Ideas for a more sustainable season

The holiday season is upon us as well as a time of economic concerns for many.

Much attention has been given to Gray Thursday, Black Friday, Cyber Monday and other indicators of consumer spending. This article is not intended to discourage holiday shopping, particularly with local businesses, but to offer some alternatives to extravagant commercial consumerism and waste that can occur at this time. These ideas may be healthier for you, your pocketbook and our world.

Reduce, reuse, recycle

This time of year can produce a great deal of waste, extra trash or trips to the landfill. You can reduce this by reusing items and recycling when possible. Look for items with less packaging materials when purchasing gifts. Carry reusable, or “green,” bags and avoid plastic bags when shopping. Try to reuse gift bags, boxes, ribbon and paper. Consider gift and decorating items that can use rechargeable batteries or LED lights. Use real dishes, cloth wrapping, organic or local produce or ingredients when available with your homemade food and other gifts.

Decorating

Holiday decorating can be creative and low cost. Many decorations can be homemade using natural materials from right here in Alaska. Wreathes and garlands can be made with local plant materials, including spruce, alder “cones,” dried berries and plants.

Real trees are renewable as well as recyclable and artificial trees can be reused for many years. We often put our “used” tree outside with birdseed decorations for the chickadees before recycling in the spring. Using LED lights on the tree can reduce fire danger and should last longer.

Artificial snow can be made with a 50/50 mixture of sugar and talcum powder. Ornaments can be made with a wide variety of materials and themes. Outdoor luminarias to line driveways or walkways can be made with paper bags or ice partly frozen in water buckets, then using small candles. Snow or ice sculptures can also be colored with food colors, powdered drink mixes or other nontoxic colorings. Windows can be painted with a removable soap and paint mixture.

Gift ideas

Homemade theme baskets and kits are always appreciated. Some theme ideas include Alaska, emergency, gardening, hobby, pet, children (age appropriate), coffee, sports and the outdoors.

Paper-related gifts can include homemade or decorated gift wrap, bags or boxes, cards and stationary sets, calendars, photographs, collages, albums, scrapbooks, journals, books or family recipes. Computer software and a wide range of materials offer easy creativity.

For friends and family far away or near, multi-media gifts such as CDs, DVDs, recordings, web page creation and books on tape can be meaningful gifts.

Many stores carry materials to create scented gifts. These include diffusers, potpourri, sachets, soaps, lotions, bath bombs, salts and candles. Be sure to check if the recipient is allergic or sensitive to certain aromas.

Garden gifts are popular, such as indoor plants, bulbs, seeds, bonsai, flower presses, garden tufa pots or pavers, as well as fresh, dry, silk or other material flower arrangements or centerpieces. Clay flowerpots can be used to make a variety of gifts or decorations. Outdoor enthusiasts may enjoy bird feeders, houses or bat boxes.

Remember your or others’ pets with homemade treats, toys, collars and leashes, booties, stockings or decorated wreaths. Your pet may think the best gift is extra time you spend with it.

Recycled or “upcycled” gifts can reuse a wide variety of materials, including mittens from wool sweaters, rag rugs, decorated hangers, snow globes using baby food jars, or layered gifts in a jar.

Gifts from the Kitchen

Many gifts can be easily created in the kitchen. Besides baked goods, jams, jellies and preserved items, consider food gift baskets, heat-and-eat meals, breakfast in bed certificates, locally made goodies or ingredients, Alaska Grown produce or certificates for local produce or farmers markets. Favorite recipes accompanied by an ingredient or utensil, kits, easy snacks or snack trees or trays are other ideas. Homemade condiments, dips, mixes, spices, herb mixes, vinegars and oils, teas, coffee and cocoa mixes offer more options.

Cookie trays and fruitcake seem to go hand-in-hand with the holidays, but other homemade goodies include candy bouquets, wreathes, melting (chocolate) spoons, treat tubes and liquors.

Remember non -dible homemade kitchen gifts as well, such as Play Doh, Silly Putty and finger paints.

Non-traditional

Some of the most appreciated gifts may not involve an item at all. Consider the gift of time in a service such as babysitting, snow shoveling, wood chopping, car washing, mending or cutting grass. Other unique gifts may be a yearly park pass, home energy audit or a donation to a local charitable organization.

Your local Mat-Su/Copper River District Cooperative Extension Office offers a variety of publications, workshops and services to further assist you in this area. Contact us at 745-3360, online at uaf.edu/ces/matsu or stop by at 809 S. Chugach, Suite 2 in Palmer.

Lee Hecimovich is an associate professor of extension, 4-H and youth development at University of Alaska Fairbanks.