4 tips for a more eco-friendly start of the school year

Brut America

Want to start the school year while being more eco-friendly?  This French student tells us how she managed to reduce her impact on the environment.

Transcript

00:00The first reflex we can have to avoid any waste is to take back last year's things to sort them out and reuse them as much as possible.

00:16Scissors, of course, to keep.

00:22Yes, to throw away.

00:24I can also sort out my lockers and pockets, if they are still in good condition.

00:31And I can keep my last year's course sheets as draft sheets.

00:37For the already used notebooks, I can tear off the used pages to keep the rest of the notebook for next year.

00:45There you go, I finished my sorting.

00:47And to recycle the used materials, we can find websites that list the nearby collection points.

00:54For last year's school manuals, I can either give them away or resell them in bookstores.

01:01Our habit of using a lot of plastic is when we cover our notebooks and manuals with plastic bags.

01:09An eco-friendly solution is to use old clothes to cover our manuals.

01:17To fix the fabric, we can use tape or staples if the fabric doesn't hold.

01:31If we have to buy supplies, we can take advantage of the opportunity by going to an Emmaüs or a resource store.

01:42Hello, Ella.

01:43Hello, Fleur. How are you?

01:44Yes, very well.

01:45I see that you have an entrance ticket for the resource store.

01:48Can you tell us more about it?

01:50Yes, of course.

01:51So, the association, the EMAUS, is a non-profit organization.

01:55So, the association, the EMAUS, is a non-profit organization.

01:58We thematize school supplies, since these are products that are currently sought after by families.

02:02We thematize school supplies, since these are products that are currently sought after by families.

02:06And we offer small-priced items.

02:08You have paper.

02:09Yes, they're new.

02:10Yes, they're new.

02:11People didn't use them, so they made a very good gesture by coming to the resource store.

02:16You have calculators, too.

02:18You have calculators, too.

02:20You have calculators, too.

02:22They're tested at 4 euros.

02:24You see, for example, we sell 10-cent rules, which are new.

02:28You see, for example, we sell 10-cent rules, which are new.

02:31And also, classifiers in very good condition.

02:37So, why do you recommend turning to the occasion to enter?

02:40The advantage is to give a second life to items that are still in good condition.

02:45And so, to save money while also preserving the environment.

02:51Thank you!

02:52Have a good day! See you soon!

02:58After the supplies, comes the purchase of books and school manuals.

03:01We can go to the occasion websites or to the bookstores organized by the schools.

03:06When you can't either reuse the supplies from last year or buy them on the occasion,

03:10you can of course stay in the supermarket.

03:12Here, too, there are a few tips to reduce its impact.

03:25To choose a paper with a low impact on our forests,

03:28there is recycled paper or forest-based paper,

03:32there is recycled paper or forest-based paper,

03:36which we recognize with labels.

03:38In order not to consume plastic unnecessarily,

03:40we can make sure to buy paper only wrapped in cardboard, without plastic film.

03:46Finally, to facilitate recycling, we can prefer non-spiral notebooks.

03:55The problem with disposable pens is that they are thrown away quickly,

03:58which causes a lot of waste on a large scale.

04:00One solution is to buy rechargeable ones.

04:03It also saves money.

04:10To preserve our health and the environment,

04:13we prefer to choose felt and glue without solvent and perfume.

04:18There are also labels that can help us choose.

04:21These labels can certify that the product is made from recycled materials,

04:25that it is produced locally or that it respects other environmental criteria.

04:30In general, we buy solid products to avoid throwing them away too often,

04:34and we avoid unnecessary purchases such as post-its, which are too small to be recycled.

Category

Transcript

Recommended