Here are some practical tips for a zero waste Christmas this year. Cut down on clutter & save the environment – without compromising on fun!

Christmas is a time of cheer and merriment, but did you know that it’s also a time of the year with the most waste? This is the dark side to Christmas – the massive amount of stuff we throw away!

Facts about Wastage during Christmas

• Americans generate 25% more trash during the holiday season from Thanksgiving to New Year
• This comes to almost 25 million tonnes of extra trash per year
• Most of this trash is plastic, weighing up to 125,000 tonnes of plastic, most of which doesn’t get recycled
• The UK generates over 5 tonnes of aluminum packaging waste
• Almost a billion Christmas cards are thrown away every year, which is the equivalent of 33 million trees

Scary, isn’t it? So let’s go ahead and prep for a greener holiday this year, with these tips for a zero waste Christmas celebration.

6 Tips for a Zero Waste Christmas Celebration

1. Repurpose decor

Every year in the United Kingdom, 1.2 million pounds worth of Christmas decorations end up in a landfill, including 500 tonnes of Christmas lights. That’s a lot! Instead of contributing to that, try these:

• Use natural elements like twigs, branches, pine cones, leaves, fruits and flowers to decorate your home
• You can find many decorations these days made from crochet, paper, salt dough or more
• Make your own Christmas ornaments out of cardboard, paper, toilet paper rolls and other household items
• If you absolutely have to buy, get decorations that are hardy and good quality, that’ll last a long time and even prove to be family keepsakes

2. Get innovative with trees

For most of us, a Christmas celebration isn’t complete without a tree, but if not done mindfully, it can hurt the planet. More than 160,000 tonnes of Christmas trees are thrown away after the holiday season, ending up in landfills. Here are tips for a zero waste Christmas tree:

• If you already have an artificial tree in your home, consider reusing it instead of getting a new one
• Getting a real tree is a good option since they can be composted. Get one that’s still in the pot
• If you have to get a fake tree, try thrifting one, so you are not buying anything new
• Get creative and make your own tree out of things like twigs, ladders, books or logs

3. Have a greener dinner

Food wastage is a huge problem during Christmas, with the UK wasting almost 270,000 tonnes every year. What’s more, a lot of single-use plastic accompanies this waste – about 300 million plastic cups and straws. This is a problem that can be easily solved, by following these tips:

• Plan ahead and only buy and prepare as much food as you can realistically consume
• Avoid store-bought meals to cut down on the packaging that comes with it
• If making a full meal is too much for you, consider hosting a potluck dinner
• Store leftovers properly so you can use them again
• During food preparation, take care to compost any food scraps
• Serve everyone with proper plates, cups and utensils, which can be reused

4. Gift smart

A huge source of waste during the Christmas season is gifts, which are poor quality and break easily, or simply end up unwanted and unused. Gift packaging alone fills up nearly 100 million trash bags every year. Cut down on the trash with these tips for a zero waste Christmas:

• Buy only high quality items that are sure to last several years
• Opt for items that have lifetime guarantees, or easily accessible service centers or repair shops
• Replace physical gifts with gift cards, subscriptions or donations to charity
• Make your own natural gifts like skincare products, sweetmeats, cookies or a plant
• If others insist on gifting you, ask for an item that you really need and will use

5. Rethink gift wrap

If you are giving a gift, you have to wrap it, but that means loads of extra waste! 50,000 trees are cut to make wrapping paper, of which 5 million tonnes are sent to landfills every year. Besides this, 40 million rolls of tape are used for gift wrapping each year. This is a lot of waste that can be easily solved in a few steps:

• If you can, reuse any wrapping paper you get – just open the paper carefully and store it without crinkling
• Instead of wrapping paper, use recyclable paper like brown paper, and replace the ribbons with twine
• Opt for Furoshiki – a Japanese technique of wrapping gifts in pretty fabric. You don’t even have to buy special furoshiki material – simply cut up any beautiful fabric you already have at home

6. Support zero waste businesses

Thanks to all the awareness, several small and medium businesses have switched to zero waste methods. We can encourage the rise of such brands by supporting them, especially during the holiday season. Not only do they sell eco-friendly products, they also follow green manufacturing practices and source their ingredients from local sources to reduce their carbon footprint.

Please remember that at the end of the day, the most important of the tips for a zero waste Christmas is to use whatever you have – even if it’s made of plastic. It makes no sense to buy new, eco-friendly items just to dump your existing stuff into a landfill!

When you do need to replace your things, think long-term and buy accordingly. Always look at second hand stores or thrift shops first, before buying brand new. Yes, you may have to tweak a few of your Christmas traditions, but this only means you’ll have newer, greener and happier traditions – with much less waste and clutter!

If you’d like more posts about Christmas, check these out:

• DIY Christmas Gifts to Make with Kids
• How To Creatively Engage Your Toddler During Christmas
• Toddler-Approved Party Games for Christmas
• Christmas Dessert Recipes Book
• DIY Christmas Gift – Decoupage Happiness Jar

---

 Prerna is the founder, editor and owner of ‘Maa of All Blogs’, one of India’s Top Parenting Blogs. Besides being a certified Ashtanga Yoga instructor, she is also a fashion designer and economics graduate.

When she’s not busy running her home and business, she ensures she stays active – whether it’s running the half marathon, completing the Oxfam walk or climbing to the Everest base camp. Prerna enjoys wearing all her hats, and she does so in style!

---