The holidays can be stressful. We travel near and far to be with family and loved ones, plan lavish meals and celebrations, and do everything we can to ensure we have the perfect gifts for the season. This is a lot to do while we continue to work, go to school and meet the demands of everyday life. The environment and our carbon footprint are generally the last things on our mind. But what if we could do both? Enjoy and celebrate the holidays while promoting sustainability and Eco-friendly practices.
This year we have you covered. Check out our Eco-friendly survival guide to making your holiday the best and the greenest yet!
1. Departure from Stuff: Give the Traveler in your Life Gift Experiences.
· Cooking course.
· Walking or biking city tour.
· City and museum cards.
· Boat trip or city cruise.
2. Reduce Packaging Waste in Amazon Orders.
Those concerned about packaging in their Amazon orders can email Amazon’s customer service team at cs-reply@amazon.com to request minimal plastic packaging inside their orders. Shoppers can also look for items that offer “frustration-free packaging.” This packaging is recyclable and often comes without excess packaging materials.
3. Buy Eco-Friendly Holiday Gifts.
· For the person with a green thumb, gift them an herb growing kit or vertical garden.
· For the thrifter, visit your local charity thrift store and find the perfect treasure.
· For the philanthropist, offer to donate to your loved one’s favorite nonprofit instead of buying them a gift.
4. Reduce Food Waste. Use your holiday leftovers to create new dishes. Check out these recipe ideas from our friends at CalRecycle. Who knew leftovers could create so many delicious treats?!
5. Recycle Right after the Holidays. The recyclable items below can be taken to one of our Household Hazardous Waste Collection Centers for free! If you have something to recycle that you do not see here, visit Earth911 to find out where you can recycle your item.
· Recyclable:
Ø Gift cards.
Ø Holiday lights.
Ø Used batteries.
Ø Old electronics.
· Not-Recyclable:
Ø Tinsel cannot be recycled so if you do use it, repurposes it in another project.
Ø Flocked trees contain chemicals that prevent composting and require the tree to be landfilled.
Ø Cards and/or wrapping paper with glitter, metallic and/or plastic coasting use mixed materials that prevent recycling.
