12 tips for waste prevention at school

How can you actually avoid trash at school? A lot of trash accumulates at school every day - plastic wrappers, paper bags, pens and other waste. The Zero Waste Lifestyle already starts at school. In order for us to keep the environment clean in the future, something urgently needs to change here as well. That's why I'm going to show you the best tips for avoiding waste at school in this article. Have fun reading!

1. lunch box instead of paper bag

The first step to waste prevention at school is to use a Stainless steel lunch box. Using a lunch box can save quite a bit of trash at school. The best choice is a plastic-free lunch box made of stainless steel or pressed rice husks. But also a reusable lunch box made of Plastic is still a much better choice than the paper bags that are always produced every day. With a lunch box, which contains several compartments, bread, fruit and other snacks can be easily divided.

2. reusable drinking bottle

To avoid waste at school is also a reusable water bottle very important. Here, too, a stainless steel bottle is suitable. In summer, the drinks stay nice and cool, and in winter, they stay warm. Alternatively, you can also reuse an old glass bottle. Using a drinking bottle also saves you having to lug back and return the deposit bottles to the supermarket.

3. beeswax wipes instead of cling film

Beeswax wipes are a good alternative to conventional cling film. They are made of natural raw materials and have a long life. In addition, they can be washed off quite easily with water. They are flexible, light and easy to transport.

4. recycled exercise books instead of new paper

Using exercise books consumes a lot of paper and plastic every year. So it's worth taking the recycled exercise books. The best are notebooks with light gray sheets. These notebooks are unbleached and therefore especially good for the environment. You can also look for recycled, slightly grayish paper when buying college notebooks. In the article Save paper you'll get more great tips to avoid more paper waste.

5. use cardboard loose-leaf binders

Quick folders are very useful, but unfortunately most of them are made of plastic. However, there is a practical alternative made of cardboard. Cardboard loose-leaf binder* are just as sturdy as conventional loose-leaf binders, but are much more environmentally friendly.

6. environmental friendly material in case

Many things that fit in the case can be replaced with plastic-free items. For example, you can use a ruler made of wood and a sharpener made of metal. With erasers, you should make sure that they are PCV-free. This is because PVC contains plasticizers that are very bad for the environment. You can tell this by the fact that they use labels such as "Pro Natur" or "PCV-free". You can also make sure that fountain pens and ballpoint pens are refillable. That way, you can at least cut down on waste a little.

7. newspaper to bind books and booklets

Do you still have old newspapers lying around at home? Then don't throw them away! Many like to use plastic covers to bind books and notebooks. However, newspaper works just as well. Newspaper also keeps notebooks and books clean and dog-eared. You can also use newsprint to plastic free gift wrapping use

8. label both sides

You can save a lot of paper waste just by writing on both sides of a sheet. This is especially useful if you use a college notepad. You can also save old sheets of paper and use them later as notepads.

9. large packages instead of small ones

When shopping for snacks for school, you should pay attention to the packaging. If plastic packaging can't be avoided, you should at least make sure to use the larger packaging if possible. Larger quantities of food, such as yogurt, can be filled in jars and taken to school. To avoid plastic packaging completely, it's worth taking a look at unpackaged stores or the weekly market in your town. There you can find it easier to shop without packaging. In the article Plastic-free shopping - It's that easy! you get even more tips for plastic-free shopping.

10. use up your old stock

Before you go to the nearest store and buy new eco-friendly alternatives, use up your old stock first. After all, even environmentally friendly materials like wood are still limited resources. If you can't wait, you still have the option of giving away your old stock. That way, someone else will save on buying new resources and you can get started right away with the eco-friendly alternatives.

11. buy old books instead of new ones

Some books at school you have to buy yourself. Instead of buying a new book, buy an old copy from someone. Many students sell their old books after they no longer need them. If you can't find anything in your neighborhood, check out rebuy after! Next to the Environment you also save quite a bit of money.

12. give up the snacks from the vending machine

In the school cafeterias there are usually vending machines with snacks and/or drinks. However, the snacks are always wrapped in plastic, and the drinks are filled in plastic bottles. Instead of buying a snack from the vending machine at recess, put a little more food in your pocket. The same goes for drinks. But maybe you can convince the school to use glass bottles instead of plastic ones?

13. educate children - collect garbage at school

Children are usually not yet aware of the impact of waste on our planet. However, many schools already have projects on the topic of Plastics recycling and Plastic waste in the environment take place to educate the schoolchildren. In the projects, the recycling system in Germany is explained to the children in a playful way. They are also educated about the pollution of the earth. Many children react very compassionately once they understand the problem. Avoiding waste at school is the first important step towards a pleasant learning atmosphere. Nevertheless, even with all possible tricks, trash will still accumulate in the school. So-called "trash collection days" can help reduce trash on school grounds. On these days, school classes work together to pick up trash lying around on the ground and other areas. If your child's school does not yet have such a project, why not bring it up at the next parents' meeting? You are also welcome to come to our worldwide CleanUp Community on Facebook, where people from all over the world work for a clean environment.
You can also get more tips in the detailed article about the Raising children's awareness of environmental protection.

Waste prevention made easy at school

As you can see, reducing trash in classrooms is easy. With the right awareness of the environment, we can keep schools, universities, as well as offices and other facilities clean. Even if the first steps towards environmental protection in schools are already being taken, there is still a long way to go. All the more important that we tackle the problem instead of looking the other way.

I hope the tips were helpful to you. What do you think about this topic? Do you know any other tips for avoiding waste at school? Then leave me your comment below this post.

Kind regards,

PS: In the article Environmental protection in school you will learn very good reasons why environmental protection should become a school subject.