Canada's greenest kids (and a giveaway!)
Is a child in your life making an effort to go green? If so, encourage them to enter the Sunlight Green Clean Kid contest. Starting June 15, 2009, kids can apply for the opportunity to be a Sunlight Green Clean Kid – one of a group of 10 kids dedicated to help develop ongoing eco-programs that encourage and inspire other kids to go green.
Kids between the ages of six and 13 can submit a 150-word essay about how they're helping preserve the environment or inspiring others to go green. Eco-experts will review the submissions and pick 10 kids from across the country to be a part of the Sunlight Green Clean Kids. Each kid will receive a $2,000 honourarium and an opportunity to develop national environmental programs for other children.
Submission deadline is July 24, 2009. To download the application and learn about submissions rules, visit www.sunlightgreencleankids.ca.
What's the most valuable green lesson you've taught someone in your life? Leave a reply here by Friday, July 10 and you could win a:
I love PC Green - affordable AND eco-friendly.
President’s Choice Green Stow Away Shopping Bag overflowing with PC GREEN products. That's right! I have another one to give away. Your stylish new shopping bag (with wheels!) contains:
• 8 jumbo rolls of PC Green paper towels
• 1 kg box of PC Green Baking Soda
• PC Green All Purpose Cleaner
• PC Green Coldwater Laundry Detergent
• PC Green Phosphate-free Dishwasher Detergent
• PC Green Floor Cleaner
• PC Green Multi-Purpose Cleaning Putty
Don’t forget, you have to be a subscriber to my blog to be eligible to win. Subscribe today!
Tags: Contest, environment, green, kids, sunlight, sunlight green clean kids
June 30th, 2009 at 12:31 pm
I've given green tips to many friends and family members all my life. I suppose one of the most valuable green lessons that I've taught my daughter is to give sensible, economical and green gifts. Very early in age, my daughter always wanted to give gifts. Understandable since she is a very giving person; however, being a single mom it can get pricey and also some gifts of choice can be wasteful and unnecessary. So very early on I taught her to be thrifty, smart and green by making and giving thoughtful gifts. First off you have to think about who you are giving the gift too and then what they enjoy. So, as an example, I love cookies and a perfect gift for me would be pre-made cookie mix and a recipe card. Yes, you'd get all the dry ingredients together and then put it into a creative, crafty container which you would decorate. You'd attatch the recipe card and instructions and, if desired, add on any extras. So you could include a pouch of chocolate chips, or a handful of raisins in an envelope. Voila...your gift!!!
You get to be thoughtful, creative, crafty, resourceful, economical, green and thrifty.
I think it's a lesson that she can apply throughout her life.
June 30th, 2009 at 2:30 pm
Once I discovered over 100 uses for vinegar to help with household chores I spread the word to everyone I know. It can be used in many different ways and is safe on almost all surfaces. Combined with a bit of baking soda it is extra powerful. I even posted about it on FabulousCanadianFreebies.com since it really helps save the environment at the same time that it saves money.
June 30th, 2009 at 8:17 pm
While I'm trying to instill the idea of recycling in my 2 1/2 year old son, I hope the best lesson I am teaching him is to be gentle to all things. He is careful of the baby plants, wants to take bugs outdoors, feed the birds, fill the bird bath and so on. I think teaching him to be good to living things like this is important - they need safe places to live and they need to be respected as part of our ecosystem. We need them, even though some of them really 'bug' us, so I hope he is learning we have to work with, not against, them.
June 30th, 2009 at 8:22 pm
I taught my nephew he could grow his own food. We have a garden and his family doesn't - he thought food just appeared in the grocery store, I guess! When he came to our house I showed him the garden and he helped me plant some radish seeds to replace the ones we pulled out to have in that night's salad!
