Question of the Week: How are you going green for the holidays?
Posted on November 17th, 2008 - 10:30 AMEach week we ask a question related to the environment. Please let us know your thoughts as comments. Feel free to respond to earlier comments or post new ideas. Previous questions.
During the holiday season we shop, decorate, entertain, and travel more than usual. But all these activities can affect the environment, for example, with more energy used for lighting, or increased recycling.
How are you going green for the holidays?
En español: Cada semana hacemos una pregunta relacionada al medio ambiente. Por favor comparta con nosotros sus pensamientos y comentarios. Siéntase en libertad de responder a comentarios anteriores o plantear nuevas ideas. Preguntas previas.
Durante las fiestas normalmente compramos, decoramos, agasajamos y viajamos más de lo habitual. Sin embargo, estas actividades afectan el medio ambiente, por ejemplo, al utilizar más energía para el alumbrado o aumentar el reciclaje.
¿Cómo piensa adoptar prácticas verdes durante las fiestas?
Tags: Energy, holidays, recycle
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Question of the Week
November 17th, 2008 at 11:11 am
Santa wraps the toys he brings in paper, but we put almost all of the gifts from us to the boys (think socks, pjs, books etc) in bags that we use year after year. We just stuff them all back into the biggest bag which goes back into storage till the following year. This also cuts down on the amount of energy mom and dad have to spend wrapping the night before!
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Ayaat Al-zuad reply on November 20, 2008 7:23 pm:
I agree and heres another idea save the wrapping paper for the following years.
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Jeffrey Levy reply on November 21, 2008 12:10 am:
Yep, that’s what we do. In fact, we so rarely use new paper that a roll of it is a gift in and of itself!
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November 17th, 2008 at 11:46 am
Over the years, my husband and I have moved away from giving people large numbers of gifts … most of the folks I know don’t really need more “stuff”, any more than I do. Instead, we give them gift certificates for household repairs and small building projects (hubby and I are pretty handy and are willing to tackle various fix-it chores), or gift cards to a favorite restaurant. We also make donations in their names to various charitable organizations.
This will be our first year of using LED Christmas lights–I’m so glad those are available now. We use an artificial tree, so that gets put away carefully so it can be reused for many more years. Some of my favorite ornaments are things I made myself out of recycled items. Twenty-five years on, I still love those simple ornaments.
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Stephen reply on December 3, 2008 11:33 pm:
Be careful with the LED lights, we were going to replace all ours with LED until there was a bulb out and we tried to find a replacement. They don’t make replacement bulbs like they do for regular lights, there are only two replacements included with the string (Yellow, and Red), so if a green or blue one goes out so sorry.
We also found out that the bulb colors are different voltages (2.0 volts for the yellow and red, 3.2 volts for the blue and green) so if you put one of the included replacements into a blue socket be prepared that the higher voltage will burn out the bulb quicker. The LEDs also don’t blink.
After asking around and researching them on the internet, these new LED lights are meant to be thrown out and replaced (not so green, me thinks).
We will be replacing some of the lights with LEDs, but only the clear ones so if there is a problem we can just get an entire string to use for replacements. Maybe next year they will have replacements for the colored lights.
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Jeffrey Levy, EPA reply on December 4, 2008 1:12 am:
Good info, Stephen. Thanks. It’s a shame that such a green concept as high-efficiency lights is implemented by the manufacturers in such a brown way.
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November 17th, 2008 at 2:31 pm
PRETENDO NO UTILIZAR ILUMINCION EN LA CASA O LA INDISPENSABLE ASI COMO ADORNOS LUMINICENTES QUE BRILLEN CON LA LUZ INDIRECTA Y QUE LOS PUEDA GUARDAR PARA EL AÑO SIGUIENTE
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November 17th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
Cutting down a natural field grown evergreen tree. Very natural and will be replaced by other trees as the seasons progress.
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November 17th, 2008 at 2:35 pm
For the last 3 years, I’ve purchased a living tree to decorate instead of a dead tree that will be thrown away or recycled. It’s a bit more money but not much considering the amount Christmas tree vendors ask these days!
