Packing Waste Free Lunches for Kids at Camp & School

You know you live in the Front Range of Colorado if your child speaks of “sustainability,” “being green,” or how “eco-friendly” something is before (s)he enters Kindergarten. As Bob Dylan predicted years ago, “The times they are a changing,” and within our homes and communities we are beginning to realize that our lifestyle choices can not only influence our immediate families and friends, but the general welfare of the entire planet. As Avid4 Adventure strives to set the model for outdoor education companies by becoming completely carbon neutral in 2008 and teaching your kids the benefits of healthy, outdoor lifestyles, we will also ask for help in our mission by implementing a “Waste Free” policy for our multitude of day camps and summer programs.

As landfills overflow and incinerators pump contaminants into the air we breathe, many parents (Avid4 parents excluded, of course) are still taking the easy, careless approach to their children’s lunches. In fact, it is amazing at lunchtime discussions during Avid4's School Outdoor Education Intensives how amazed children become when they discover what their food labels mean and where their lunches are coming from. Although sending a child off with a Lunchables may be the most time efficient way to go, there are other costs involved that are often neglected. Environmental?… yes! Cost?… yes! Diet?… yes, again. I’m still searching for a parent that will argue the health benefits of the skittle-topped cold pizza that I saw a student chow last week.
Therefore, in the unfortunate age of genetically-modified vegetables, mad cow-infested school lunches, and rampant, wasteful consumerism, it is great to know that each day we can make a difference simply by packing waste free. Here are some easy steps to unite your child daily with his food and the environment, maximize the amount of money schools can spend on education by eliminating the need for excessive trash removal, and hopefully reduce the estimated 67 pounds of trash that each child is responsible for yearly:

• Pack food in re-usable containers that are inscribed with your child’s name.
• Use a re-fillable drink bottle.
• Use a cloth napkin instead of paper.
• Pack re-usable utensils.
• Elicit the help of your children. Even toddlers can assist the process by scooping chips into a Tupperware or filling bottles with water.
• Maximize leftovers. I’ve become a master of setting a portion for my next day’s lunch aside before I dive into dinner. That way, my lunch is packed the night before and eliminates the early morning madness.
• Encourage your children to bring home all leftovers in his or her lunch box to either re-use, compost, or properly dispose of.

Not only will adhering to these principles reduce carbon emissions and add
fuel to your compost piles, but it will teach your child the benefits of a waste-free lifestyle. I have seen this wisdom transfer to other facets of children’s lives… for example, don’t be surprised if you start hearing “games from the Salvation Army work as well as brand new games,” “wilderness experiences can occur at a local park and not just National Parks,” and maybe even, “I’d rather ride my bike than get in the car.” Packing waste-free lunches is an essential step in an ever-intensifying process to help your child internalize all of the words that (s)he is bombarded with and truly become “green, sustainable, and an eco-ambassador for his or her friends and family.”

Kyle Littman is the Camp Director for the Boulder Avid4 Adventure summer program. Although more passionate about your children than his lunchbox, he is excited about his cooking compost, sprouting seedlings, and nitrogen-rich soil content.