[FLPERMACULTURE] Fwd: [SustainableTompkins] Local Eco-friendly Holiday Cards

[Michael Burns]

Begin forwarded message:

> From: "Jan Quarles" <janq at zoom-dsl.com>
> Date: November 29, 2006 10:05:57 AM EST
> To: "Sustainable Tompkins County listserv"  
> <sustainabletompkins at lists.mutualaid.org>
>
> Where to get eco-friendly locally-made holiday cards:
>
> When I realized Unicef did not offer cards on recycled, unbleached  
> paper, I
> wrote to them requesting they include that choice next year. Then I
> contacted Acorn Designs --  www.acorndesigns.org  (tel: 607-387-3424)  
> -- the
> notecard company in Trumansburg supporting our local artists. I was  
> happy to
> discover their volume discounts for locally-made holiday cards on  
> recycled
> paper are just as affordable as Unicef's. Including the recycled  
> envelopes,
> you pay $1/ea for 100+; $1.10/ea for 50-99; or $1.15/ea for 25-49  
> cards.
>
> Acorn Designs offers many beautiful wintry designs, including regional
> scenes, and they're blank inside so you can personalize your message.  
> They
> also include inspirational and informative texts on the back. You can  
> even
> arrange to pick them up at their booth at the Ithaca Farmers' Market.
>
> Happy Holidays to all who love Mother Earth! - Jan Quarles, Sheldrake,  
> NY
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Elan Shapiro" <elansla at ecovillage.ithaca.ny.us>
> To: <sustainabletompkins at lists.mutualaid.org>
> Sent: Wednesday, November 29, 2006 7:27 AM
> Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Tips for Greener Holiday
>
>
>> The Green Challenge guide to the holidays
>> By Meaghan O'Neill and treehugger.com
>> Updated Monday, Nov. 27, 2006, at 10:54 AM ET
>>
>> Ah, the holidays-season of tinsel and trash. With all the parties and
>> presents, Americans, on average, increase their garbage by 25 percent
>> from Thanksgiving to New Year's, according to the Environmental
>> Protection Agency. That comes to a total of more than 25 million
>> tons. From manufacturing, boxing, and wrapping presents, to carting
>> them to store shelves and doors, lighting up our houses, and
>> traveling elsewhere, this is a time of CO2 hangovers, as well as the
>> food and drink kind.
>>
>> So, what's a carbon-conscious consumer to do? The simplest way to
>> stay on your carbon diet is to consume less than you have in previous
>> years. But that doesn't mean you have to be Scrooge. (After all, you
>> certainly don't want to end up with
>> <http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/07/weather_makers.php>coal in
>> your stocking when
>> <http://www.treehugger.com/files/2005/01/willie_nelsons_1.php>biofuel
>> is the new carbon-savvy you.) Just don't binge.
>>
>> As a general rule, it's hard to say whether it's better to shop
>> online or off. There's the gas it takes to get products and you to
>> the mall versus the fuel and extra packaging it takes to ship goods
>> to you or the person you're giving them to. And then there's time and
>> convenience, always at a premium. It's a lot to balance. To that end,
>> some holiday pointers:
>>
>> * When shopping online or by mail order, consolidate your orders into
>> as few shipments as possible.
>>
>> * Consider the benefits of buying locally made goods, which aren't
>> transported over long distances to get to you. Or could you buy
>> antiques as presents? They're all about recycling and reuse.
>>
>> * Consider also gifts such as tickets to a play or concert, a museum
>> membership, or art classes. They don't come with boxes and wrapping
>> (and won't get shoved on the back of a shelf). Check out TreeHugger's
>> <http://www.treehugger.com/files/2005/12/holiday_gift_gu_3.php>roundup
>> of holiday gift certificates.
>>
>> * Could you reduce the number of holiday shopping trips you make, to
>> save on gas? Could you bring reusable shopping bags? Most paper bags
>> are made from virgin paper. Plastic ones are less CO2 intensive to
>> make, but they're still made with petroleum and take hundreds of
>> years to decompose in the landfill.
>>
>> * If you're sending gifts by mail, choose small, light packages,
>> which take up less space and fuel than big, heavy ones.
>>
>> * If you're buying gifts for kids, toys made from natural materials
>> such as wood and organic cotton are better for your CO2 count than
>> stuff made from plastic, which is derived from fossil fuels.
>>
