Although digital documents are quickly replacing their paper counterparts, the former are still very common. It can be difficult to keep paper documents organized, so having the right tools is essential. Keep reading to find out what tools and supplies can help you get – and stay – organized.

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Reading and collecting books are terrific hobbies. Not only can these activities be enjoyed by people of all ages, they can help open one’s mind, stimulate the imagination, and educate like few other endeavors can. The only real drawback to being a bookworm is that books take up a lot of space and it can be easy to lose track of the titles you have in your collection – especially if you own a lot of books. However, it can be pretty easy to organize your collection and there are a few different ways to do it. Let’s take a look at them….

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Today’s society is growing more aware of our affect on the environment.  As a result, companies are producing items designed to help instead of harm the earth.  However, along with this comes a plethora of new terms.  While people in these industries may be used to these words and phrases, they can be confusing to others.  Here is a list of commonly used words and their meanings.

• Air Pollution: Consists of airborne particles that have a negative affect on the environment and/or human health.
• Alternative Energy: refers to clean energy that doesn’t come from a nonrenewable resource such as oil, natural gas or coal.
• Biodegradable: Materials which decompose naturally by the action of living organisms and are absorbed by the ecosystem without harmful effects on the environment.
• Carbon Footprint:  A measure of the amount of carbon dioxide emitted, usually expressed in annual tons.
• Compostable: Organic material that decomposes in aerobic conditions, often within several months.
• Conservation: Preserving and renewing resources, both human and natural; ensuring these resources as efficiently as possible.
• Eco-Friendly: Having little or no negative impact on the ecosystem.
• Emissions:  The release of materials, whether liquids, gasses, or solids, from a process or industry.
• Energy Efficient: Products that require less energy to perform as well or better than their traditional counterparts.
• Environmentally Friendly: This refers to products that are manufactured to have little impact on the environment.
• Forest Stewardship Council (FSC): The FSC is a nonprofit organization that seeks “to promote environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial, and economically viable management of the world’s forests.” They decide standards for forestry management and work with other organizations to certify products as being ecologically responsible.
• Global warming: Refers to an overall warming of the climate.
• Green: Products labeled as “green” are generally energy efficient, recyclable, made from recycled materials, and often durable and repairable.  “Green” companies use recycled materials, support sustainable processes, recycle and reuse materials when possible, and work toward having little or no negative impact on the environment.
• Landfill: The place where unwanted items are dumped and left to decompose.
• Non-renewable resources: Those that are finite in supply, such as coal, natural gas, and oil.
• PEVA (polyethylene vinyl acetate): a chlorine-free alternative to plastics made of PVC that is considered less harmful.
• Polyvinyl chloride (PVC): Commonly known as “vinyl”,  this is a plastic widely used in many products. While not harmful in itself, the manufacturing of vinyl releases dioxins, one of the most potent carcinogens known by science.
• Post-Consumer Waste:  Materials that have already been used for their intended purpose. Examples include recycled tin cans, glass jars, and paper.  Re-purposing these materials keeps them out of landfills.
• Pre-consumer or Post-Industrial: This refers to scraps leftover from the manufacturing process and other items never intended for consumer use.
• Rapidly Renewable: These include resources that come from quickly growing sources, such as bamboo, flax, wheat, wool, and some types of wood; they generally only need limited chemical processing.
• Recyclability or Recyclable: Items labeled as this can be reused or re-purposed.
• Recycled/Recovered Materials: Discarded materials that aren’t deposited into a landfill but used in the manufacturing of new items.
• Recycling: The process collecting, separating, and reusing unwanted materials.
• Renewable Energy: Alternative energy sources that aren’t depleted when used; examples include solar energy and wind power.
• Renewable Resources:  Similar to renewable energy, resources that can be replaced as fast as they are used, such as sunlight, hydroelectricity, and well-managed forests.
• Sustainable: The use of natural resources to meet current needs without harming future use.
• Waste Reduction: The process of decreasing or eliminating the amount of waste created at the source.

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There’s only a couple more weeks left in the year, so it’s a good time to start thinking about New Year’s resolutions. One particularly good resolution is getting organized. Being organized entails keeping track of appointments and deadlines, as well as dealing with paperwork and the like. If you want to get organized in the coming year, here are some tools you can use. Check them out!

1.)    A three-ring binders and some index tabs. These are extremely important supplies to have around if you want to get organized. You can store just about anything in a three-ring binder. For example, if you’re into cooking, you can keep your recipes in one. (This is much more convenient than writing them on those little index cards and storing them in a box.) If you’re into photography, you can organize your proofs in binder as well as slides. And, of course, binders are perfect for storing and organizing school work, correspondence, bills, and more. Index tabs can help you divide up your materials as necessary so you can flip to the right section to quickly find what you need. Be sure to have a good three-hole punch handy so you can prepare your materials for the binder(s).

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More people today are choosing recycled products than ever before.  But when you go to purchase items, it’s easy to forget which brand uses recycled materials versus not.  To help you out, we’ve put together a list of top brands of three ring binders containing recycled materials.

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