After the holiday,, and before the new year arrives, I plant the tree and so far, have a little community of very happy “Christmas tree” conifers.
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Mary G reply on November 17, 2008 2:58 pm:
That’s exactly what we do! It’s great when we look back at the line of trees on the side of our home and see each tree from the past years! Our memories become a living part of the forest. :)
I couldn’t stand the idea of cutting down a tree every year, and fake trees seem so artificial. By bringing a living tree into your home, it not only looks beautiful but smells nice and is safer than dried out cut trees. It’s fun, too, to change up the type of tree you get. Sometimes, we get trees that don’t look exactly like a Christmas trees, but it’s fun!
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November 17th, 2008 at 2:36 pm
Something my family has been doing the past few years is having holiday dinners at my aunt’s house, instead of separatly. Since we all eat together, we don’t have as many left-overs, and we don’t buy as much meat. Since we don’t buy as much as we would if we ate separatly, we don’t use as much, so there’s less being used overall because there’s more for other people to use.
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November 17th, 2008 at 2:37 pm
Over the last few years I have moved away from giving people “stuff” instead I give membership gift cards to warehouse stores and things like gourmet coffee. For the kids I concentrate in one big gift.
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November 17th, 2008 at 2:38 pm
We’re using LED lights outside this year rather than the standard Christmas lights. We won’t be buying any new ornaments since we have plenty of our own and all of my Mom’s as well.
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November 17th, 2008 at 2:42 pm
Instead of electric tree lights I’ll be hooking up small hoses to natural gas burners on my Christmas tree. This will save electricity and help keep the house warm.
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John reply on November 20, 2008 8:31 am:
KennyR - that alone, was worth visiting this site. Thanks for the laugh!
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Mary G reply on November 20, 2008 11:30 am:
I didn’t notice this was funny until now.
:) I hope you’re kidding. That would cause major fire… unless you somehow covered it with SF-6
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November 17th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
We haven’t bought wrapping paper or gift cards in years. Instead, we have our 5-year-old make ours out of recycled paper. No paper? No problem! I even use cloth from clothes that are no longer reparable (and the clothes are always from the thrift store, too, so that’s recyclingx3!). A little hot glue or decorative stitching and the result is very beautiful and unique gift wrapping.
We also try to give consumable gifts whenever possible (e.g. movie tickets, cookie or bread mixes, etc.). For adult family members, we all agree to give ourselves the gift of no gift shopping for each other - by forgoing gifts entirely for adults, we don’t wind up with a bunch of stuff we don’t need (and probably don’t even want). And maybe we even start to remember that it’s not supposed to be about gifts anyway!
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November 17th, 2008 at 2:56 pm
How I have chosen to go green for the holidays is by utilizing a recyclable tree instead of buying a tree that has been cut down from our wooded areas. I believe that not purchasing that one tree a year could contribute to saving many trees in at least my lifetime.
My green way of giving back
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Jessica reply on November 25, 2008 11:12 am:
What is a recyclable tree? Do you mean reusable?
Petroleum is needed to make artificial vinyl trees.
Real trees are a renewable and reusable product. While they’re growing they produce oxygen. They can be shredded into mulch after the holidays or used to stop beach erosion. That is if they aren’t chucked to the curb with the Christmas wrapping and empty boxes.
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Lorena reply on November 26, 2008 8:27 am:
That’s a great idea. Where can I bring my tree to be shredded to mulch or used to stop beach erosion? I live in FL and with all the hurricanes, I think that’s a great idea to save our beaches, wildlife, and tourist industry.
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Amanda reply on December 1, 2008 11:03 am:
When I lived in Louisiana, they had drop off spots for the trees. You could try contacting your local sanitation service to see if there are any drop off spots for non-artificial trees for coastal erosion. One thing to note though is that the tree must be completely free of decoration, including tinsel, so make sure the tree looks exactly like it did before you started decorating. Tinsel can cause some serious digestive problems for animals that mistake it for food.
