[SustainableTompkins] Green Tips for the Holidays

[Marian Brown]

How to Have a “Greener” Holiday Season

Americans throw away 25% more trash during the Thanksgiving to New 
Year’s holiday season than any other time of year. **This extra garbage 
amounts to **25* million tons of trash. *

If every family in the U.S. reused just 2 feet of holiday ribbon, the 
*38,000 miles *of ribbon saved could tie a bow around the entire planet.

The 2.65 billion Christmas cards sold each year in the U.S. could fill a 
football field 10 stories high. If we each sent one card less, we’d save 
*50,000 cubic ** yards of paper. *


Tips for a Greener Holiday Season****

• Use reusable shopping bags. This will reduce the number of plastic 
bags that get trashed and minimize the amount of petroleum used to make 
them. If you receive plastic bags, remember to recycle the clean ones at 
your local grocery store.


• Send your holiday greetings in electronic form. E-cards can be 
enhanced with sound and animation and they create no physical waste.


• If you use traditional gift wrapping, avoid wrapping gifts in 
materials that are not recyclable or reusable, such as foil or metallic 
papers. Always buy recycled-content wrapping paper. If your store 
doesn't sell recycled-content wrapping paper, ask the manager to order 
it in the future.


• If you send holiday cards, buy recycled-content cards and envelopes. 
Or make your own cards or gift tags out of last year's cards and the 
wrapping paper you saved.


• Remove your name from the mailing list of any catalog you no longer 
wish to receive. Eliminate unwanted credit offers by calling 
1-888-5OptOut (1-888-567-8688) or visiting www.optoutprescreen.com 
<http://www.optoutprescreen.com>.


• Shipping a gift? Reuse the foam peanuts from another package, or use 
unbuttered popcorn for packing. Return unwanted Styrofoam packing 
PEANUTS to local UPS Stores <http://www.theupsstore.com/>. Please call 
before delivering.


• Rechargeable batteries and a battery charger are a great way to cut 
down on the consumption of batteries.


• Recycle your tree and wreath and put them out for curbside collection. 
Remove all lights, wire, tinsel, ornaments, nails, stands and other 
materials that are not part of the actual tree.


Green Gift-Giving Ideas

• Not sure what to get someone? How about a gift certificate?


• Make gifts. Everyone appreciates a home-cooked meal or baked goodies.


• Consider non-material gifts. Tickets to a sporting event, movie, play, 
or concert are a real treat! Or make a charitable donation in someone's 
name.

    (MMB note: I'm going to add on to this one - please DO consider
    giving a gift of support to an organization that does work you know
    your recipient values. Like books for the "Family Reading
    Partnership" or pet food to the SPCA. If you want some ideas for
    local support, check out the Alternative Gift Fair 2007 website for
    over 30 Ithaca-area organizations doing great work. Altho' the Fair
    is over, I know that each organization would happily accept your
    donation and provide you with a gift card suitable for "gifting" to
    a friend or loved one. http://www.ithacaaltgiftfair.org/

    Or consider OUR recent offer of a gift certificate for contributing
    toward IC's purchase Sulfur Dioxide Allowances:
    http://www.ithaca.edu/intercom/article.php/20071207154630524)

• Think durable! Consider how long an item will last before you make a 
purchase. Often, a cheaper item will wear out long before its more 
durable equivalent.


• Look for items made with recycled content.

Green Gift Wrapping Ideas

• Creative wrapping paper substitutes include used blueprint paper, the 
Sunday comics, or even the sports section for a sports enthusiast. 
Design your own wrapping paper using paper shopping bags: decorate them 
with paints, crayons, or markers.


• Replace tissue paper with old lace or strips of paper shopping bags or 
used gift wrap.


• Make gift boxes by wrapping tops and bottoms separately. Then reuse 
the boxes year after year; no need to rip away the wrapping paper!


• Save bows and wrapping paper for next year. Buy recycled-content gift 
wrap and greeting cards.

• Hang earrings, bracelets, or necklaces right on the Christmas tree, or 
put them inside or around an open ornament.


• *Wrap gifts for a*:

    - handyperson in a tool box.

    - sewing enthusiast in a fabric remnant and tie with a ribbon.

    - chef in a colorful dish towel; kitchen utensils can pop out of an

    oven mitt or use a colorful tablecloth to wrap dishes or dining room
    gifts.

    - gardener in a bucket or planter.

        /* Bob Lilienfeld/The Use Less Stuff Report/