The greenest school supply is the one that survives until June

The greenest school supply is the one that survives until June, which means skipping flimsy “eco” novelty items and buying boring, repairable basics.

The trap with eco-friendly school supplies is that brands know green sells, so they push out bamboo pencil cases and “biodegradable” plastic folders that literally crumble by Thanksgiving. A biodegradable product that dies in your kid’s backpack did not save the planet — it just made you buy a second one. Durability is the actual environmental feature.

Here’s what to look for: metal over plastic, refillable over disposable, repairable over sealed. Stainless steel water bottles, mechanical pencils that take leads, pens with