%. Plus? You can mix and match tiles to make your own patterns—can’t do that with conventional carpet! Simply Green carpet tiles are, quite simply, a smart alternative from a forward-thinking company.

Find It Here: Simply Green

On Our Blog: Food Inc: The Truth About What We Eat

Minimal Mercury Marinated Tuna by Small Footprint Family — Like tuna but hate those pesky high mercury levels? Dawn highlights some sources for tuna with much lower levels of mercury and as a bonus, shares a recipe.

Will Your Kid Be Carrying a Pesticide (Triclosan) in His School Supplies? by The Smart Mama — Jennifer illuminates an issue that has been chapping my proverbial butt for a while now… Microban is in/on lunch boxes as well as a ton of other school-related items and it’s not good stuff.

Color My Driveway: Cornstarch Sidewalk Paint by Pink and Green Mama — This homemade sidewalk paint, made with ingredients you can probably already find in your own kitchen, is so cool that I wish I’d thought of it first.

Do I Make You Uncomfortable? by Heather’s Homemaking — Do you ever wonder if your commitment to the environment makes your less-green friends uncomfortable?

How to Clean a Toilet by Oooh Baby Green Living and Parenting — J. Claire teaches you how to clean your toilet the green way.

Cleaning Out Plato’s Reusable Closet with a Stylish Texas Teen by Greenopolis — Consignment stores can help fatten up a teen’s wardrobe at a fraction of mall prices. And? It’s much greener than buying new.

On Our Blog:  Back to School at the Thrift Store

I know there may be a little eyerolling because Nike is this ginormous planetwide corporation and often times, those are not known for their eco-friendly practices but in this instance, Nike deserves props for their Reuse-a-Shoe recycling program.

What they do is collect old, unwanted athletic shoes (any brand) and grind them up to make surfaces for basketball courts, tracks, fields and playground surfaces for peeps all around the world. It’s a heck of a lot better than paving everything with nasty asphalt and certainly makes playgrounds safer for kids.

Additionally, reusing old athletic shoes decreases the need for virgin rubber and other materials which also decreases the environmental impact of using new materials. Since 1990, Nike has collected and re-purposed 23 million pair of shoes!

You can get involved by a) finding a recycling center and dropping your old shoes off (see map)  b) mailing them if you must (not as green) or c) setting up a recycling program in your community. Read here about how one mom, Lena, set up a shoe recycling program at her child’s school.

So yeah, gather up all those tired old shoes that are too stinky for Goodwill, too gnarly for consignment and give them Nike so they can give kids better places to play.