‘Tis the season for shopping and presents, stuffing our faces and traveling to far places! But have you ever thought about how all of that holiday cheer increases your carbon footprint? Between buying, wrapping, traveling, festive lights, decorative trees, and celebrating, the end of year holidays substantially increase the amount of waste and electricity we generate which in turn, substantially increase our carbon footprints.
Luckily, there are tons of opportunities for us to be more sustainable this holiday season.
Let’s start with holiday shopping!
Best bet for a lower carbon footprint? Shop local and carpool with friends or take public transportation whenever possible. Don’t forget to bring your own reusable tote bags. Online shopping will keep you off the roads, but always keep in mind the distance your purchases will have to travel to get to you. Try to bundle your online purchases by making them at the same time and having them shipped to the same address. Anything with extended shipping time from Amazon is almost certainly coming from overseas and will have a higher carbon footprint.
As for the gifts themselves, what better way to introduce your friends and family to sustainability than by giving them sustainable gifts? Give eco-friendly gifts such as items made with recycled materials, items that are locally produced, organic and/or fair trade.
You can also consider gifting your loved ones with experiences like tickets to the movies, a concert, dinner at their favorite restaurant, or a trip to a museum. Or simply gift them with your time and talent this year. You can even donate to a non-profit organization in the name of a loved one.
Then again, why not make your own gifts? Edible gifts like cookies and cakes make fantastic and delicious gifts! Or you can use your creative skills to knit a scarf, crochet a hat and mittens, paint a picture, or even make your own jewelry. Personalized gifts made with heart can never go wrong!
It can be a little harder with kids who may not be super excited at the prospect of a homemade gift, so for the kids with smartphones, why not give them something from the App or Play store? No packaging, no traveling, no gift wrap required.
You’ve got your gifts, now what about wrapping them?
Instead of wrapping paper you can skip the paper and just use a bow to cut down on paper waste. Soft wrapping items like scarves, blankets, or towels are also a great alternative to wrapping paper. Even gift bags are a more sustainable option as they can be reused over and over again. Get creative! Try giving old materials new life by repurposing magazines, newspapers, maps, posters, or old calendars into wrapping paper.
What about making the wrapping a part of the gift? Give sustainable gifts in reusable tote bags for an extra dose of sustainability. But if wrapping paper is the only way to go, avoid metallic or plastic as it cannot be recycled.
On to the decorations!
When you want to put a little twinkle around your house, opt for Energy Star qualified LED lights. They’re 90% more efficient than traditional holiday lights and last longer.
Choose solar powered LED lights for outside.Connect them to a timer to turn them on at dusk and off when you hit the hay. And don’t forget to recycle your old lights. You can drop them off at a scrap metal dealer or search holiday light exchanges at your local stores.
As for other decorations, skip the tinsel, plastic, and most definitely skip the glitter. Glitter is basically already a microplastic which can pollute marine environments, leech chemicals into the water, and pose harm to marine life if they are ingested.
Instead, look to nature for your holiday decorations and ornaments. Remember the song? Deck the halls with boughs of holly… Holly, evergreen branches and cones make beautiful and also wonderful-smelling decorations. String together popcorn and cranberries, or make garland out of old jewelry, small stuffed animals or toys, trinkets, memorabilia, cookie cutters, buttons, or anything else your festive brain can imagine.
Lastly, the tree…
Real Christmas trees are a greener choice than artificial trees, and potted Christmas trees even more so, as they can be replanted after the holidays and enjoyed all year long and for years to come. Consider buying a potted tree with a root ball that is native to your area, and then you can plant your very own Christmas tree in your own backyard.
A 6-foot-tall artificial Christmas tree has a carbon footprint equivalent to 88 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions due to the way it’s manufactured. That’s twice that of a real tree that ends up in landfills. The carbon footprint of your real tree becomes even lower if you dispose of it for composting, which will help offset the emissions produced by your tree’s journey from where it grew up.
Then there’s always a good old-fashioned Festivus pole! Simplicity at its Seinfeld-based finest! It’s an aluminum pole. Requires no decoration. Tinsel is distracting (aside from not being eco-friendly).
Keep in mind, the best way to have a sustainable holiday is to simplify. When you simplify the holidays you often reduce your costs, stress and waste.
Let’s have a happy and sustainable holiday season! Do you have tips for celebrating this holiday season more sustainably? We’d love to hear them!
