Christmas is a time for sharing food and drink and celebrating with family and good friends. But, sometimes in amongst all the excitement we forget about how our actions affect the environment. Keep reading to find out our 10 best tips on going green this Christmas!
1. Consider giving gift certificates when you are doing your Christmas shopping. That way the recipient can choose a gift that they really want and the number of unwanted presents on Christmas morning are minimised. If you're stuck for ideas give a Neco Gift Certificate!
2. Avoid wrapping paper by using reusable bags that the recipient can make use of at a later stage. Check out our Envirosax Wrapped Gifts! Alternatively you can choose not to wrap your gifts and a treasure hunt or gift hunt can be played instead.
3. Save any special gift wrap, ribbons and bows. When unwrapping large gifts, save the paper for reuse; it can often be cut down for smaller presents. Creased wrapping can be ironed flat. Ribbons and bows are easy to save and reuse.
4. Organise a Kris Kringle between family and friends to minismise cost and waste. This way everyone can receive a personalised, larger gift that is worth more than if everyone bought something small.
5. Avoid using plastic plates or disposables when it comes to meal time. If you don't have enough to cater for everyone you can hire crockery or ask your guests to bring some along.
6. Buy locally-sourced and seasonal free-range products for your Christmas feast. You'll be lowering your carbon footprint and supporting your local produce famers at the same time!
7. Use Christmas leftovers in salads, pastas, stews, soups, sandwiches, stir fries, omelettes, fry ups or fried rice. There are plenty of ways to use all that leftover food!
8. Stay at home! The levels of carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere heavily increase during the holidays due to the constant transportation we use to get around. Consider limiting your plane travel (the worst offender) and long car rides or take public transport to visit family.
9. If you plan to offer gifts that will need batteries think about buying rechargeable batteries. These are better for the environment and can be used longer.
10. Use a native tree in a pot plant as an alternative to a Christmas tree and plant it in the garden after Christmas. If you do use a Christmas tree, buy a real one and ensure to recycle it at the end of the festive season. By recycling your fresh Christmas tree you can reduce the amount of waste going into landfill.
