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Save the Earth
Keep your celebrations environmentally friendly with these great tips.
By Beth Maher
Artwork by John Woodcock
- Waste not, want not. Keep overpackaged goods off your holiday shopping list. Instead, opt for eco-friendly gifts—homemade treats, charitable donations, products containing recycled materials.
- Reuse wrapping. Save the planet—one gift at a time—with recyclable wrapping. Tea towels, fabric bags and newsprint look great. In fact, if every Canadian wrapped just three gifts this way, it would conserve enough paper to cover 45,000 hockey rinks!
- Tree-cycle. Try a potted Christmas tree, which you can replant in your yard in the spring. No yard? No problem. Most municipalities offer tree-recycling programs. (If you’re going the fake-tree route, purchase a well-made one that will last for many years, as the manufacture of plastic trees isn’t good for the environment.)
- LED the way. Easy on your wallet and the environment, LEDs last up to seven times longer and use up to 90 percent less electricity than traditional seasonal lights. Set them on a timer to ensure that they don’t burn all night long.
- Green greetings. Spread some holiday cheer with plantable stationery. Winnipeg-based Botanical PaperWorks sells seeded holiday cards that grow into spruce trees when planted. (Or, consider sending e-cards instead.)
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