It’s that time of the year again when students great and small start preparing for the ensuing traditional fall semester. Though most classes resume in August and dismiss in December, here’s some helpful hints that you can kick off in class and carry for a lifetime.
    When it comes to school supplies, you can’t beat the three ‘R’ approach in making your purchases – recycle, reduce and reuse. If you’re at that level of academia where you have to purchase your own books, try to purchase reused books, either at your on-campus bookstore or an on-line alternative. Always try to by non-toxic pens, pencils and markers, and there’s no shortage of paper, folders, binders and pads made out of recycled materials. If you’re totally tech’d out in academia, be sure to check out flash drives made out of recycled materials, and instead of buying a new computer every year, have a tech look into how to upgrade your current machine.
    For some students, part of going to school is looking and feeling cool. Nowadays, there’s ways to satisfy both of those stigma and do something cool in the process. If you’re into having some new threads, try to buy clothes made from organic cotton and other renewable resources. Thrift store clothes are all the rage and more often than not can be more comfortable and durable than the crap sold at Old Eagle & Fitch or whatever it’s called. You can dress head to toe cheaper than you can for the price of one shirt that says The North Face.
    Other fascinating fashion trends affecting students have to do with post-purchase positive ploys. For every pair of Tom’s Shoes purchased by a consumer, another pair of equal quality and cost is shipped to a child in need. Burlington Coat Factory offers a similar incentive with the purchase of one coat and giving another to a child in need, and though it’s not quite coat season, there’s nothing worse than not being able to keep warm in those bitterly cold months.
    Of course to attend school you have to get there. It’s obvious that walking or riding a bicycle is the most efficient, healthy and carbon-free way to get there, but if you’re just too far from academia try to hop the school bus, carpool or look into other means of public transit. Never, ever rely on your parent or guardian to pick you up and drop you off every day. And if you’re on foot or cycling, be sure to adhere to the rules of the road and use the safest, best-lit routes possible.
    And last, but not least, use your brain when it comes to feeding yourself. Use lead and BPA-free containers as often as possible, and reuse those brown bags and plastic baggies as much as possible. Your food choices themselves should lean more towards whole, natural and organic selections, which means you’d often be better off bringing your own lunch. Not all schools serve a bad lunch, but not all schools serve agreeable lunches, either.
    So your first homework assignment is to research cool, conscious stuff for any student in your life at www.greenschools.net, www.greenkids.com, www.toms.com and www.karmaloop.com for starters. Then reference our “Green Office” story on page 93 of this issue of this eco-conscious, cool alt-monthly.