June 30th, 2009 at 8:42 pm
If and when we have have garbage on our property from the wind my kids and i will make sure we pick it up and put it in the recycling. Also when my youngest son is drawing i get him to colour on both sides of the paper so there is no waste. It is nice to hear my son say which area an item should go if it goes in the green bin or in the recycling. Soon enough i am sure he will say Mommy this is where it goes.
July 1st, 2009 at 3:15 am
[... read more] This post was Twitted by in_health [... read more]
July 1st, 2009 at 9:07 am
My favourite saying is, "Never Live Beyond Your Means." By this I mean, do not purchase or consume in excess.
If you use this simple rule, everything else makes sense.
July 1st, 2009 at 7:47 pm
I thought my kids how to make recycle bins. We bought black plastic tubs and they got to draw a circle on each of them, example: orange is for plastic, white is for glass, blue is for paper ect ... and they are really excited to recycle. Doesn't take much to get your kids involve in saving our planet, all you need is imagination and a few tricks. We also have a fresh garden, that we water with rainwater. veggies love rainwater
July 2nd, 2009 at 12:47 am
Be kind....just be kind!
July 2nd, 2009 at 6:02 am
I have always taught my family and freinds that when wrapping a gift to use something that can be reused...a beach towel,dish towel,basket or even a scarf.
July 2nd, 2009 at 6:11 am
I've encouraged my mom and my step-mom into using recycled bags to go shopping. When I buy them a birthday or other gift I put it in a new reusable shopping bag and when I take my mom shopping I ask her if she has her bags to take with her before we go. I've also encouraged them to wash out the cans and bottles, etc to go in the blue bags as at first when we started recycling in NS most of the elderly didn't do this. My husband and my children wash out the cans and bottles too now. When going for walks we always take a bag along to pick up litter.
July 2nd, 2009 at 8:09 am
hugs and smiles go a long way
give as many as you can throughout the day
July 2nd, 2009 at 8:55 am
I taught my mom and quite a few of my friends how easy it is to make a compost pile and how to reap the benefits.
July 2nd, 2009 at 9:19 am
I have taught my children to live a green lifestyle and it has paid off! They are now experts on green living and it feels good to know I taught them this!
July 2nd, 2009 at 9:27 am
That fantasies last for ever, the real thing does not
July 2nd, 2009 at 10:20 am
I have taught my friends that you always remember the fun to get a soaker and do so at least once a month. You can never have too much fun in life.
July 2nd, 2009 at 10:31 am
When I was younger my school class visited the local recycling plant and I was amazed at how many things could be recycled. Now that I'm a step mom and I see how habitual it is for our child to put everything in the garbage, we taught her to think first about throwing things away and ask if she doesn't know, to ask. Now instead of asking if it can be recycled she says "do I have to throw this out?" She is 6 and I think it's never to early to learn!
July 2nd, 2009 at 10:48 am
cool contest
July 2nd, 2009 at 4:09 pm
I taught my kids how to save $, but it's an ongoing process...
July 2nd, 2009 at 5:37 pm
I taught my relatives and friends how to put all their electronics on a power bar and use it to turn them off when not needed, to save electricity and our precious resources.
July 2nd, 2009 at 5:48 pm
The most valuable lesson I taught to someone was my ten year old daughter. We planted a garden together and the fruits of our labour are starting to show (grow)and pretty soon will be ready for consumption. When she complains about having to weed with me I say to her that our garden is just that, "ours" and without us as a team our garden can't grow and flourish!
July 2nd, 2009 at 5:55 pm
I try to teach my family to consider the difference between "need" and "want" whenever they want to buy anything.This saves money, and reduces waste that eventually ends up in the landfill,with a negative impact on the environment.
July 2nd, 2009 at 9:05 pm
My kids know about composting. They know what grows goes into the compost bin. They love the worms and always put them in the garden if they happen to find one on the sidewalk struggling. They love the ladybugs because they are helpers in the garden. My husband has even become a compost aficionado because it saves him buying soil amendments for the garden every spring, he always asking me if I've watered the compost heap or checked it or turned it. We have the best tomatoes around because of all the lovely organic matter that we till back into the earth every year.
