With all the craze involved in getting back to school…be it elementary school, middle school, high school, or college, it never hurts to take a different approach with the new school year. Greening your back to school routine is simple and can save you some money too. Let’s go over some tips that will help benefit the environment and your wallet:

Walk or ride your bike to school.
Not only will this option of transportation save you on the costs of operating an automobile, but it will also benefit your health.

Take a school bus or public transportation instead of driving.
Taking public transportation to school reduces auto congestion and thereby keeps pollution to the environment at a minimum.

If there is no way of getting to school without a car, try carpooling and splitting gas costs.
Not everyone has the ability to ride a bike or take public transportation to school. Not to worry, take turns carpooling with your neighbors or friends to reduce your gasoline usage.

Try to make last years supplies last into this year.
If you have leftover pens, paper, or binders from last year, be sure to utilize those before you buy more. Also, ask friends or neighbors who may have leftover supplies to donate you.

Utilize a reusable bottle for water rather than store bought bottled water.
We all need to drink water. But instead of buying cases of bottled water, just get a reusable bottle and fill with tap or filtered water.

Use tupperware or a lunch box instead of paper bags for food time.
If you are making your own lunches to save on your wallet, be sure make use of reusable containers such as lunch boxes or tupperware instead of buying and using paper lunch bags.

Don’t forget to turn your computer off.
When you are not at home, be sure you turn off your computer to save on energy costs.

Buy used textbooks.
Buying used textbooks from craigslist or anywhere online will save you a ton of money off the high sticker price of new school books. Using older editions of the same book will still get you through your classes. Sometimes only a few pages are updated which the publishers use to slap on a new edition and charge full prices to unsuspecting students.