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November 17th, 2008 at 3:10 pm
I do not kill a tree or waste electricity with fake sting lights. I am Jewish. We celebrate 8 days of non-electric lights! Every year, we’re sure to use lead-free AND fragrance-free candles! Each night, we make potato latkas and reuse the oil from the night before - then, we use the waste oil as biodiesel fuel for our hybrid vehicle! Now THAT’s an eco-friendly holiday!
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November 17th, 2008 at 3:26 pm
I’ve solved the going green issue every year for many years now for Christmas since (although I am a Christian) I really don’t celebrate. I feel too many people have lost the meaning of Christmas and that trees and decorations and electric lighting are not the answer. I don’t put up any decorations except some fake greens on my outdoor railing (have used the same ones for at least 10 years). I don’t put up any lights. I hate shopping so I don’t waste gas driving to 100 stores to get one item that’s just right. I order a few things for immediate family online and that’s it. I spend the day with family and enjoying a nice but not extravagent meal.
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evaughn reply on November 20, 2008 3:00 pm:
Well, that is green as in Grinch isn’t it?
Just joking — i believe simple is closer to the meaning of the season as well.
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November 17th, 2008 at 3:26 pm
Shalom! I agree with my oddly-named Jewish friend above. Sean? Are you a recent convert to Judaism? The potato latke (not LATKA) is a staple of Passover, not Chanukkah! The more traditional food to eat during the day of the Great Miracle is sufganiyot. It’s like a doughnut but so much more Hebrew! I must digress. At the Horowitz household, we use soy candles and use the wax remaining for my son, Davood’s skateboard and my daughter, Shvelta’s, stringed instrument. Our menorah was built using discarded aluminum cans. $8.99 for a metal candleabra? Bah!
We Jews have been going Green for thousands of years! Eight days of light from one simple candle? Now THAT’S eco-friendly! Chanukkah is a much greener holiday than Christmas. Cutting down trees is such barbarism! Would not one rather light candles, keep warm, and eat matzo then subject oneself to the wanton destruction of our Earthly forests? Don’t forget the presents, wrapped in discarded newspapers and ties with the shoelaces of old trainers.
And let’s not forget the presents themselves. Why, members of my Temple leave items behind all the time. It’s how Muriel, my wife, got those scrunch hair-things one year. She still raves about them! What can I say?
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Marie reply on November 17, 2008 5:25 pm:
I love it, Shlomo!
Happy Chanukkah!
we celebrate both holidays, the sufganiyot sounds too fattening for me.
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Jeffrey Levy reply on November 17, 2008 10:12 pm:
Shlomo, where were you raised? Your opinion on when to eat latkes is interesting. We always eat them at Chanukah, and mine include a little baking powder so they rise, eliminating their usefulness for Passover.
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Shlomo Horowitz reply on November 18, 2008 12:55 pm:
Mr. Levy! So great to see your enthusiasm! I guess the Horowitz household can be a bit aloof, and I can see your concerns with the proposed eating of the latkes. We Horowitzes have a special recipe that eliminates the need for baking powder but still produces a delicious product. You want I should share it?
As to your first question, I grew up with my Nana and Bup-bup (that’s what my sister and I called our Grandfather; it was the only syllable I could say until I was two!) in Danbury, Connecticut before moving to Crown Heights in Brooklyn, NY where my family currently resides. It’s such a beautiful place, especially around the time of Chanukkah!
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Mary G reply on November 20, 2008 11:31 am:
Shlomo, how are eating latkes more eco-friendly without baking powder?
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November 17th, 2008 at 3:32 pm
LED lights all the way baby!
And, if I can stay awake this year, I’m going to interview Santa regarding the secrets of his lightning fast, carbon free mode of transportation!
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Jennifer reply on November 17, 2008 4:05 pm:
If you do get an interview, can you kindly put Santa’s responses here?
