Mama Bite : School : Back-to-School Week: Desk Supplies
Back-to-School Week: Desk Supplies

Need the stuff that goes in their backpack pronto?

08.17.2009

Submitted by alara on Sun, 08/16/2009 - 11:00pm.
The Bite:
Get write on it and try outfitting your kiddo with planet-friendly school supplies. These finds have everything conventional kids' pens, notebooks, etc., have going for them, but won't tax natural resources like trees and waterways in an instant.
The Benefits: 
  • Immediate relief for forests. Tree-free paper uses fiber from crops such as hemp, or agricultural waste such as banana tree stalks, while every ton of recycled paper saves 17 trees.
  • Sparing landfills on the double. Each year, Americans throw away 6 billion plastic pens. Pens made from cornstarch parts will biodegrade over time - and refillable ones you can keep using.
  • Reusing waste, stat. Every year, U.S. pencil producers use up about 11,600 incense-cedar trees (native to CA) for 2 billion new pencils. These use reclaimed denim and postconsumer waste (PCW). And staple-less staplers mean no bits of metal in your trash.
  • Catching your breath. Nontoxic glue contains no or low VOCs, unlike their headache-inducing counterparts.
Personally Speaking: 
 
Wanna Try: 
Pencils and Pens
  • Greenciles - pencils made from 100% PCW recycled paper, such as newsprint and stationery; plus, recyclable pencil shavings ($30/100).
  • Recycled Jeans Pencils - blue-colored pencils; 20% of casing comes from reclaimed denim ($6/12).
  • Pilot BeGreen RexGrip Pen - made of 80% recycled content and refillable ($5/3).
  • Grassroots Pen - biodegradable, recyclable pen made from cornstarch; blue ink with blue, green, or red casing ($2).

Notebooks
  • Ecojot Notebooks - hardbound notebooks in floral or hippie-chic designs; 100% PCW, FSC-certified paper printed with veggie-based ink; made in biogas-powered mill ($9/80 sheets - see cash saver).
  • Banana Paper Notebook - college-ruled pages made from 100% PCW materials, including 80% discarded banana tree stalks; playful covers with frog or butterfly designs ($6/80 sheets).

Extras
Look for The Biter's Guide to Back to School...coming soon on idealbite.com.
Cash Saver: 
Enter Ecojot09 at checkout when you buy EcoJot products at PaperPosey and get 15% off through Nov. 15.

Timeout

Growing up in Hong Kong, Biter Wendy Ng learned to conserve and recycle every which way possible. In art class at school, she'd make paper pulp from old newspapers and scratch paper.

Bang For The Bite

If 10,000 Mama Biters each buy two recycled-paper notebooks instead of regular ones for their kids, we'll save 170 trees.

3 comments
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Beth De Voe  on August 17, 2009 at 04:13 AM 1
Staples has 80% post-consumer paper from cane sugar. They used to offer more but the lack of support and a poor economy has limited what they have and the amount of post-consumer waste. Covers are bland, but kids are creative enough to use their own recycled stuff and personal flair! Oh yah, they are a heck-of-a-lot cheaper to buy than other brands.
Roslyn Kavanagh  on September 28, 2009 at 08:03 AM 2
A Canadian company called green school sells reusable, organic cotton canvas totes designed specifically for elementary students to bring their money, order forms and permissions slips to school for programs like pizza days, milk orders, field trips and so on. Beats using a plastic baggie or envelope! Check out www.green-school.ca to see the green school mini tote and other available totes.
Samantha  on November 12, 2009 at 04:24 AM 3
Immediate relief for forests. Tree-free paper uses fiber from crops such as hemp, or agricultural waste such as banana tree stalks, while every ton of recycled paper saves 17 trees.free games

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