Help keep the Earth happy, even on holidays!
Halloween
Pumpkin carving can be such a fun way to celebrate halloween, but what to do with your pumpkin when you're done?
When organic matter such as pumpkins or pumpkin guts, food waste, or yard scraps are thrown away into a garbage bin and end up in a landfill, they can produce harmful greenhouse gas emissions. Let's be real, there's nothing spookier than climate change!
There are many ways to use all the parts of your pumpkin and avoid creating waste:
1. Bake your seeds for a tasty snack. A little olive oil, salt, & pepper should do the trick!
2. Spread your seeds in your garden to grow your own pumpkins for next year. You can even use the guts and pumpkin parts to fertilize the seeds!
3. Use the insides of your pumpkin for cooking and make pumpkin bread, pumpkin purée, or pumpkin soup! (*Note: You may want to check if your pumpkin is of the edible variety.)
4. Compost your pumpkin guts while carving, and the rest of your pumpkin after the holiday. Add it to your own home compost pile or bin, put it in your green waste bin (if you have a yard waste or compost pick up service), or bring it to a local farm!
Pumpkin carving can be such a fun way to celebrate halloween, but what to do with your pumpkin when you're done?
When organic matter such as pumpkins or pumpkin guts, food waste, or yard scraps are thrown away into a garbage bin and end up in a landfill, they can produce harmful greenhouse gas emissions. Let's be real, there's nothing spookier than climate change!
There are many ways to use all the parts of your pumpkin and avoid creating waste:
1. Bake your seeds for a tasty snack. A little olive oil, salt, & pepper should do the trick!
2. Spread your seeds in your garden to grow your own pumpkins for next year. You can even use the guts and pumpkin parts to fertilize the seeds!
3. Use the insides of your pumpkin for cooking and make pumpkin bread, pumpkin purée, or pumpkin soup! (*Note: You may want to check if your pumpkin is of the edible variety.)
4. Compost your pumpkin guts while carving, and the rest of your pumpkin after the holiday. Add it to your own home compost pile or bin, put it in your green waste bin (if you have a yard waste or compost pick up service), or bring it to a local farm!
Christmas, Chanukah, & other times of gift giving
Here are a few tips to keep your gifts green:
1. Buy local and support small businesses in your community. This will likely reduce green house gas emissions (no or short-distance shipping!), reduce packaging, and will help support your local community members.
2. Give the gift of an experience, rather than more stuff! Choose meaningful gifts for your loved ones that won't go out of style or end up in the bottom of the toy bin. Instead of material items, provide an opportunity for someone you love to do something fun, even choose something you can do together! Some ideas could be movie tickets, a round of golf, a State Parks Pass, or an entry ticket to their favorite museum.
3. Save old wrapping paper, gift bags, and gift tags and use them again the next year!
4. Use brown paper bags as gift wrap, and decorate with old calendars, magazines, or photos to dress them up! You can even add natural items like holly or pine cones as an all-natural decoration.
*Note: be sure not to transport plant material long distances to avoid incidentally transporting invasive species.
5. Purchase wrapping paper made of recycled content, and avoid glossy paper or paper with sparkles or other decor that may reduce the recyclability of the paper.
Here are a few tips to keep your gifts green:
1. Buy local and support small businesses in your community. This will likely reduce green house gas emissions (no or short-distance shipping!), reduce packaging, and will help support your local community members.
2. Give the gift of an experience, rather than more stuff! Choose meaningful gifts for your loved ones that won't go out of style or end up in the bottom of the toy bin. Instead of material items, provide an opportunity for someone you love to do something fun, even choose something you can do together! Some ideas could be movie tickets, a round of golf, a State Parks Pass, or an entry ticket to their favorite museum.
3. Save old wrapping paper, gift bags, and gift tags and use them again the next year!
4. Use brown paper bags as gift wrap, and decorate with old calendars, magazines, or photos to dress them up! You can even add natural items like holly or pine cones as an all-natural decoration.
*Note: be sure not to transport plant material long distances to avoid incidentally transporting invasive species.
5. Purchase wrapping paper made of recycled content, and avoid glossy paper or paper with sparkles or other decor that may reduce the recyclability of the paper.
