Looking for carbon footprint activities for kids? Getting children to think about their impact on the environment will help create caring, involved adults. As a bonus, many carbon-reducing activities also benefit other parts of the environment.

Seven Carbon Footprint Activities For Kids

Helping kids understand the concept of a carbon footprint means helping them understand that actions have consequences. Reducing the amount of carbon required by each person on the planet involves changing lifestyles and thought patterns. What better time to start then childhood? Here are some ideas to get you started:

• What’s old is new again. Reusing existing items reduces the burden on landfills and the need to produce new things. Have your kids decorate old boxes for reuse as magazine and book holders. These new organization tools can be decorated with old wrapping paper or pictures out of magazines.
• Get out of the car. Make it a family activity to use bikes as an alternative to driving. The library, the soccer field and shopping are all kid-friendly destinations that will reduce fuel consumption and increase your cardio workout.
• Black gold. Have your kids create and maintain a compost pile. A compost pile removes organic waste from your trash and turns it into healthy fertilizer for your plants. Natural compost also eliminates the nitrous oxide (another greenhouse gas) produced by artificial fertilizers.
• Shop local. Encourage your children to buy locally produced products as a way to reduce the transportation burden of goods. Trips to the local farmer’s market or to shops that feature toys and crafts by local artists are a good way to make the point.
• A bulk solution. The waste associated with school lunches can amount to as much as 67 pounds per childe per year. Try buying drinks and snacks in bulk and sending them to school in reusable containers. Replace paper bags with a lunch box—better yet, have your kids make their own lunchbox!
• BYOB. Bring your own bags! Have your kids make or decorate reusable shopping bags. Personalized, reusable shopping bags are more likely to be used than generic alternatives. Encourage your kids to bring an empty backpack to the store so they can carry purchases home.
• Plant a tree. Trees absorb carbon and produce oxygen. Encourage your kids to plant a tree and be sure to explain to them the benefits of shade, beauty and carbon scrubbing the tree will provide.