Go Green With Holiday Gifts

If you’re looking to give gift sustainably, there are a number of “green” options that can reduce your giftees’ reliance on natural resources. For instance, Rolling Stone suggests a solar charger that hangs in a window, reusable boxes and bottles, digital thermostats, and of course, rechargeable batteries. Other options include stylish cool-weather clothing made of sustainable wool, recycled cotton and hemp fibers. And for the ultimate in ecofriendliness, consider a countertop compost bin to help your friends feed their organic gardens. #SustainableShopping

Give the Gift of Time

The Organizing Blog regularly espouses the benefits of reducing, reusing and recycling used clothing and household goods, and you can slash waste even as you buy #holiday #gifts for family and friends. Utopia.org suggests a variety of ecofriendly gifts such as a reusable water bottle to cut plastic waste, a donation to an environmental preservation group or planting a tree. But best gift of all this season, the site says, is the gift of time. It’s hard to come by and incredibly valuable, and spending a few hours or sharing a meal with family and friends will make an unforgettable gift. #SustainableShopping

Bringing Your Garden Biodiversity

Want to make your garden ecofriendly, biodiverse and sustainable? Garden Design recommends planting an oak or native fruit tree to provide a butterfly habitat, adding a bird bath, adding a naturalized “meadow” area with native “weeds” such as milkweed, and growing flowering vines to attract hummingbirds without having to fill a feeder with sugar water. A garden tailored to your area’s climate tends to use less water and allows gardeners better options for treating pests without chemicals.

Celebrate Earth Day the Ecofriendly Way

April 22 is Earth Day 2018! And while it is a challenge for every person to limit his or her environmental impact, there are plenty of ways you can help protect the earth this week and long into the future.

The Earth Day Network is concentrating on ending plastic pollution this year. Being petroleum products, plastics not only release greenhouse gases during manufacture, they also leach phthalates and other chemicals that are harmful to human health into the environment in use and after disposal.

The Earth Day Network asks individuals to calculate their plastic usage and participate in events that encourage people to reduce the use of plastics; refuse to use common items such as plastic straws, grocery bags and flatware; and reuse whatever plastic items they can.

When disposal of plastic is unavoidable and a sufficient waste-management or recycling program isn’t available, the network says, local citizens should get involved by launching community-led disposal initiatives and recycling businesses.

Every Earth Day, there are also plenty of opportunities to clean up local parks and shorelines, plant trees and protect wildlife habitats, and otherwise celebrate and protect nature. Simply search online for “Earth Day events near me” to pitch in.

Parents and teachers can get kids involved in Earth Day with special lesson plans, litter pickup and more. The Green Education Foundation suggests activities such as building a compost bin, fixing leaks and planting a garden for kids of all ages.

Looking for another way to keep the planet clean? Donate the lightly used clothing, housewares and plastic goods you no longer need to ClothingDonations.org. When you arrange a pickup, the items get resold and reused — keeping more junk out of landfills while helping fund veterans’ programs.

Whether you choose to celebrate Earth Day by turning off the lights, carpooling to work, cleaning out your closets or all of the above, your decision will contribute to the planet’s health. And every little bit helps!