If we can get some tips maybe we will have new “hybrids” next year! :)
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November 17th, 2008 at 3:46 pm
I going green like the past ten years by having my kids color paper bags during the year then use for holiday wrap I power our home both solar and biodiesel (generator ) my cars and trucks are biodiesel and the paper trash is composted and the by-product of my biodiesel we make candles for gifts and to grow our garden, and use led lights
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November 17th, 2008 at 3:49 pm
15 years ago my sister and I made gift bags of all sizes from left over fabric. We are still using them for family; who return the bags each year. In a pinch, pillow cases can be used for a first timer who does not have a supply of bags made.
For outside the family, I use old blue prints (that are now no longer blue) from the recycled paper trash and let the kids decorate them or leave the outlines as the decoration. Other good recycled paper for wrapping are colored comics, brown paper bags decorated with holiday ink stamps, a cloth gift itself wrapped around another item and kids drawings for small items.
We try to also give some gifts of service and not things. Homemade foods are great too. Our holiday meals are shared events with each person contibuting a signature food.
We use some LED lights and timers/remote controls for both indoor and outdoor lights to minimize the hours of operation.
We turn off the heat when we operate the fireplace.
I offer to drive other students when I am driving my kids to school events. We carpool with family and friends to many social events. Just last weekend the neighbors joined us for a movie outing and we are joining them for a play this weekend.
Kids are sent by bicycle to pick up missing ingredients at the store.
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November 17th, 2008 at 3:52 pm
Well I just looked online and they have solar powered Christmas lights. They are a little more money then regular ones but I think it would be worth the extra money!
As always i try and wrap everything in bags. They are way easier and you can reuse them over and over again.
Also I make Christmas ornaments out of pine cones (my front yard is loaded with them), a little puzzle glue on the ends and sprinkle with a little glitter. They look really nice when the light reflects from them. I then give one to each member of the a family that I became friends with that year. Of course the first year you can give them to everyone you know.
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November 17th, 2008 at 4:14 pm
It does seem like a waste to cut down a fresh tree each year, so we have an artificial tree that we can reuse year after year. Most of the ornaments on our tree are homemade as well.
My daughter has a tiny artificial tree in her room that she decorates with the toys that come with kids meals. Most of them are the right size for her tree and they are not ending up in the trash.
We also try to give as much as we can in gift bags that we can reuse and give gift cards or certificates.
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November 17th, 2008 at 4:17 pm
Ever since I was little my mom has used the comic section of the Sunday paper to wrap gifts. Not only is it recycling but reading the comics is fun too!
I also recycle the big gift bags and recycled gift tissue paper.
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November 17th, 2008 at 4:23 pm
The way we have gone green is by having a “white elephant” gift exchange amongst all the adult family members. One persons trash is another’s treasure! We have all enjoyed it so much and have quite a bit of fun opening the treasures, if someone chooses to trade that’s fine too. This leaves a season open for enjoying our families and not worrying about what we need to buy everyone and overspending in the process.
Our other activity is for everyone to bring something to put in everyones stocking. Stockings were purchased after the season a couple of years ago so the costs was small, names were applied with glitter glue, so everyone has their own custom stocking. We have 23 family members that gather so our stockings get pretty full. We encourage homemade goodies, crafts, hand cream, chapstick, colored pages from the kids and anything that will make us enjoy the day.
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November 17th, 2008 at 4:54 pm
Tree, no tree, such a conroversy. Comes down to personal choice although I do like the vision of Christmas past while watching your trees grow.
We traditionally take the grandkids to the local tree farm and cut a white pine. After the holidays, it goes out by the bird feeders to provide shelter. As we get older, there is less ’stuff’ that is needed. Creating memories is becoming an appreciated gift.
All the other ideas of reusable gift bags, services (I would really like a friend like the one who provides fix-it gift cards), small usable stocking stuffers and donations in honor of people are great. Low waste and thoughtful. Please keep the ideas coming.
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November 17th, 2008 at 5:08 pm
For the past couple of years we have used recycleable wrapping and have used bows that can be used again and again. Leftover wrapping paper and bows are put away for the following year’s uses. It saves money and is one way to cut down on the waste stream that must be huge as a result of the holidays.
