Green Options

Any parent knows that children love cardboard boxes.  Often, the box a present comes in encourages more creative play than the toy it once contained.  Imagination Box Co. was born out of this cardboard creativity.

After raising three kids and seeing how much waste there was in the toy industry, we said, “NO MORE,” and began making many of our children’s toys. An old box became a way to stimulate their creativity and recycle at the same time. They loved them and so did the neighborhood kids. It took about 17 years, but…voila…Imagination Box Co was born!

Made in the USA, Imagination Box Co. toys are completely recyclable and made from 45% post consumer materials.  Each set comes with watercolors, so that your child may decorate and assemble their own toy. For my eight-year-old daughter, it has provided hours of entertainment and excitement.

I have a number of ideas for great eco toys this year since being involved with the Eco Toy Test sponsored by Eco Child’s Play and the Goddard Schools. We had over 50 entries from great green toys companies and because we’ve created a Facebook and Flickr, we have an excellent shopping guide if you’re looking for gift ideas.

Since October is National Breast Cancer Awareness month, it’s fitting that Dandelion Earth-Friendly Goods just launched their new Pink Collection, a special group of organic baby toys that will help benefit breast cancer research.

If you’re not familiar with Dandelion, they have all the “eco-ssentials” for babies including rattles, teethers, development toys and even toddler feeding products made from corn. Their classic shape sorter even made Dr. Toy’s best green product list for 2009.

We’ve made a special effort to encourage toymakers of all sizes to enter as we search for the greenest toys under $25.00. We’re all interested in maximizing our dollars these days and I’ve been surprised to find out just how many relatively inexpensive green toys there are!

Say “bye bye” to toys made of bad plastic and covered in lead paint. Instead reach for the wood- wooden toys that is.

Plan Toys offer superior quality wood toys made with environmentally friendly kiln dried, chemical free, rubberwood. They also use E-Zero glue, water based non-toxic colors, and recycled and recyclable materials. And at Plan Toys they do everything with “green” in mind.

Rosie Hippo shares the “green” passion and sells only ethical, quality, eco-friendly toys for children.

How does a small company compete against the big guys in the toy industry? In particular as pointed out by Wendy Johnson, with Birchtree designs writing on the contest Facebook page:

The search is on for the Top 10 Eco Friendly Toys of 2009, and we need your help!

Goddard Child Development Centers and EcoChildsPlay are proud to sponsor the Second Annual Eco-Friendly Toy Test, which will evaluate the best green toys for preschool and early elementary-aged children based on the creative, child-engaging qualities, the interactive qualities, the price, and the eco friendliness of the product.

I always intended to get Layla the Haba Baby Walker Wagon, but starting at $150; it was an expensive purchase that I hesitated over. I am so happy I hesitated, because I came across Plan Toys baby walker that we totally love {great sustainable and safe toy company}. The Plan Toys baby walker is sustainable, because its material is composed of all natural Organic recycled Rubber Wood. The traditional walker is sturdy, comes in natural and primary colors to encourage visual play, and best of all; it also comes with a set of 24 very substantial and colorful blocks. This is the PERFECT toy for budding walkers, but can also be great for toddlers too.

Some of the features of the Plan Toys Baby Walker:

• There are two adjustable height for infants as well as for toddlers.
• And I mentioned previously, it does come with a set of blocks. If you have seen how much a set of blocks costs these days; you know that this is a huge perk. These are some serious blocks and very large sized; so no worries about a choking hazard. If the walker does not; then the blocks will provide entertainment for hours.  Block toys are one the greatest toys to encourage learning and creativity.
• Made in Thailand out of sustainable and recycled rubber wood
• Has gotten accolades from other moms which is always reassuring

Here’s a basic marketing tip: Don’t position your product as green.  Well, not primarily green. Instead, position your products and services first as delivering core consumer benefits then-as a second set of attributes-green. You may even find that your competitors are not onto this savvy positioning strategy.

A couple weeks ago I was looking for examples of this principle. I wanted to show how a company’s marketing message should extend beyond greenness to appeal to other core consumer attributes people expect from a good products.  I put out a query on HARO and received dozens of interesting products.  Of those, five stood out.

The first thing I noticed about Vers iPod Docks is that they are incredibly beautiful.  But, they first thing theat Vers wants you to know about their products is that they sound great. They let the fact that they have been touted as the most environmentally friendly iPod dock available speak for itself and focus instead on the benefits that consumer’s want in a an iPod dock: Great sound and good looks.  In the words of David Laituri, partner in Sprout Creation makers of Vers products:

“We tend to focus on superior sound quality and design, and environmental thoughtfulness a fast second. Since our sustainable design efforts are a work in progress, we avoid ‘green’ and ‘environmentally friendly’ whenever possible.”

Green Toys are made out of recycled milk containers and are made in the USA (so from a supply chain position they are very environmentally sound.) Green Toys are also packaged in recycled corrugated boxes with no plastics, cellophane or twist-ties, and are 100% recyclable. But most importantly, they positioned as safe (they contain no traceable amounts of Phthalates or BPA and have no external coatings with lead paint) and fun (they are chunky and colorful and beg to be played with).

Fancy a new online store for eco-friendly children’s products?  Green product website Ambitious Green calls itself a “fun place to buy great products at the center of today’s environmental issues, concerns, and debates.”

Says Ambitious Green: “We think the environment and education are challenging debates worth having. Every time you make a buying decision you are telling manufacturers and the market what’s important to you.   We share the same frustrations you do - finding products that are natural, functional, friendly and fun. We believe that what’s good  for you can be good for the planet.”

Here are a few of the latest toys at Ambitious Green:

Dancing Alligator, $19.99 (shown above) “This award-winning, wooden alligator pull toy struts his stuff as he wiggles, bobs and click-clacks along.”  These toys are made in Thailand by Plan Toys, a green company that emphasizes socially responsible manufacturing.   It’s green because it’s made of organic rubberwood, non-formaldehyde E-Zero Glue, water-based dye, recycled and recyclable material and soy ink and water-based ink.

With all the cold, overcast weather we’ve had here in Atlanta, I have to say we’ve time our vacation perfectly. Okay, so we actually had no choice in the matter thanks to my husband job, but still, heading to the beach in the dead of winter sounds practically perfect to me. So, in exactly one week (oh yes, I’m counting), I’ll be packing up my family of five and shoving off to a warm beach destination, which in the past has meant one gigantic eco nightmare.

Granted, it is vacation and so it’s going to be hard to keep things as green minded as I usually try to be, but thanks to so many exciting new products, it’s not that hard to go green on vacation.

Whether you’re flying off to an island resort, or just taking a long drive South for the winter, here are some great products that will help lessen your carbon footprint and still enjoy the sun and sand.