July 2nd, 2009 at 9:47 pm
The most valuable lesson we taught our son was on our woodlot.How to conserve and protect the forest
To cut only full growth tree's and remove the wood without damaging the land.To preserve and protect new growth for future generations.
July 2nd, 2009 at 9:52 pm
I agree with donnal. A big thing to me is when someone in my family claims they "need" something, and I ask them whether they really "need" it or whether they just "want" it. I admit there are things I want that I don't need, but I try to be quite conscientious of the difference.
July 2nd, 2009 at 10:06 pm
the most valuable green lesson that i taught my children was to love nature - i believe that a true appreciation of the gift that we have in the natural world around us is the basis for efforts to care for it, beginning with reduce, reuse, recycle and then continuing to make green lifestyle choices.
July 2nd, 2009 at 11:37 pm
I've taught people that there are other means of staying cool. Though it sometimes could only mean your status growing up.lol In a green sense I'm speaking that turning your thermostat up in the summer(having the a/c on less often) and finding ways to cool down outside really cuts down on energy consumption. Whens the last time you jumped into a pool to cool down? Why rely on an a/c to keep you cool there is a whole world out there waiting for you with a nice breeze!
July 2nd, 2009 at 11:45 pm
I have taught my daughters to avoid using pharmaceuticals whenever possible. Alternatives most often exist, starting with prevention. Sometimes something as simple as a couple of glasses of water can cure a headache, ice packs relieve sore muscles, salt water makes a good mouth wash, baking soda in water cures heartburn, acupuncture relieves many ailments, and so on. Pharmaceuticals not only have many side effects which harm our bodies, but they can also harm our environment....most importantly, I think, our drinking water.
July 3rd, 2009 at 9:49 am
I have taught my children tthat the earth is not a big garbage can. They have passed this on to their friends and will surely pass it on to their children
July 3rd, 2009 at 10:24 am
Being a teacher I have a wonderful opportunity to teach my students about being green. Every Monday we start the week with a "Being Green Tip of the Week". Not only have I shared my advice with the students (how to recycle - why we recycle - bring a lunchbox not a different paper/plastic bag every day etc) but the students have all shared their thoughts also. They seem to enjoy it and I am proud of my class for their efforts to be green.
July 3rd, 2009 at 1:15 pm
I taught my son to appreciate your friends and your family. You don't know how long you have them for, you don't know what valuable lessons they have to share and you don't want regrets later.
July 3rd, 2009 at 4:01 pm
[... read more] Don’t forget to enter my President’s Choice Green Stow Away Shopping Bag contest! [... read more]
July 3rd, 2009 at 11:28 pm
As a librarian, I feel that I am the ultimate endorser of the "reuse/reduce" philosophy! I work hard to teach people that, while they may love buying books, it is MUCH more environmentally friendly to use a library because it means that they will be helping to save the environment and using something that already exists! I also have a section devoted to books on environmentalism and set up displays to encourage people to learn more about the impact of their consumerism on the world!
July 3rd, 2009 at 11:55 pm
I think that learning to compost kitchen waste was very valuable for my daughter to learn. It taught her where soil comes from - the earth will provide all we need, we must care for it.
July 4th, 2009 at 12:23 am
I guilted my mom into recycling. I convinced that it is no harder to put her recycling in a separate container.
July 4th, 2009 at 10:19 am
As a cub (scouts) leader I have had the opportunity to teach boys and girls about being "green" for years. It is a big part of the scouting movement. The children are taught "no trace" camping. The cubs are taught to leave the camping site in better condition than when they got there. They are taught to always bring a mess kit ( no disposables), and a mug (tin mug) for mug up (hot or cold drinks depending on the weather).