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November 17th, 2008 at 5:16 pm
I make fabric bags or cover boxes with fabric so they can be used year after year. I have done this for several years. This year I plan to make “green bags” to use when grocery shopping in which to put the gifts. The only outside lights I plan to use are solar powered. Cost more to buy, but in long run will save money and electricity. I save all wrapping paper from past years that people have given me so I can recycle it.
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November 17th, 2008 at 5:27 pm
We are holding a holiday craft class making decorations out of invasive species plants.
It is amazing how beautiful annoying weeds can be when arranged nicely.
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November 17th, 2008 at 6:30 pm
Shh… Don’t tell. Santa doesn’t wrap presents. He leaves them out. I use gift bags. I save them year to year. I am toying with the idea of making reusable fabric gift bags or giving gifts in the reusable shopping bags.
We bought the LED lights last year. It gets so dark in the winter in Alaska that I don’t really want to cut lights out completely but we are saving them for the darkest months.
I am trying to buy less stuff. I remember getting clothes and sheets and necessities as a child for Christmas along with the toys and it made it seem like a lot of stuff. One of the kid’s favorite gifts last year were blankets that an aunt made.
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November 17th, 2008 at 9:54 pm
I personally won’t be going anywhere for the holidays. I don’t use my car on weekends, and I don’t do any extra shopping for the holidays. If I do any it is a food basket for someone in need, or I donate to an organization like Nature Conservancy. I enjoy hiking and biking with my family on the holidays. It’s a perfect day to be out, because the roads are usually clear on Thanksgiving and Christmas. I wish everyone would see the importance of going green really means “less shopping”!
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November 17th, 2008 at 10:04 pm
We are planning on not leaving on the tree lights over night. We give our children money instead of giving gifts (that eliminates wrapping, or other unnessary things). When we cook, we use the heat that comes off of the stove/oven instead of turning up the heat.
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November 17th, 2008 at 10:06 pm
Oh yeah, we also do not decorate the windows or have a large display that others can see. We also continue to use “fake” trees. We do not want a real tree, that involves cutting down a valuable resourse of ours.
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November 18th, 2008 at 10:33 am
I don’t like the term “going green.” It is very misleading and mis-applied, and taken advantage of in many ways. As an environmental professional I do my part at work and at home, all year long.
As usual, we will use our artificial tree, our tenth year. We will recycle all available materials from the holidays. We currently recycle approximately 75% of our weekly trash load. This takes a little effort, but really makes a difference in the landfills. Most of my neighbors us more than one large trash container each week. At Christmas time, their trash bins are overflowing. Ours bin is maybe less than half full. I encourage everyone to recycle as much as they can. With our country’s increased population and our society’s disposable attitude, everyone needs to do something.
Remember, ‘JUST DO SOMETHING.” MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR AND A THANKFUL THANKSGIVING.
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November 18th, 2008 at 10:48 am
I don’t wrap gifts in the traditional way. I either wrap things in the gift themselves (i.e. I got my mom a robe and ‘wrapped’ it in a little throw) or I have a reusable box for each person in my immediate family that I use. They take their gift out of the hat box, and then the box comes home with me. In my family, we also write out clue tags to make the person guess what the gift is (to slow down the process, everyone really sees what others get - this is my favorite holiday tradition) so using the same box every time makes the game a little harder. I also keep old wrapping paper and put it through my shredder. This I use as ‘fluff’ for the gift boxes the next time around. Last year I blogged about what I gave everyone, and I think I will try to come up with just as creative things again this year! http://recycleraccoon.wordpress.com/2008/02/06/tis-the-season/
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November 18th, 2008 at 12:45 pm
I realized long ago that by June, I can no longer remember what most family members gave me for Christmas. So now my sisters and I exchange a donation to each other’s favorite charity. It always makes me smile to remember those gifts!
Maybe this year, I’ll buy a bunch of those re-usable cloth shopping bags to give as gifts too.
