Eco Friendly Thanksgiving Tips
November 18, 2009 | Filled Under Eco-Friendly Holiday
It is about that time of the year again for families to come together to enjoy a delicious feast and remember what they are thankful for. Since Thanksgiving is one of the American Holidays that can have a major impact on the environment, why not start a new family tradition of hosting a ecologically responsible Thanksgiving?
Here are some great tips to help you enjoy an eco-friendly Thanksgiving celebration with yummy foods, eco-friendly decorations and less impact on the environment.
 Photo Courtesy of Flickr |
1. Remember To Reduce, Reuse & Recycle- To make your Thanksgiving as eco-friendly as possible, keep in mind you want to reduce waste this year, reuse what you can and recycle everything that is recyclable. When doing the Thanksgiving day shopping, keep in mind the amount of people you will be cooking for and do not get carried away with additional foods that will be wasted. Making a list at home can help ensure you only get what is needed. |
- If you have to use disposable plates and cups, remember to purchase recycled paper products.
- Get the cloth napkins out! When they are dirty, they can be washed instead of thrown away.
- Have guests put all cans, plastic and papers into a special market paper bag for recycling.
2. Skip the holiday Travel: If your normally travel for Thanksgiving, this year start a new tradition of celebrating at home. Celebrating Thanksgiving at home will reduce global warming by lowering your auto emission, not to mention reducing the stress of the holiday traffic!
3. Enjoy LOCAL foods: Celebrate your eco-friendly Thanksgiving by ensuring the food you serve is local, organic and sustainable. Locally grown food is better for your health and the environment. Not to mention it supports your local farming community.
4. Don’t over cook: We all love the delicious foods at Thanksgiving, but keep in mind the number you are cooking for to reduce wasted foods. If you have left over Turkey use it to make a pot of Turkey and Rice soup the next next day. Cooking to much food will result in wasted food, which is wasted money also!
5. Think GREEN when decorating: You can make your own eco-friendly Thanksgiving decorations while enjoying organic foods and nature. Instead of a large floral table centerpiece or commercial decorations, head outside and collect colored leaves, pinecones and berries and use them to decorate your table. It will add different textures and color while costing nothing! You can also fill a basket with organic veggies and fruits (like the image above) to create a beautiful centerpiece for your bar or table. When Thanksgiving is over you will already have fruits and veggies to enjoy without a trip to the store.
Remember to be thankful for the bounty of the harvest and the choice to reduce your environmental impact! If you have any additional eco-friendly Thanksgiving tips, please share them below!
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Some great tips here! We usually decorate our home for Thanksgiving, and afterwards we use the pumpkins as bird feeders. We cut the pumpkin in half, hollow it out, then fill it with bird seed and hang it with string in the trees in our backyard. Another way to recycle and reuse!
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Turkey bones to make turkey soup! Also make sure to compost food waste if possible. In my house, regardless of how much is made, I will shove it all down into my belly… in the name of environmentalism!
.-= Ben´s last blog ..Chemicals in your cleaner – A funny video =-.