Submitted by CCPR
The approaching holiday season brings with it a lot of cheer, family time, and delicious meals. But did you know that it also brings about an incredible amount of waste?
Between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, Americans throw away a million extra tons of garbage each week, including holiday wrapping and packaging. We also use more electricity on holiday lights than some countries use in an entire year. It may seem daunting, but if enough people implement small changes – we can make measurable impact. Keep reading for some easy switches.
- Wrap your gift with a gift.
Wrap your gift with a gift! You can also make your own wrapping paper or go without. Most mass-produced wrapping paper you find in stores is not recyclable because of the shiny coatings, foils, and colors, and therefore ends up in landfills.
Instead, here’s a great chance to get creative! Wrap presents with old maps, the comics section of a newspaper, or children’s artwork. Or use a scarf, attractive dish towel, bandana, or some other useful cloth item that is a gift in and of itself. Some of CCPR’s favorites include using pretty leaves and twigs and tying it all with natural twine. We are real nature nerds over here.
- Decorate your home with LED lights.
Thanks to technology, you can now decorate your house with LED lights that use 90 percent less energy than conventional holiday lights and can save your family up to $50 on your energy bills during the holiday season! As a bonus, LEDs release little heat, and they last about 200,000 hours. In the unlikely event that one does burn out, the rest of the lights keep on glowing.
According to a U.S. Department of Energy study, if everyone replaced their conventional holiday light strings with LEDs, at least two billion kilowatt-hours of electricity could be saved in a month. The savings would be enough to power 200,000 homes for a year.
- Stuff stockings with yummy natural treats.
Stuff stockings with yummy natural treats. Stocking stuffers tend to be small, plastic trinkets that end up broken, lost, or in the garbage by the end of January. Instead, fill your stockings with delicious healthy treats like dried fruit, nuts, Clementines, or homemade holiday cookies.
- Add local foods to your holiday feast.
Add local foods to your holiday feast. Support local family farmers who grow sustainable meat and produce. Not only does local, organic food taste better, but you’ll also be doing your part for your community and the planet too. There are numerous local farms right here in Hamilton County that would be happy to welcome your business this season.
- Give experiential or consumable gifts.
Give experiential or consumable gifts. Returning unwanted gifts is not only inconvenient: Every holiday season gift returns generate about 15,000 pounds of CO2. Leisure psychology research shows us that experiences make us happier than possessions anyway. What are some good examples? A good book, concert, or museum tickets, or even an indoor herb garden starter kit.
Depending on the person’s interest, a Monon Community Center membership or a personal/professional development course voucher may be right up their alley. You can even go lower-budget and high-connection time with gifting a homemade dinner or a day trip to a cozy town nearby.
- Buy a real Christmas tree.
Buy a real tree and then recycle your tree at the end of the holiday. Buying a real Christmas tree is more eco-friendly than having a reusable fake tree. Real trees are a renewable natural resource. During the time it takes a tree to grow, it is absorbing carbon dioxide, filtering the air, and releasing oxygen. It also provides habitat for songbirds and other wildlife.
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This holiday season, consider being more sustainable and adopt a few (or all) of these suggestions. Not only will you feel better about doing your part for the environment, but it may save you some money as well.
Happy Holidays from your friends at Carmel Clay Parks & Recreation!