The Green Parent

If you are anywhere in or around the Chicago area this weekend, you have just got to make your way over to the Green Festival at Navy Pier. Co sponsored by Global Exchange and Co-Op America, this year’s festival is sure to be an eco-geek’s dream come true with more than 350 local and national [...]

This Friday (April 25th) most states across the U.S will celebrate Arbor Day…a holiday designed to honor, commemorate, and (most importantly) plant trees. It’s a great day to stop and smell the acorns and teach your kids why trees are worth hugging! Plant a seed with these kid-friendly Arbor Day ideas… ID A Tree: Do [...]

Happy Earth Day! Today is a fantastic day to talk to your kids about the environment and show then some simple ways that they can help protect it. Kids growing up today hear more about environmental issues (such as global warming) then any generation before them. It’s in their movies, their music, and even their [...]

Are you and your kids ready to party this Tuesday? Earth Day (April 22nd) is the perfect time to teach the kids about the environment and get them excited about protecting it. After all, what kid doesn’t love a holiday party? Check out these ideas below to find the Earth Day party that works best [...]

Do you remember that post a few weeks ago about the alarming levels of prescription medications in our water supply? Did it leave you wondering how you should dispose of your medications so that they don’t wind up polluting the planet? It did for a couple of motivated high school teachers and students. And the [...]

Can an orange crayon be green? It can if it’s made from natural ingredients like soy or beeswax instead of petroleum. The same goes for that red marker or rainbow watercolor paints. In addition to their contribution to global warming, traditional art supplies also contain a slew of dubious chemicals and solvents. Non-toxic art supplies [...]

With a motto of “Turning Garbage Into Gold,” New Jersey-based TerraCycle is making it their mission to “eliminate the idea of waste” by creating products that are made from and packaged in garbage. To date they’ve kept over one million plastic soda bottles out of the landfill by using the bottles to package their cleaning [...]

Teach your kids (or let them teach you) about the importance of trees and recycling paper by making your own paper. It’s creative, it’s hands-on, and it’s messy…so it’s sure to be a hit with kids of all ages. Here’s how it’s done: Materials: Scrap paper: Think junk mail, used construction paper, or newspaper…but stay [...]

If you’re still not convinced that organic foods are the best choice for your family and the environment, consider this…a study released this month in the peer-reviewed journal, Environmental Health Perspectives, concludes that pesticides are present in the urine and saliva of children who eat conventionally grown produce. And not just any pesticides. The researchers [...]

Bad news for tweens today. The Center for Environmental Health recently reported that high levels of lead were found in Hannah Montana products that are currently on sale at your favorite retailer. According to the report, the vinyl on five of the twenty eight products tested (see below) had lead contents of 1,800 parts per [...]

Looking for a fun eco-craft to share with your kids this weekend? Try your hand at building this eco-friendly birdhouse that uses scrap materials and simple tools to make a new home for your feathered friends while helping your kids learn about the planet! Gather up these supplies: Scrap wood (preferably reclaimed or FSC certified) [...]

Do you know a “green kid” between the ages of 8-17 that likes to “ham” it up for the camera? Whole Foods Market is looking for some young eco-warriors to help spread the word about going green. As part of their new initiative called Whole Earth Generation, Whole Foods Market is searching the nation for [...]

If your child is an eco-warrior, or yearning to become one, you might be interested in checking out The Brower Youth Awards (BYA) and the Lorax Challenge. The BYA is the premier environmental award for young people. I’ve actually had the good fortune to interview many of the past BYA recipients and I was incredibly [...]

If you’re searching for an easy, earth-friendly activity to share with your kids, look no further than the night sky. Stargazing is as low-impact as it gets…you simply wait for it to get dark and then enjoy the view. And with all of the mystery, history, and mythology in the night sky, stargazing is sure [...]

Getting ready for a new baby can be both overwhelming and exhilarating. There’s gear to buy, rooms to clean, and sleep to store up on! If you setting up a nursery for your baby to sleep in (when he’s not sleeping on your shoulder), consider taking a few steps to ensure that the room is [...]