We participate in environmental projects such as making and hanging and servicing woodduck boxes, tree planting and river/ seaside cleanups. Badgework includes such topics as world conservation, recycling, gardening and naturalist badges. But my hands down favourite project was a initiative started by a local river management society. We replanted eroded stream banks with native saplings and vegetation. It was hard but rewarding work. The scouts and cubs learned about the importance of no siltation on the health of the stream. They learned to sample the streams looking for species that indicate health. They then learned about which salmon used "our" stream and helped fisheries to "milk" salmon and ferilize eggs.... and then later in the year release the salmon fry back into the stream... I will always be proud of that whole project and the kids (they are now venturers) still talk about it and it is clear it impacted them in a very positive way.
All three of my children(two girls and boy) are in scouts and range in age from 11 to 17 and they love nature, the outdoors and think "green" through and through.
If you have children and really want them to be "green", environmental, love nature and be knowledgable. Get them into scouts!
July 4th, 2009 at 11:50 am
Always treat others the way you want to be treated!
July 5th, 2009 at 7:30 am
I have taught my family that it is easy to recycle. It is now a habit. We even collect items that are not accepted in our blue box, like styrofoam meat trays and plastic bags, and drop them off at the recylcing depot. Light bulbs and batteries also get recycled at our family by dropping them off at IKEA.
July 6th, 2009 at 12:42 pm
I've tried to teach my husband that being green isn't too hard or time consuming.
It does take a little more effort to hang laundry on the line than to transfer it from washer to dryer, but I try to keep reminding him that the savings on our utility bill means more money in our pocket.
July 8th, 2009 at 2:38 am
I've taught my kids out to be compassionate to all living things.
July 8th, 2009 at 8:07 am
We've started using bathwater to water the flower beds and they are looking pretty good this year. We also use reusable cloth bags for shopping. We are running out of plastic bags for garbage now though. What did people use before plastic bags??
July 8th, 2009 at 9:34 am
The most valuable green lesson I have taught someone is to teach and educate my husband to recycle our everyday household items. He used to throw everything in the garbage and thought that recycling was a scam and that all of the items in the blue box eventually ended up in the landfill with the other garbage. I had to convince him otherwise. One day, we were watching a documentary on the effects of polution and garbage had on the environment and our oceans, and seeing the polluted waters and how it destroyed our sea organisms and animals and ultimately humans really changed his views. So now, he is very concious of what he puts in the garbage. Not even a toilet paper roll goes in the garbage. I'm very proud of how he has come around to adopt a more caring and long-term view about recycling and our environment.
July 9th, 2009 at 12:40 am
The most valuable green lesson I have taught someone was to appreciate the harmony and balance found in nature and the need to try and lessen our impact on it. That even a small effort can make a difference to that balance.
July 9th, 2009 at 4:23 pm
[... read more] Don’t forget to enter my current giveaway. I’m annoucing a winner tomorrow! [... read more]
July 9th, 2009 at 9:31 pm
...before discarding anything to always look at things for another use...arts and crafts supplies, room decorations, games pieces, musical instruments...the less that goes to landfill...the better off we'll be!!
July 9th, 2009 at 9:37 pm
We have recycled solid wood doors that someone had "dumped"....they are now beautiful doors on my garden shed.
July 10th, 2009 at 1:58 am
Check expiry dates.
July 10th, 2009 at 12:27 pm
I have taught my children to be kind to others..and go out of your way to make others feel welcome and that if you see someone at school that looks to be left out make sure you try to included them.
a great example when my daughters school had candy grams there would be some kids who didnt get any..so the next time she sent them to everyone in her class,so noone felt left out.
July 10th, 2009 at 6:48 pm
Through example, I led my girlfriend to a vegetarian life. Better for the planet, and better for the animals that aren't being slaughtered to satisfy our appetites.
July 17th, 2009 at 7:25 pm
To get a good nights sleep every night ..a good mattress is the foundation of success in life for sure .