Back to school supplies are expensive. If you have a child going back to school, you’ve probably received the dreaded laundry list of pens, markers, notebooks and tissues that your student must bring with them. These plastic and paper products waste money, and create an abundance of unnecessary waste. Save money and the environment with these practical earth-friendly back to school supplies.

Papermate makes recycled pencils that are inexpensive ($4.39 for 48 pencils) and made of 100% recycled materials. Even the lead is recycled! Skip the daily brown bag lunch, and send your child to school with a stylish, reusable lunchbox. These lunchboxes are typically pricier, but the rewards to the environment are priceless. Ecojot makes a variety of stylish notebooks made from 100% post-consumer materials, so your little student will be happy to tote around an eco-conscious notebook. There are also a variety of tissue companies that use at least a percentage of post consumer materials when manufacturing their tissues and cardboard boxes. Using supplies that are good for the Earth doesn’t have to be boring. These products create adorable back to school supplies your student will love to carry around this fall.

Global warming and other environmental hazards have everyone looking for ways to minimize their carbon footprint and take better care of the Earth. The inherent creative nature of the human race allows many inventors to discover exciting ways to save the environment. While solar powered cars and wind turbines have made giant leaps in the way of green inventions, here are a few simple and creative green inventions.

For example, many people are taking advantage of naturally renewable bamboo for flooring and other home needs. Inventors are now using bamboo to build many environmentally friendly laptops! Another popular green invention is the bamboo toothbrush that minimizes the use of non-renewable and harmful plastic. There is also a water-powered alarm clock that can run for six to eight weeks on nothing but water and a splash of lemon juice – no joke!  Scientists are even working on a solar powered cell phone! It’s easy to get excited about the environment with these ingenious inventions. If you’re working on improving your personal environmental policies, take example from these inventions, and get creative.

Horizontal Spinning Compost Mixer

Composting reuses food garbage and waste and turns it into rich, natural soil that can be used throughout your garden, in flowerbeds, and in landscaping projects. Composting is a great way to serve the environment as it provides a way to reuse food garbage, and diminishes excess waste. If you’re interested in starting composting efforts, the process is as easy as investing in a garbage pail. Drill holes in the bottom of the garbage pail so that the compost will drain, and be sure to set the compost bin on something (bricks, wood panels, etc). Start your composting bin with some soil on the bottom. Begin sorting your food garbage and placing it into the compost bin, and be sure to rotate the soil with a shovel every week.

Another method of composting involves denying the waste oxygen, by filling a plastic bag with food waste, lawn clippings, etc. Add a little amount of water to help break down the waste. Tie the bag off when full, and let sit while you start another bag. With these two options for easy composting you’ll be creating nutrient rich soil in no time.

Visiting a friend down the street the other day opened my eyes to something I had never thought about before; flies. More specifically was why did they have such a terrible problem with flies and I had seen so few at my house? When I told my hosts that I didn’t have the same issue they were floored! It seems that they have been battling these little pests since late spring and it was only getting worse. It was a mystery and I wanted to see if I could discover what was going on.

My first guess was it was a chemical that our bug company uses so I gave them a call. They were pretty sure that the organic chemical they used would not keep flies away like that so I was searching again. Then I found it; basil! Believe it or not, houseflies hate the smell of basil and avoid it like the plague. We grow tomatoes and I plant basil as a companion plant to keep as many bugs off of the tomatoes as possible because there are a lot of bugs that don’t like the smell either. So now you know, plant basil around your house or keep a potted plant or two in your home to keep the flies away. I just took one over to my neighbor!

With the state of the economy over the past couple of years, we in the construction world have wondered how environmental trends in our industry would fare. If the 2010 National American Institute of Architects Convention is any indication, the LEED trend is increasing exponentially. This year’s convention, held on June 10^th – 12^th in Miami, was a demonstration of the force that continues to propel “green” building and products with LEED requirements in the architectural markets. Most of this movement can be attributed to the inventive nature and cutting edge outlook of the architectural community as many of the exhibited products this year, as in recent years, have more integrated LEED characteristics with little to no increase in costs. I have to admit in the beginning of the LEED movement I never thought it would come to possess so much authority because of our budget oriented industry – I’m glad my initial observations were inaccurate.

