Three Ways to Reduce Your Environmental Impact: Back to School: Hilliard Edition

It‘s always nice when you’re handed a challenge where your life experience matches up with the assignment.  So when I was asked to write a blog about sustainability when returning to school, I said “Let’s do this!” As a teacher of twenty years, a parent of two tweens, and a board member with Keep Hilliard Beautiful, I hope you will find my tips below valuable.

The beginning of the school year marks a time of maximum anticipation for students and teachers alike. We want to look our best, and feel our best as we start this new chapter.  And while shiny new items and crisp new outfits have always been an exciting part of starting the school year, are they all necessary? What are some ways that we can reduce our environmental impact as we return to school this year?

Here are Three ways to create a more sustainable new school year.

1. As parents, we’ve all received the back to school supply list.  And while it may be quick and easy to order the list through the service provided by your school PTO, you may want to consider a different option.  Shop at home first.

These lists are usually pretty standard from year to year, and unlike past years where teachers would sometimes take a communal approach to supplies, COVID protocols made this difficult, and so your child probably held onto their supplies last year.  And if you have a 12 year old boy like I do, many of those supplies may still be biding their time in his backpack (on the floor in the middle of his room).

For example, just about every elementary school list has a box of crayons. Items like crayons, scissors and color pencils hold up pretty well and could carry on for another year. My daughter found about 70% of the items on her list around our house, before the start of school last year.

2. Buy used clothing.  I’ll admit, this one may be tough for some kids. In highschool, I’ll always remember wearing my newest outfit to that first football game of the season. That new rayon silk shirt was sure to catch the eye of that cheerleader I liked.

Knowing that new-clothes-feeling so well, it may take some convincing to get your child to consider used clothing.  My son, on one hand, will wear just about anything we put on his shelf, but my daughter has more specific and refined tastes.

Even if half the outfits that you would normally buy are second hand, you are making a difference. A study done by Moving showed that Americans don’t wear 82% of what is in their wardrobe.  That means a good majority of clothing you find in thrift stores or stores like Once Upon a Child and Uptown Cheapskate is basically new.

3. Consider Your Commute. So, living where I do in Hilliard (School district, not city), this next suggestion is nearly impossible for my children and I to safely attempt.  If you attend one of the more rural schools like Brown Elementary or Bradley High School, it may not be feasible to walk or bike to school, so consider carpooling with your neighbors if your kids aren’t already taking the bus.

But there are a number of schools that are walkable/bikeable.  This suggestion may not be for everyone, but the benefits are great for you and your child’s physical and mental health, your pocket book, and the environment.  We’ve all heard of ride sharing or carpooling, but your neighborhood could start a “walking school bus” or a “bicycle train.” A schedule of parents from your neighborhood could “drive” the bus or “engineer” the train.  Both children and parents get in some much needed exercise and socialization.  Less energy (money) is used and exhausted from those numerous idling cars. Car lines are now shorter, resulting in less energy consumed by those families who don’t live in the walkable or bikeable neighborhoods and less obscenities are muttered under breath by parents who are going to be late for work.

I wish you and your families a smooth and sustainable beginning to the 2022-2023 school year here in our beautiful city of Hilliard.   Make good choices!

Chuck D’Andrea is a teacher and board member for Keep Hilliard Beautiful. Click here to learn more about Keep Hilliard Beautiful and their upcoming clean-up events.