5 Sustainable Swaps for the Holiday Season

People generate a lot of waste during the holidays. Think of boxes of ornaments and tangled, burnt-out string lights or a kitchen counter crowded with takeout containers and empty grocery bags. After the festivities, you’re often left with a mountain of gift wrappers, food scraps, evergreen garlands and a Christmas tree to dispose of. Embrace the yuletide spirit while keeping your waste in check with a few intentional holiday sustainable swaps.

1. Choose Wooden Toys Over Plastic Ones

Mass-market toys are often cheaply made with snap-together plastic pieces that crack, batteries that die or parts that get lost within a season or two. When a toy breaks or is outgrown, it’s usually sent to the trash or donation bin. Eventually, around 80% of all toys end up in incinerators, landfills and waterways.

Consider wood toys instead. Wooden blocks don’t snap in half, and you can sand them down once they’re scuffed to make them look new again. You can also pass wooden toys down to younger siblings, cousins or even the next generation for enjoyment because they’re sturdy.

Swap a plastic, battery-powered toy truck for a simple, push-along wooden one.

It has no batteries, fewer small parts and holds up to years of play. Check thrift stores, toy libraries and community toy swaps for secondhand wooden toys to go the extra mile for sustainability.

2. Pick Reusable Materials Over Single-Use Gift Wrappers

Instead of using wrapping paper, wrap holiday presents with sustainable swap alternatives. Reusable wrapping can help you reduce paper waste and repurpose what you already have. An old scarf, a pillowcase, a cloth napkin or even a mason jar works just as well as festive wrapping or to contain small items. If you want a yuletide motif, consider painting or decorating newspapers and used paper bags.

Many people use wrapping paper once before tossing it out. As a result, used wrapping paper adds 2.3 million pounds to landfills each year. In contrast, the recipient can reuse a scarf or tote bag long after they open the gift. Get creative when you wrap. Roll a cloth napkin around a candle or mug, place a jewelry box inside a reusable drawstring bag or wrap a book in magazine pages.

Avoid plastic ribbons and tapes, as they’re often petroleum-based and not recyclable. Swap these for twine, yarn or a sprig of greenery as a topper. Consider building a shoebox of saved bags, bows, ribbons and fabric scraps that you can reuse yearly for the holidays.

3. Upgrade Incandescent Holiday Lights to LEDs

If you’re still running the same old-school incandescent strands to decorate your home, consider LEDs as a holiday-focused sustainable swap. Unlike incandescent bulbs that last roughly 2,000 hours, LED lights offer 10,000 to 50,000 hours of festive glow. That’s fewer burnt-out strands to deal with, and less yearly waste from tossed-out lights.

LED holiday lights offer more sustainable benefits. Compared to incandescent bulbs, they run on at least 75% less energy. LED lights also reduce fire risks because they remain cool to the touch. They’re safer to use around decorations, pets and children than classic bulbs, which run hot after a few minutes’ use.

4. Save Your Real Christmas Tree From Landfills

After the holidays, most homes are left to deal with a tree that’s drying out and dropping needles everywhere. No matter how tempting, don’t just leave yours out on the curb with the regular trash.

Find out if your city has dedicated tree recycling programs. Trees are usually chipped into mulch for parks and gardens or incorporated into a larger composting operation, saving them from simply rotting in a landfill. Tree recycling programs typically run from Christmas to mid-January, depending on the area. Research the exact dates and drop-off spots in your county.

5. Toss Holiday Food Scraps in a Compost Bin

Holiday meals and baking marathons generate way more food scraps than an average week. Think potato peels, eggshells, coffee grounds, bread ends and veggie trimmings. Instead of buying more garbage bags for the extra waste, a better and more efficient holiday sustainable swap is to start a composting bin.

You don’t need a dedicated corner of the yard for this swap. A small countertop bin, or even a repurposed container, works fine for collecting scraps to start. Once it’s set up, it can recycle various food scraps into soil amendments for garden beds and potted plants.

When you host a holiday dinner, keep a bin on the counter for peels and food-prep scraps for easy collection. Deposit these into the composter bin or heap at the end of each day. You can continue this habit for year-round recycling.

Small Swaps, Big Impact This Holiday Season

Whether you’re swapping LED lights, wrapping a gift in an old scarf or setting out a compost bin by the kitchen sink, every effort matters. Pick a swap or two to apply to your holiday habits. Consider making a list of your holiday sustainability commitments and sticking it to your fridge as a reminder. Embrace the season knowing you’re doing your part to keep your waste to a minimum.