Going Green! Things You Can Do To Make Your Back-To-School Journey In Malta More Environmentally Friendly
We all remember our student days and the excitement of kitting up for the back-to-school season. There’s nothing really like the spellbinding sound of a new dairy having its spine cracked. Today, we’re rightly very aware of the impact our consumerism is having on the environment, but that doesn’t mean we can’t find great ways to have an exciting kit-up, and keep it green.
Here are some easy tips to make going back to school planet friendly.
1. Use unwanted papers to create a fun notebook
You can bind old papers together with a reused ribbon or string. Decorate and personalize the front page to add some aestheticism to your note-taking.
2. Reuse copybook plastic covers
Unfortunately many classrooms still use these for the sake of organisation, which is somewhat understandable, but you can always reuse last year’s. It doesn’t matter if they look a bit battered and creased, they still serve their purpose. And if you must buy new ones, you can always go for cardboard ones.
3. Get your cray-on
Create new, fresh and funky crayons, by baking old, sad ones in ice cube trays.
4. Invest in a refillable pen
Sure you may be forking out a little more money at the beginning, but it’s infinitely more sustainable than going through countless disposable plastic ones – and it’ll likely be cheaper in the long run!
5. Bee Cool
Instead of wrapping lunches in plastic film which gets thrown out at the end of each day, wrap food items in reusable bee’s wrap sheets or slid into a bee wrap sandwich pouch.
6. The obvious stuff is often easily overlooked
A good refillable water flask is a must have. And if you need a new lunchbox, invest in a good solid one which will last for years.
7. Think outside the box
Cut up old cardboard boxes into flashcards (A5 or A6 size). They make for great study tools.
8. Don’t cover books in plastic
Books already have a cover… but if you really have to cover a book use second hand wrapping paper, old magazines or unwanted maps. This can also give those mundane scrapbooks a funky look.
9. Be aware of sticky situations
While stickers are pretty, they’re a bit of an environmental nightmare. The glue on the sticky end makes them, as well as whatever they’re stuck to, non-recyclable.
10. Recycle old uniforms
We all know the fast fashion industry is upsetting Mother Nature, and although they might not exactly be fashionable, uniforms are not very Earth friendly themselves. We should all take a leaf out of the lovely Alex Alden‘s book and embrace hand-me-downs. Instead of buying new uniforms every year, reuse and upcycle an older friend’s or cousin’s uniforms. Needless to say, you can do the same for books.
BONUS: Say no to glitter!
Yes, glitter adds magic to everything, but it’s all tiny pieces of microplastics.
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