Green Holiday Guide

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With the winter holidays in full swing, it is easy to forget about being sustainable in the consumer society traditions of gift buying, exquisite wrapping, parties and decorating. This blog provides some easy steps you can take to make your holidays have a minimal impact on the environment whilst maximizing the holiday spirit and fun.

Decorations

  • When buying holiday decorations, purchase durable and reusable items that are made out of natural materials whenever possible
  • For holidays that require candles, use natural options like beeswax, soy or vegetable oil ones and when the candles are lit, turn off as many lights as you can
  • If possible, consider electric candles that use LED lights, and use rechargeable batteries
  • Make decorations from scraps lying around the house, like old milk cartons, wood chippings or egg cartons
  • Look for labels such as: renewable, biodegradable, recycled/recyclable, energy saving, reduced toxicity, certified green, and buy locally made items whenever possible

Gifts

  • If someone has given you a gift you will not use, keep it so that you can give it to someone else as a present (just make sure it’s not the same person!)
  • Depending on the person, if you have something lying around that does not look used; give that away (and tell them it is vintage)
  • When buying gifts, opt for items that have the least packaging and are fair trade and locally made
  • Give gifts that are durable and not disposable
  • For children, give gifts that encourage children to learn, play with other children, or go outside (i.e. museum tickets, books, art supplies, FSC certified items)
  • If giving wine, choose organic and local
  • Look for labels such as: organic, local, fair trade
  • Give plants as gifts; look for ones that improve air quality and other positive health affects

Gift Wrapping

  • Rather than buying gift paper, consider reusable gift bags, or tying a bow around the item
  • Use old paper bags, recycled brown kraft paper and biodegradable natural twine
  • Cut up old holiday cards to use as gift tags
  • Get children to go on a treasure hunt for the items so that you do not have to wrap them and tell them to look for their assigned colored bow

Holiday, Invite and Thank you Cards

  • Go paperless; send e-mails, evites, text messages, or use a social media outlet like Facebook
  • If you must use paper cards, use ones that are made from recyclable materials that can be recycled again

Food

Options at York:

  • Lunik Café: http://lunikcoop.com/
  • Farmer’s Market (Thursday @ TEL 12-4)
  • Las Nubes Student Association (fair trade, sustainable gift baskets from $10)
  • Freshii: https://www.freshii.com/ca
  • Use reusable cutlery and dinnerware over disposable
  • Buy food appropriate for the amount of people coming
  • Compost food waste as much as possible

Event Planning

  • Invitations: consider paperless like text messaging, e-mail, evites and social media
  • Use LED or natural/beeswax candle lighting; turn off unneeded lights
  • Have accessible composting and recycling bins
  • Arrange for and advertise shuttle bus, limos, taxi, carpooling and public transit
  • When buying your outfit, get one that can be worn again and try and buy fair trade, local and organic materials
  • Spread the word; tell your friends how easy it was for you to incorporate these sustainable options into your holidays
  • See the following link for more information: http://www.yorku.ca/susweb/whatyoucando/susevent/

Links to green-friendly holiday sites:

Hanukah

Christmas

Kwanzaa

Winter Solstice

New Years

Boxing Day

Farah

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