Parenting Daily

There’s a good chance your teen is already involved in some “green” activities—eco-friendly clubs and curriculum have been in schools for a long time. Most schools have recycling bins or barrels in their schools, making it easy for teens to throw their pop cans or water bottles in them.

But if you’ve been slow to go green at home, or are wanting to get your teen more involved in being environmentally responsible at home, there are some ways to do this. They may not even notice (at first) that they’re doing good!

If you know the celebs your teen likes, do some quick research on the web to see what green things those celebs are up to. Then, using one of my favorite techniques, drop some of that info into casual, off-the-cuff conversation with your teen. It could be one time when their desire to be like those celebs is a good thing!

Another great idea is to make it relevant to the teen’s life. Teens do good with tangibles—things they can see, feel, hear, touch, taste, etc. If you can tie in going green to one of those five senses your chances of getting them to stay involved are improved. For instance, recycling aluminum cans can put money in your teen’s pocket. That’s a reward that just about any teen will be happy with.

My final idea for the day comes in the form of entertainment: green screen! In recent years, there have been a lot of green documentaries (not just Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth”, though that’s a good one!). Maybe get your teen to stay home one night and pop a green documentary in. If your teen is at all skittish about documentaries and true-life stuff, maybe don’t even mention what it really is. Just say you’ve heard good things about it. It’s easier to draw a teen in to something if they don’t have a preconceived notion holding them back.

I’d love to hear any other things you have tried to make your home more eco-friendly!

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