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November 18th, 2008 at 1:22 pm
We are giving less “stuff” this year as many others have mentioned. Gift certificates / gift cards for meals and entertainment generate less waste. Another gift idea that we are using this year for my grandparent is for rice / corn heating pads. The pillows are made from scraps of fabric then filled with rice or corn. After heating in the microwave for 2 - 3 minutes they retain heat for up to 1 hour. They are safe to go to sleep with - and require very little electricity to provide a great deal of warmth and comfort - and they can be resued for YEARS without breaking or wearing out.
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November 18th, 2008 at 1:44 pm
Go Fake trees
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Mary G reply on November 18, 2008 3:22 pm:
Go Fake trees? Do you mean:
Go! Fake trees? Should the fake trees leave?
Go fake, trees? Would you like the trees to turn into plastic?
Artificial trees are great, assuming that a family reuses it for many years. Otherwise, they’re still using plastic for the faux leaves. Oh, and let’s not forget about the chemicals used in artificial scenting!
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November 18th, 2008 at 2:00 pm
My mom uses the same bags every year to save paper bags. She gives gift cards to my family so the gift does not have to be wrapped. This is to save on wrapping paper. My family saves a lot of money on using LED lights outside. We are big users on hand me downs. We have a lot of hand me downs. This hopefully saves in the production of less clothes. I am going to plant some trees so we could have better oxygen. If I take 5 minutes off of my shower it will save a lot of water. If you would use these things you could save a lot of money, time, water. I will feel good when I know I helped our world.
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November 19th, 2008 at 7:55 am
For the past several years, I’ve devised a “tree” out of other materials. One year it was tree limbs that naturally dropped from the trees in our yard, one year it was bike tires of decending sizes.
This year, I plan to incorporate a game: We will “wrap” our presents in large coffee cans, oatmeal containers, etc that we’ve collected over the year and label each with a name. (If the kids were younger, you could easily incorporate an event to decorate the cans.) You’ll have to find two with your name in order to keep the presents. Sort of a Christmas Mi-Jong game.
Since we try to give fewer, but more thoughtful and useful gifts to each other, the game will encourage us to gather around the tree for a longer period so we can enjoy the company and the Egg Nog longer!
For the extended family (my parents, siblings and their children), I’m hosting a local trip together as their gift - the memories will last longer than anything purchased. (And photos can be used for Christmas gifts next year!)
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November 19th, 2008 at 11:06 am
We use LED lights and have an artificial tree that sometimes gets put up. I concentrate more on decorating with wreaths and ribbons that I’ve had forever. The outside lights are on a timer and our off-peak electric meter. I do very little shopping but I do like to contribute to food baskets, food pantry and Support Our Troops efforts. My family concentrates on the day to visit together at someone’s home. My friends and I have made a pact to give up gifts to save for a great retirement vacation together. Wishing you all friends and family to share your life.
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November 19th, 2008 at 12:25 pm
We wrap presents in sunday comics and outdated maps. That way, they are all recyclable. We unplug the christmas tree when not in the room (saves energy), and give gifts in the form of spa certificates or movie tickets instead of junk people won’t use. We also traded in all lights for LEDs. Use “pine spray” to make our reusable tree (20 yrs now!) smell real.
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November 20th, 2008 at 8:14 am
We are not wrapping giftst his year unless it is wrapped in a reusable item - like a towel, sheet, etc. No paper waste, saves lots of money and time!
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November 20th, 2008 at 11:18 am
Fake tree = fake Christmas….we go to tree farms that replant the trees every year. It is giving the small guy a way to make money…just dont go to Walmart. Buy local!!!!
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November 20th, 2008 at 12:36 pm
Interesting comments. We’ve been using the fake tree (which we got ultra cheap) for several Chistmases now. We did replant three live trees years ago. One of them died, though.
I was very interested in the discussion between Mr. Horowitz et al. on green cooking. Any recipes or tips? I also have the same question as Mary G–how does cooking latkes without baking power make them more eco-friendly?
