Simple, Sustainable Holidays: BC Employees Share Ideas

Bellevue College Captains of Sustainability

The holidays are here! It’s easy to get caught up in holiday “busy-ness.” Traveling, cooking, shopping, hosting, cleaning… it all adds up! And not just at home.

The EPA estimates that “1 million extra tons of trash each year,” result from the winter holiday season.

Sustainability polled members of the Captains of Sustainability to know how they simplify their holidays. They came up with several ideas on how to make holidays more sustainable.

  •  Give the gift of experience, a membership to the zoo, children’s museum, or a day with a grandparent/parent coupon for a day of house cleaning, cooking a meal….etc. the ideas are endless.”
  • Wrap gifts into Old newspaper (1998 and older) that I find at antique stores through the year.  They are fun to read while waiting to open your present. 
  • Traditional Czech Handmade and baked ornaments. My family has been doing this for a long time, some ornaments last till next year and other fall apart but never go bad. Here is a an example  http://www.danielam.com/czech-dough-ornaments/
  • Gifts that make a difference; Usually do a loan in someone’s name with websites such as; http://www.kiva.org/, and once the loan is over it allows the person to sponsor/re-loan to some other causes of their choice
  • Research and give gifts that are Environmentally friendly and non-toxic
  • Tree in a pot –we purchase a tree in a pot and at the end of the holidays we go and replant the tree in our back yard (aka forest)”
  • Shop local
  • Make donations in the recipient’s name
  • Traveling: select one person to drive the food to relatives; the others, jog/run/walk over (within 3 miles)
  • Gift Giving:  generally give consumables – nut mixes, trail mixes, handmade g.c. for a chicken or veggie curry dinner.

Thanks to Anne Carpenter, Jan Ng, Jarka Gurthova, and Rebecca Chawgo for sharing their ideas!

Last Updated November 26, 2014