This year we launched our new Start Smart, Recycle Right campaign which not only focuses on getting our trash and recyclables in the right bins, but also on reducing the amount of waste we produce from the beginning. During the holidays, the “Start Smart” part of our message is vital. According to the Center for Biological Diversity, American households generate 23% more waste in December than in other months. And it’s not just the extra trash in your curbside cart, it’s also all the other impacts that go into creating, transporting, and wrapping gifts. Check out these Start Smart, Recycle Right gift-giving and recycling tips to help keep our environment as merry and bright as possible this holiday season.
Start Smart with Gift-giving
- Skills exchange. This is probably our new favorite gift-giving idea! Create a booklet of skills coupons for your friends and family to use to cash in on your handyman talents, a free night of babysitting, organizing a closet, or a coffee date. Find tons of great ideas on the Simplify the Holidays Pinterest page.
- Experiential gifts & gift cards. Show your friends and family you really “get them” by gifting an experience you know they’ll love. These thoughtful gifts bring enjoyment without the waste of stuff. Ideas include memberships to area attractions, a nice meal at a fancy local restaurant, movie tickets, or spa treatments. Earn even extra points for ditching the plastic gift card and sending your gift cards electronically.
- Digital memberships. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, streaming services are all the rage and there’s a digital service for just about anyone. Digital memberships can unlock access to endless movies, TV shows, music, podcasts, K-12 learning platforms, sports, and, of course, books. There’s sure to be a service for that special someone in your life!
- DIY gifts from the kids. When gifting from children to their parent, grandparent, aunts, uncles, or teachers, you can never go wrong with a homemade craft. We have tons of great upcycling ideas over on Pinterest but you can also keep it as simple as hand prints in paint or penning a poem. These gifts are sure to become treasured keepsakes.
- Closed-loop products. Shop with an eye towards “closing the loop.” That’s what insiders call it when you buy products made from recycled materials. You can find clothes, toys, stationary products, bed sheets, sunglasses, and lots of other items all made with recycled materials.
- Shop local. No need to stress about supply chain delays when you ditch online shopping and venture into a local shop or farmers market. Mark your calendar for Small Business Saturday, November 27, and support local businesses this holiday season.
- Go green solutions. Give the gift of green living! Sustainable gift ideas include water bottles, reusable straws, wool dryer balls, LED light bulbs, WaterSense faucets and fixtures, indoor herb gardens, all-natural cleaning products, rain barrels, compost bins, and much, much more! This gives you the traditional feel of giving a gift with the knowledge that your item will help reduce environmental impacts in the future.
Need more low or no waste gift-giving ideas? We recommend the Simplify the Holidays website which features a variety of go-green holiday ideas from entertaining to gift-giving and beyond.
Recycle Right
- Empty, clean, and dry. Always make sure your plastic bottles, metal cans, and paper items are empty, clean, and dry before they go into the cart.
- Naughty & nice gift wrap options. Not all gift packaging is accepted in curbside recycling. Only toss in flattened cardboard and gift boxes, paper gift tags, envelopes, paper bags, and non-coated paper. Keep out the Styrofoam, glittery wrapping paper, laminated bags, cellophane, ribbons, and bows.
- No decorations in the recycling cart. Strings of Christmas lights, garland, ribbons, and ornaments are not recyclable.
- Dispose of cooking oil properly. If fried foods are on your holiday menu, please be sure to keep the oil and grease out of your household drains. No one wants to pay holiday rates for an emergency plumber! Learn more about proper fryer oil disposal.
- No batteries in the recycling cart. No batteries belong in the recycling cart but rechargeable and lithium batteries are an extreme safety hazard. They can cause life-threatening fires when improperly tossed in curbside recycling or trash collection. Learn more about proper battery disposal.
Happy holidays from askHRgreen.org!