>> * Wrapping paper-usually made from virgin materials-is a large part
>> of the holiday-waste stream. And if it's shiny or sparkly, it can't
>> even be recycled. If every household wrapped three gifts in recycled
>> materials (reused
>> <http://www.treehugger.com/files/2005/03/mapwrap_repurpo.php>maps or
>> cloth make great trimmings), we'd save reams and reams of paper.
>> (Here's <http://www.cygnus-group.com/use-less-stuff/>one
>> calculation.) Other alternatives include buying gift-wrap made from
>> recycled paper or
>> <http://www.treehugger.com/files/2005/09/hemp_gift_wrap.php>hemp and
>> flax. While you're at it, try
>> <http://www.treehugger.com/files/2005/08/ 
>> biodegradable_c_1.php>Sellotape,
>> which is made from biodegradable plant cellulose.
>>
>> * Every year, 2.65 billion holiday cards are sold in the United
>> States. If you're buying, choose cards made from recycled paper and
>> avoid the shiny can't-recycle kind. Even better is to send e-cards.
>> And recycle the nonshiny cards you receive.
>>
>> * A deluge of catalogs has probably already descended upon your
>> mailbox. It takes 14 million trees to produce the mail-order books we
>> receive annually. And along with direct mailings, catalogs account
>> for more than 4 million tons of CO2-emitting landfill mass.
>> <http://www.democracyinaction.org/dia/organizationsORG/newdream/ 
>> campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=5078&t=default.dwt>Encourage
>> the catalogs you like to use recycled paper and get off the mailing
>> lists of those you don't want.
>> <http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/09/greendimes_more.php>Read
>> this to find out how.
>>
>> *
>> <http://www.treehugger.com/files/2004/12/how_to_pick_a_g.php>Christmas
>> trees are a topic of much environmentalist debate. Fake trees are
>> reusable but are made from petroleum-derived sources and often
>> shipped from abroad. Real trees, for their part, are typically
>> sprayed with lots of pesticides. And
>> <http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/07/christmas_trees.php>new
>> research shows that pine-tree farms capture less CO2 than the
>> hardwood species they're displacing in some parts of the country.
>> <http://www.ecobusinesslinks.com/organic_christmas_trees.htm>Organic
>> Christmas trees are tough to come by. Plus, of the 33 million real
>> Christmas trees sold in North America every year, many end up in a
>> landfill, emitting carbon dioxide as they rot. If you opt for a real
>> tree, be sure to bring it to a <http://www.earth911.org/>local
>> recycling center, where it can be chipped for mulch or used whole to
>> stabilize wetlands. A better choice may be to purchase a live,
>> <http://www.treehugger.com/files/2005/11/potted_christma.php>potted
>> tree, which can be
>> <http://www.sheridannurseries.com/GardenSite/ 
>> subGARDENTIP43mainframe.htm>planted
>> outside after the holidays. Evergreen varieties such as pine, spruce,
>> and fir work well in many regions.
>>
>> * Replace conventional incandescent holiday string lights with their
>> light-emitting diode counterparts. These
>> <http://www.treehugger.com/files/2005/11/inexpensive_led.php>energy- 
>> efficient
>> strings use up to 95 percent less electricity, last up to 10 times
>> longer, and are safer since they produce very little heat. LED lights
>> are more expensive, but you'll shave a few dollars off your
>> electricity bill and pounds off your carbon weight. And unlike
>> conventional light strings, if one bulb goes bad on an LED string,
>> the rest will still work. No matter what type of lights you use,
>> limit yourself to keeping them on for four or five hours a day, and
>> turn them off at night.
>>
>> * Skip the tinsel and other decorations made from
>> fossil-fuel-intensive plastics.
>>
>> * If you're decorating with candles, choose the ones made from
>> <http://www.treehugger.com/files/2005/03/bluewick_soy_ca_1.php>soy
>> wax or
>> <http://www.treehugger.com/files/2005/12/ 
>> treehugger_holi_2.php>beeswax.
>> Both are renewable resources, as opposed to regular paraffin candles,
>> which are made from petroleum.
>>
>> * For holiday parties, rent real plates, glasses, and silverware (or
>> use your own) instead of using the disposable kind.
>>
>> * Consider staying close to home rather than blowing your CO2 budget
>> on high-emissions travel to faraway places.
>>

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