I know as well as any other parent that paper towels and other disposable cleaning wipes are darned handy when it comes to cleaning up fast. But it’s actually just as fast to reach for a reusable cloth to do the job. Target has a great line of organic cotton cloths and towels as do Ecover and Seventh Generation. For sponges, look for natural sponges that are biodegradable and can even be composted when they have outlived their dishwashing usefulness. (Just be sure they come from a sponge farm and not a natural ecosystem.)

A recent Yale University study found that children who ride a school bus are exposed to up to 15 times more particulate pollution than average. That’s bad news for the 24 million American children who ride a school bus each day. Researchers estimate that this increased exposure is due to the idling and queuing of school buses. In other words, as school buses line up and wait in front of our kids’ schools, they are filling up harmful particulate pollution that will stay with our children throughout their ride.

What can you do abou it? Talk to your school administrators about the health and environmental implications of bus idling and propose a measure to ban it. Seventh grader Adam Martin from Jericho, VT , appeared earlier this year before Vermont’s House Natural Resources Committee to urge lawmakers to ban bus idling. If he can do it, so can you!

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sponsors the “Clean School Bus” program in an effort to inform parents and school board officials about the need to ban bus idling. Check out http://www.epa.gov/cleanschoolbus/ for more info.

How do you make a waste-free lunch? Instead of wrapping sandwiches in aluminum foil or plastic bags, use a reusable container that can hold the sandwich as well as fresh veggies and other treats.

Substitute cloth napkins and reusable silverware for disposables. Replace juice boxes and water bottles with reusable drink containers. And use a lunchbox or cooler instead of paper lunch bags.