Green Tip of the Week
September 11, 2009
by Carol Politi
“Recycle Your Shirts
Got a shirt you just don’t wear? Before you toss it in the trash, pass it on to a friend or a local thrift store. If it is worn out, cut it up and use it as rags around the house.”
Tips by Jenn Savedge, Author of The Green Teen
As we post these tips on the handset, I’m finding myself thinking that my mom did these things naturally when I was growing up. Reusing clothes, bags, etc. and donating lightly used items were all a second nature to her.
I also noted in a recent trip to Toronto that everyone was carrying grocery bags to the store – and that I was not even offered a bag when I checked out. People that had only a few items simply carried the items. There are great trends here that if replicated could vastly reduce the waste we generate!
Please comment & let us know what your family does to reuse or otherwise prevent things from ending up in landfills.
Green Tip of the Week
July 28, 2009
By Carol Politi
This week’s Green Tip on the kajeet phone is:
“On the Go?
On the go? Try to limit the paper napkins, plastic silverware and cups. If you are taking a drink like juice or water on the road, carry a reusable mug to minimize the waste.”
Tips by Jenn Savedge, Author of The Green Teen
We are working at eliminating disposable containers of any form at my house. For the longest time it was just so easy to grab a plastic bag to cover food or to carry a kid’s snack. And those small applesauce containers seemed indispensable.
But now we are focused on making use of reusable containers and we are working to eliminate plastic bags entirely. My son’s school pushed us in this direction with its No Waste Wednesday program. The kids are asked to eliminate any and all waste on that day – and once we started in this direction we simply expanded it to every day of the week. The applesauce turned out to be a snap – we now buy it in larger containers and send it to school in smaller reusable containers. We are saving money while saving the environment – not bad.
What techniques have you found useful in working to eliminate disposables?
Weekly Green Tip – Buy Local
July 7, 2009
By Carol Politi
Here is the Green Tip published on the phone this week for kajeet subscribers:
“Buy Local.
Do you know where your food comes from and how far it travels to get to your plate? Evan organic food will cause environmental damage if it is flown from overseas or trucked across the country. If possible, buy local in-season foods.”
Tips by Jenn Savedge, Author of The Green Teen.
This Week’s Green Tip: Create a Green Buying Guide
June 17, 2009
By Carol Politi
This week’s green tip on the kajeet phone is:
“Save your parents time and money by researching their green shopping options for them. Check out local stores and the web to find sources for green goods and then use your info to create a buying guide for your family.”
Tips by Jenn Savedge, Author of The Green Teen
Given the high focus placed on greening schools, I think many parents are learning how to be bit more green from their kids. My son’s school has great program called “No Waste Wednesdays” which they are using to introduce the concept of no waste in lunch boxes. They promote re-usable containers (no plastic bags) and eliminating single serving containers. (If you have ever volunteered at a kids lunch hour you know the volumes of waste can be astounding). It has worked in our household! The kids push back when you use a plastic bag. And once you have the containers, moving from Wednesdays to every day is actually pretty easy.
Has your child given you any green tips? Do they like our Green Tips channel on the phone? Please let us know!
This Week’s Green Tip: “Buy In Bulk”
May 21, 2009
by Carol Politi
kajeet customers know that we have launched a “Green Tips” channel on the phone that provides a new tip each week to kids to get them thinking about how they affect the environment. In addition to publishing the tips on our handset, I’m publishing them on the blog each week.
Here is this week’s Green Tip:
“Save money and the planet by purchasing items in bulk whenever possible. Buying in bulk is cheaper than purchasing several smaller items and it will minimize the amount of packaging that you need to toss.”
Tips by Jenn Savedge, Author of The Green Teen
“The Green Teen” Mobile Tips Channel
May 7, 2009
by Carol Politi
kajeet is collaborating with environmentalist and author Jenn Savedge to get the word out to kids that they can positively affect our environment through their actions. We have launched a “Green Tips” channel on the phone that provides a new tip each week to kids to get them thinking about how they affect the environment and what they can do to minimize their environmental impact. The tips are easy to find – they are linked to from our Navigator web home page on the handset – and they free and available to all kajeet subscribers.
Jenn has provided the tips to us from her new book – “The Green Teen, the Eco-Friendly Teen’s Guide to Saving the Planet“. In addition to publishing these tips on the kajeet phones, I’ll be publishing them on the blog each week. Our tip this week is:
Rent, Borrow, or Swap – Use the 24 hour rule when shopping and ask yourself if you really need to buy it. Could you rent, borrow, or swap with a friend instead? If not, give yourself 24 hours to think it over. If you still want it, go back and get it. Tip byJenn Savedge, author of “The Green Teen“.
Jenn is also the author “The Green Parent” blog which is a wealth of information about how to inspire earth-friendly living.
Please let us know how you work with your kids to help inspire them toward earth-friendly living. We would love to hear your tips!
A Little Greener Every Day…
April 17, 2009
by Daniel Neal
I wrote a few weeks ago about how we at kajeet had introduced several new models of refurbished phones in an effort to reuse and recycle more. We’ve gotten a great response to our “pre-loved” handsets, though I have to admit that I think the lower prices help with those sales. Of course, both motivations can coexist. In the end, it’s a wonderful thing to see perfectly good (or even great) handsets go out the door to be used by kids who will re-love them.
Now we’re taking another small step. The gang here thought it would be a good idea to plant a tree for anyone who buys a refurbished phone, thereby reinforcing the good-citizen aspect of recycling cell phones. Already, we’ve planted 51 new trees! I know it’s a small number (so far), but we get excited about these new ways to make our path in business a bit greener. Each step along this path seems to present new ways to support a greener planet. But it isn’t just us: we’re getting direct support from new customers who are making very conscious decisions about what they consume, and the impact of those choices. Combining a refurbished phone with the planting of a new tree is a simple, but good, idea. We’re very grateful to be getting a positive response to this idea from customers new and old.
We’re also thankful for the help we’ve gotten from our friends at mokugift. They’ve been helping us with the tree planting. It’s great to find new friends who can help those of us in the technology & telecom field expand into places that are constructive in new ways. Thanks, mokugift!
We always love to hear your ideas – big or small – about what you are doing to help the environment, and what you think we should be doing along those lines. Please, let us know. We’re taking new steps ourselves, and want to travel further along a greener path.
National Cell Phone Recycling Week
April 4, 2009
by Carol Politi
The EPA has launched national cell phone recycling week – starting April 6th – as part of its efforts to celebrate Earth Day. “If Americans recycled the 100 million cell phones that are no longer being used, enough energy would be saved to power more than 18,500 homes for a year.” Wow.
kajeet offers free recycling. Just go to kajeet recycles and download a mailing label. We will cover the shipping!
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