Today more than ever, going green is incredibly important. I used to laugh at school, when they would show us the movies with people in “baked potato costumes” walking around, not being able to be outside without that costume. The idea of our world reaching a point where fresh air, clean water, and a safe environment were no longer available seemed far-fetched to me. Fortunately, our children today do not see that future as something made up. Children everywhere are becoming more environmentally conscious and trying to find ways to protect Mother Earth.
As parents, we must encourage this by example and opportunity. Here are ways you can help your child/children go green! Recycling! Yes, recycling is one of the best ways to help save the environment and it’s free. A plastic bag takes 100 years to decompose. Think about how many plastic bags enter your house in a week. Recycle these bags by keeping a stash in your car, so you can bring your own bags to the store while you shop. Have your children collect the bags from home to recycle them; whoever gets the most gets a prize.
Teach your children to conserve water. Instead of running the water the whole time you brush your teeth, wet the toothbrush, turn off the water, turn on to rinse, then turn off. Encourage them to take quicker showers or baths. Did you know that the amount of water an adult would use in a three-minute shower is more water than most people in Africa have to use for all their daily activities? If your children do the dishes, have them fill one sink with hot soapy water and the other with clean rinsing water. They can be towel dried or allowed to drip dry. Avoid using paper towels, use kitchen towels.
Water bottles are another big concern. If you don’t like the taste of your tap water, invest in a filter to make the water taste better and have your kids refill the bottles you have instead of throwing them away.
Their toys encourage them to share them with friends instead of throwing them away. My daughter and her friends take one day a week to get together and trade toys. At first we were upset about this, but then we realized that each child was being given a new toy and not thrown away. If other parents of your child’s friends aren’t interested in this idea, have your child pick up the batch of unwanted toys and go to the local homeless shelter, or talk to your doctor’s office to find out. donate them to the game room.
Talk to your child about ways they can go green at their school, and ask them to come forward with you to help go green at school, too. Go Green schools save an average of two million pounds of paper and 14,000 pounds of cardboard or 24,792 trees. Forty-eight thousand three hundred pounds of plastic beverage containers, 8,700 printer cartridges, and 13,648 pounds of food waste. This is just to name a few things a green school can save.
No child is too young or too old to start going green. You can help them make a difference. It doesn’t even have to cost you a dime. Involve; Help your children protect our planet. Thank you.
