The holiday season is full of joy. There’s nothing quite like the sound of laughter among family and friends at special gatherings, the thrill of finding a great deal on a long-sought-after gift, or the tempting smells of your favorite holiday foods. Unfortunately, for many of us, this joy brings with it a significant dent to our wallets and the environment. Between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, Americans throw away 25% more trash, resulting in approximately one million additional tons of trash per week. Fortunately, however, there are easy ways you can shift your holiday gifting to be more sustainable, for both the environment and your budget. We all love to present our loved ones with well-wrapped gifts. As you’re shopping for supplies this year, consider the following to minimize waste and save some cash: Reduce the amount of wrapping paper you use. Many wrapping paper options are not recyclable due to the materials added to them, like sparkles, glitter, or laminated coatings. This can contribute to a significant increase in residential trash each holiday season. Get creative and consider ways to reduce your use of non-recyclable wrapping paper, such as repurposing old newspapers or paper grocery bags. Reuse wrapping materials. Wrapping supplies can be expensive. Cut back your costs and your environmental impact by saving bows (you can attach them to a different gift with a loop of tape after the one-time-use adhesive is gone), gift bags (don’t write directly onto the bags when labeling them, so it’s easy to pass them on to another recipient), and ribbon after the gifts are opened. Recycle what you can. When you’re faced with a mountain of clutter from unwrapped gifts, it can be tempting to shove it all into a garbage bag and be done. Taking the time to sift through and separate items that can be recycled, however, is a great way to reduce your household waste.
