First up we have two current Tree Hugging contests happening:

1. For kids – A Cute & Reusable Kid’s Shopping Bag from Envirosax Contest
2. And for parents & babies – BabyBam Collection contest

This week the biggest Tree Hugging focus was likely our look at consumerism, materialism, and how it all relates to kids and green living. We had some good conversations about this going on, so don’t miss any of these posts:

• Raising Green Kids In A Commercial Culture
• Commercials Are Everywhere
• Eco-friendly Ways to Reward Kids
• As a parent, do you understand the impact of the need for stuff?
• Tips for Talking With Your Kids About Purchases
• If you’re so against having stuff, then why show all these products on this blog?
• Kids & Shopping – How Kids Can Be Smart Consumers

Other stellar posts:
Find out if “You Live In One of the Greenest Cities”

We learned about a killer blog geared toward green college students.

We remembered Climate Counts; and no they didn’t die, they’re just so cool that we like to re-visit them.

We hugged both a cute Scimitar Oryx and my fave the Lilac Tree.

Green Your St. Patrick’s Day Party and the St. Patrick’s Day Blog Carnival just in time for tomorrow (at least I think it’s tomorrow).

Candied Flowers! Yummy and beautiful.

One Small Step: Digital Subscriptions

Peggy did an awesome review of CleanWell’s Kid-Safe Hand Cleaning Products – are they worth it? Read her review and find out.

Lastly:

Welcome to any new readers here at Tree Hugging Family this week, we’re very glad to have you here. Don’t forget to subscribe to Tree Hugging Family, also we have a poll going on about global warming in our sidebar, and we’d love for you to vote.

Post from: Tree Hugging Family

Kids and teens can actually follow the same set of basic shopping rules as adults which means asking yourself questions about a product before you buy; questions such as:

1. Do I need it?
2. How badly do I want it?
3. Will I use it?
4. Is it recyclable or otherwise healthy for the planet?

Here are some more ideas for youth to consider when making a purchase:

Do you have an item like this already at home? If so, do you enjoy it a lot, or is it sitting on a shelf, slightly used. Be honest.

How much does it cost? Is it worth the cost? If you’re not paying for the item yourself consider if you’d still want the item if you had to use chore or babysitting money to buy it.

A good rule of thumb is to not ever buy an item right away. If you see something you think you might enjoy, walk away. Think about it for a week. If after a week, you still think you need the item, go get it.

Another good rule of thumb is to consider how much stuff you already have. If your bedroom is full of slightly used and unused items, maybe it’s time to really think about why you’re asking your parents for this stuff in the first place. Here’s an example; no matter how many Legos my son gets, he always uses them, pretty much daily. On the other side of the coin, he really likes race car tracks and asks for them, but then never uses them.  That’s a big waste of plastic, and money, and energy. We actually have a no-race track rule now. Every time Cedar asks for a new race set, we remind him he has a perfectly good set or two laying around unused.

Extra green shopping tips for kids and teens:

When looking for clothes try to find natural fiber clothing or organic items, or shop at a thrift store. If you aren’t sure which clothing to avoid check out this website.

Don’t buy animal fur items or fake fur items. Fur is sometimes used in toys and clothing. If you buy real fur you’re killing an animal, and fake fur is terrible for the environment as most are made from non-renewable oil-based fibers.

Be careful when buying shells. It’s fun to visit a beach and find shells that have naturally washed up on the beach, but buying shells from a store might mean you’re getting shells that were intentionally stolen from the ocean, and thus the animals who use them.

When buying new music, consider used CDs. You’ll get a better deal, more music for your buck, plus save some resources.

If you buy a toy requiring batteries, be sure to pick up some renewable batteries and a battery charger as well. This way you won’t have to waste resources to charge your toys.

Before your next shopping adventure you might want to consider going through the stuff you already have. Sort it, clean it, and offer it to a family or youth shelter. Or you could have a garage sale, which is a great way to recycle instead of toss items.

When shopping be sure to carry a reusable bag – some are really cute. In fact you might be able to win your own Reusable Kid’s Shopping Bag from Envirosax right here.

Kids and teens can be really smart consumers – it just takes a little planning and some caring about the earth.

Post from: Tree Hugging Family