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November 20th, 2008 at 4:25 pm
I usually make most of my christmas gifts but this year I am making them out of used and/or recycled items. I am making purses out of used books, rugs out of rags and decorating recycled canvas bags. I am also giving energy efficient light bulbs this year!
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November 20th, 2008 at 5:02 pm
I don’t put up the christmas tree because i’m too old for that !!!!!!!!!1
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anna reply on November 20, 2008 5:03 pm:
cool!!!!!!!!
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November 20th, 2008 at 5:04 pm
christmas is cool so go green America!!!!@epa
thanks for listening
bye
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November 20th, 2008 at 5:17 pm
My husband drinks A Lot of beer, and it just happens to come in GREEN bottles, so this year we’re building our tree out of those skanky empty bottles. We’ll try to insert the LED lights into the bottles to give a special tacky glow. Any ideas on how to build this thing?
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Anonymous reply on November 22, 2008 7:22 pm:
Ha!! I’d love to see that, Sally. My husband drinks a lot of beer, too.
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Robert reply on November 23, 2008 10:58 pm:
In Texas they make “Bottle Trees”. Not me personally, but I have seen them. Here’s a site with some sites to look at:
http://flickr.com/photos/jtuason/2476585700/ (large blue tree)
http://flickr.com/photos/carlos/35322502/ (small blue & green)
Basically it’s a pole with sticks stuck into it and bottles hanging off the sticks. Maybe you can adjust the length of the “branches” to create a Christmas Tree effect.
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November 20th, 2008 at 7:28 pm
I’m going to go green for the holidays bygiving all the gifts that I dont want to charaty.When I do that me and the charty are happy!!!
I am a 6thgrade student and my science teacher has very nice posters that she reicieved from the epa,and I was interested in some epa posters to hang in my room.
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November 21st, 2008 at 3:12 am
I haven’t bought a cut tree in nearly 20 years. In fact I have bought many live trees and planted them in the forest in the spring. I think everyone should plant a tree for Christmas or whatever winter holiday you celebrate.
Sandchica
Aberdeen WA
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November 21st, 2008 at 9:10 am
I save the Christmas cards I receive each year and use them as name tags and decorations on next year’s gifts.
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Yolanda Anita Sanchez reply on November 21, 2008 11:17 am:
I do this, too!! It feels much better to “use” the holiday cards instead of throwing them away. Cutting them up to use as tags is fun, too!
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November 25th, 2008 at 8:57 am
I don’t give “stuff”. I give the gift of a tree planted in one of our national parks by the Arbor Day Foundation.
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November 26th, 2008 at 8:44 am
My family has it set up where each couple has one couple a year they give to and it rotates each year. We also rotate which house we use for Christmas Eve dinner.
One gift we like to give is a goat. Giving a goat to a family in an impoverished country can feed their whole family and provide valuable income for years and years to come.
I think using cut trees is fine. Not only does it serve as a tradition in my household, but our friend owns a tree farm. If everyone is buying artificial trees, it puts the tree farmers out of jobs and moves those jobs to other countries that provide cheaper labor. Trees give off oxygen, keep the soil healthy so other crops can grow during spring and summer, and keep people like friend employed. I guess the only bad thing about tree farms is the transport of trees to areas that aren’t well suited to growing them (like FL). But artifical trees are being shipped over and not driven, that journey is quite a bit longer than VA to FL.
I definitely like Marion’s idea of giving a tree, or even just a donation, to our national parks. Roosevelt had a great idea, and it would be a shame to see the parks fade away. Their funding is really dismal.
But as Mike the environmental professional says, just do something.
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December 1st, 2008 at 9:23 am
My family is replacing our outside lights with LED lights and I reuse all the gift bags that we get from others.
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November 19th, 2009 at 3:12 pm
Shlomo, where were you raised? Your opinion on when to eat latkes is interesting. We always eat them at Chanukah, and mine include a little baking powder so they rise, eliminating their usefulness for Passover…
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