It’s also inspiring to see domestic competition in deep-rooted markets. One such product exhibited this year is Formica’s Vivix, a direct competitor to Trespa. Formica will be rolling out Vivix with concealed and exposed fastener systems, both with patents pending. Final testing was to be finished by the end of June so a full roll out of the product by late summer or early fall of 2010 is likely. Vivix has a deep and attractive color pallet and I believe it will prove to be a considerable competitor to other products in the high pressure laminate market.

Gardening is a fun hobby.  It can be an environmentally friendly hobby as well.  It is important to think responsibly about what happens in the garden.

One of the first thoughts about environmentally friendly gardening should be the use of safe fertilizers and pesticides.  Fertilizers should be organic in origin.  Fertilizers should not be produced by big chemical companies.  That is not organic or environmentally correct.  Pesticides should be eliminated from the garden completely.  They are dangerous nerve toxins that harm the environment and the person who applies the pesticide.  They work only in the short term and cause major long term biological damage.

Another thought that should be considered when having an environmentally friendly garden is water usage.  Only 2% of all the water on our planet is fit for drinking.  This is not only due to pollution, but only due to all the oceans.  That salt water is not appropriate for plant life either.  Wise water usage is important to make sure there is enough drinking water for our communities.  Rain barrels are a great way to safe water for plants and conserve water for people to drink.

It is very important that communities plant trees in an effort to beautify public spaces.  Trees are important in many ways.  The most important way trees are important is that they provide oxygen as a byproduct of their respiration.  Without that oxygen the air on Earth is not breathable for human beings.  This seems so simple, yet communities all across the nation clear land for development and never plant back in as many trees as were removed.  Our planet is not habitable without air to breathe.

The second thing trees do is provide homes for birds, insects, and lots of other animals that need shelter.  A large shade tree may be home to more than 20 species of wild animals. This biodiversity is essential for maintaining a healthy balance of life on Earth.

The third thing that trees do for us is provide some climate control.  In the spring when the leaves come out, the trees provide valuable shade from the sun.  The shade keeps us cool and reduces our sun exposure.  On the reverse side of that, during the winter, the trees loose their leaves and allow valuable sunlight and warmth to shine on us during the coldest days of the year.

For those of us that already recycle, we either no the answer to this questions or just assume it’s the right thing to do. What most of us never see is the result of NOT recycling. There are masses of amounts of materials from tin to plastics and even toxic chemicals that lie beneath the earth as well as collecting in our seas that are tucked away so we don’t have to face the facts of what we are doing as a people of the earth to our planet. This is not a United States issue; it is a global issue. However, if each of us does our part then we begin to make a dent in the collection of all this trash that will not decompose.

The other reason is for the recourses that are saved by recycling. If we use recycled paper then it saves trees. If we use recycled plastic it saves petroleum for other uses. And the last reason we need to recycle is for future generations that will already have to figure out what to do with the mass of trash on this planet. The more we can use biodegradable materials the better off those generations will be.

If you had a real tree this year for Christmas, one of the best things you can do for the environment is to recycle your tree. Almost every community has a program these days of some sort where you can “donate” your tree for mulch. Some of the programs are sponsored and carried out by the Parks & Recreation Departments while others are taken care of through the cities Sanitation or Recycle Departments. Go online to your local government website and see if they have such a program.

If not, another place that sometimes takes trees this time of year is your local nurseries, if they are set up to create mulch. You will want to call ahead of time and make sure they can take your tree so you don’t waste a trip or the gas. Next year you may want to think about getting a live tree that you can plant after the holidays so you can “recycle” the tree into your landscaping. It all makes for a wonderful holiday season as well as an environmentally sound one.

So what is a “green” Christmas? While some may go overboard and stop the lights, forget the tree altogether and not shop for presents due to carbon gases, there are some things you can do that are practical to help your Christmas be as green as you can possibly be without giving up all the wonderful traditions of the holidays. You can start off by making sure all your lights are safe LED lighting. Since LED’s take less energy you won’t feel guilty about having lights in and outside your home.

Buy a tree you can use for three of four days and then plant. You can buy these at a local nursery with a nice root ball. Put the tree for about a half a day in the garage or shed to help it come in from the cold. Make sure you have a large pot to both cover the root and hold water because it will need water. Keep it in for not more than five days before getting it ready to go back outside. You can either plant it in the pot or in the ground, if the ground is not frozen where you live. The last tip is to shop online and save gas and those carbon emissions by shipping directly to your family and friends.