Make this a Green Christmas

Posted on January 24, 2010 at 1:28 pm

The song says “I’m dreaming of a White Christmas” but we need to make this a Green Christmas this year. We need to keep in mind the need to have an eco-friendly Christmas to help our planet. This quote appeared in Time magazine, “Don’t blow it – good planets are hard to find. ”
So what does it take to have a Green Christmas? The good news is going green is very simple especially if you start with the things you can do something about. We cannot do anything about the Copenhagen Climate Treaty going on now. If you want to know more, go to www. cleanskies. com or do a computer search for Copenhagen Climate Treaty. We can do things like reuse wrapping paper or bows. As presents are unwrapped this year, you can save the paper and the bows for next year. You can take the Christmas cards you get and cut off the front cover and then paste them on the presents next year. It recycles the card and is an attractive way to wrap a present. You can even write your To and From on the face of the card.
Another idea is to be sure and recycle your Christmas tree this year. Don’t just throw it out for the garbage truck to pickup and take to a landfill. Find out how and where your community recycles the trees and do that. It does not take that much time and it is a small thing that really helps.
If you have old ornaments, lights, artificial trees, or anything else you don’t want to use for decorating this year, call up Good Will, Habitat for Humanity (If they have resale stores in your area), or other organizations like that to see if they resell them. Again, these items do not go into landfills, other people can buy Christmas decorations for less, and the charity uses the money for their projects. This is a win, win, win situation but please, don’t be a Scrooge and send them your broken stuff!
You can also buy green products as gifts. No, don’t buy green cleaners, but many stores and online sites have very nice Christmas decorations or other items that make great gifts and that are also good for the environment. These might be bamboo clothing, organic towels and sheets, wallets, purses, and bags, and yoga equipment or clothing. There is so much to choose from it is impossible to list them all here. Right now, most online merchants are offering free shipping or other discounts for you to buy online. Go to Products for a Green World/Personal Care for information about these gift ideas.
What about giving green gifts for pets? Yes, there are many great gifts for pets that are eco-friendly. This can be a good time of year to check into other ways of caring for a pet like pet insurance and/or medication. You can buy the same medicines online as you can in stores and if you are not able to travel or there are not pet stores in your community, the online store can be just what you need. Go to Products for a Green World/Pet Supplies for information about all of these ideas for pets.