When I was in elementary school, we walked to and from school almost every day when the weather allowed. The bane of my existence was the (in my eyes) Everest-like hill on Hull Avenue on the east side of Des Moines. Hull Avenue is home to a notoriously-thrilling sledding hill that was enjoyable on snow days, but I dreaded trudging up that hill at the end of school days. I was so glad when I moved on to middle school so I could enjoy a relatively flat walk home.

I’m still walking home after school: this time, from the high school where I teach in St. Louis. Hopefully, I’m not alone. October is International Walk To School Month, and schools around the world are joining in. In 1969, 42% of children walked or biked to school; in 2001, less than 16% did. Interestingly enough, more than 1/3 of children live within a mile of school, but less than half of those students walk or bike even one day per week. Among 9 to 13 year-old children, 61.5% do not engage in organized physical activity during non-school hours, and 22.6% do not participate in any free-time physical activity.

Ditching the car and walking to school (or work) is not just good for the environment; it increases your activity level, a huge benefit during a time when childhood obesity rates are skyrocketing. Walking also reduces congestion in traffic, creates social time for neighborhood kids, raises awareness and analysis of walkability of neighborhoods, and reduces crime by taking back neighborhoods for foot traffic.

Unfortunately, with sprawling communities, students are living further and further from their schools. Even if you live relatively far from your school, many communities are promoting the month by having kids walk around the track after they get off the bus. In Ayer, MA, students at Page Hilltop school walked between 1/2 mile and 1 1/2 miles, either once or twice per week, while the school pumped music out to walkers. About half of the school’s 500 students participated. 2006’s Walk To School Month had millions of participants worldwide, and over 50% of event organizers at schools reported that their Walk to School events resulted in policy or engineering changes that would improve safety for walkers and bicyclists in their school community, such as new sidewalks or bike paths. Other schools are creating a party along the way, with balloons and music provided by parents along heavily-traveled routes.

For more information, especially on how to organize a Walk to School event in your school community, check out their website.

The great outdoors and environmental sustainability have long gone hand in hand, and many outdoors-gear companies have been leaders in sustainable business practices. Patagonia, Keen, and Teko have been pioneers in producing gear that uses lower-impact materials (like organics) or recycled materials (like PET bottles). Now, outfitter super cooperative REI is getting into the act, incorporating more sustainable materials into their line of clothing.

"Our eco-sensitive offerings are the next step in our journey to reduce REI’s overall company environmental footprint," added Kelly Stone, REI Gear & Apparel director of sales and marketing. "As with every offering that carries our brand, REI’s eco-sensitive items deliver on our promise of functionality, quality and great style that our members and customers expect."

Utilizing organic cotton, hemp, bamboo, recycled PET, and organic wool, REI has created both men’s and women’s apparel that they believe meet standards for improved environmental performance. Men’s items range from organic cotton/recycled PET polyester cargo pants and t-shirts, to organic cotton hoodies, to recycled PET fleece parkas, jackets, and vests. The women’s line includes recycled PET fleece jackets, hemp/recycled PET skirts and pants, and organic cotton t-shirts & hats. REI plans to increase the amount of "eco-senstive" products offered in coming seasons.

This year, REI also implemented a labeling system that alerts customers to REI products that are eco-sensitive. Both items and signage in their retail stores easily identifies eco-sensitive production, and indicates what greener materials were used. REI’s website is refreshingly transparent. When listing their eco-senstive materials, they included pros and cons of each item, acknowledging that some "greener" materials come at a cost, whether that be financial or environmental. This allows consumers to make more informed decisions when purchasing clothing. REI’s commitment to stewardship and sustainability is evident from their annual stewardship report, which showcases their progressive commitment to becoming climate neutral by 2020, building green buildings, using paper more responsibly, and reducing waste and packaging.

Kelli says: My husband loves his Slickrock pants. They’re comfortable, affordable, versatile (suitable hiking AND teaching) and, best of all, a little more sustainable. Oh yeah, he says they have awesome pockets, too. I’ve got my eye on the decidedly un-hippie hemp skirt I mentioned above.

My problem with The Lazy Environmentalist, green radio host Josh Dorfman's self-proclaimed "guide to easy, stylish, green living" isn't that it lacks information. It's actually a quite comprehensive guide to supporting green companies. I dog-eared multiple pages so I could visit websites of the companies in which I was interested. But it's not so much a guide to green living as it's a guide to green buying. I guess the tone set forth from the brief introduction rubbed me the wrong way:

These innovators make it easy for us to integrate environmental awareness into our lives. They understand that while so many of us are concerned about the environment, we don't always have the time, energy, or inclination to do something about it.

I only wish this was written in a less-than-serious voice. In my mind, if you don't have the "time, energy, or inclination" to do something about the environment, than you can hardly classify yourself as an environmentalist. You are looking to alleviate guilt for your conspicuous consumption, a culture of consumption that is devastating our planet. It's exactly the "culture of convenience" that's waging all-out war on our resources. Consider this passage from the chapter on cars:

There really is something for everyone–even those who drive Hummers, the most colossal of all urban assault vehicles…By offsetting the carbon dioxide emissions spewing from your car's tailpipe, TerraPass offers Hummer drivers eco-salvation.

Eco-salvation for Hummer drivers? A little too, oh, oxymoronic, for my tastes. Lazy is definitely geared towards a more high-end clientele, despite it's mention of Wal-Mart as an organic clothing retailer (Yeah, I know what you are thinking…I can't trust them quite yet, either).

Stepping off of my soapbox, for those of us who do have time, energy, and inclination to do something to lighten our footprint still have to buy goods and services, and Lazy provides a well-laid, well-written plan to finding greener versions of those goods and services. If you have to spend money, you might as well spend it on more sustainable products, right?

There are 22 chapters focusing on different products and services, from home furnishing to energy providers to media outlets (what, no shout out for Green Options?) Each chapter begins with a narrative insight into what practices these eco-companies are establishing to go green, then lists several companies, along with their websites and a brief description of what their business does or produces. Reading about different design innovations companies are using was fascinating (BraveSpace's hollow bamboo tables, anyone?), and I'll definitely check out many of the websites listed. If I'm going to save the planet, though, I've got better things to do.