Green gift suggestions

If you are seeking advice from St. Louis Earth Day for last-minute gift ideas, you will find many ideas that are locally available. We asked our staff to offer their own suggestions to share. Hope we are able to help a few find the perfect sustainable gift this holiday season.

What is your favorite local store for gift buying?

Kathy – No, I don’t like to shop. Okay, well, if I really have to buy a gift, I would buy some fancy chocolate at Kakao or coffee at Hartford Coffee Co. They let you bring your own container to fill! Yeah, no trash!
Laura – Less is better. Gifts are not the focus of the holiday for me. If I give a gift, it’s usually a poinsettia plant or gift cards. My wiener dogs get toys and treats, they can’t eat gift cards.
Jenn – I love Flowers & Weeds and Vintage Vinyl for gifts. If I can’t find a present for you there, you’re probably not going to get a present from me.
Bob – Nature is my store. Everybody loves a good rock, colorful leaf or twisted branch. Plus, they are completely organic and compostable.

What are your favorite charities to support?

Kathy – Earthdance Farms, MO Coalition for the Environment, or Open Space Council.
Laura – I have continuous donations set up throughout the year: sponsor three children in foreign countries thru Unbound, St. Louis Area Food Bank, St. Louis Zoo and National Wildlife Federation.
Jen M. – Missouri Botanical Garden, Stray Rescue, St. Louis Public Schools Foundation, The Gathering UMC’s clean water project
Jenn – Sierra Club, MO Coalition for the Environment, ACLU.
Bob – The Danny Boy Foundation helps local children get a good education.

Do you have a special home-made gift you like to give?

Kathy – Fudge! This year, I am taking a crack at candied citrus peel – up-cycled garbage! Can you be more green than that?
Laura – Since the smoke alarm usually goes off when I bake or cook, the answer is no. I leave that stuff to my sister who makes traditional German anise cookies each year and sends them to me in the mail.
Jen M. – dried herbs and peppers from the garden, sometimes mixed into spice blends. I also make some killer salted caramels.
Jenn – I have a crazy cactus that grows exponentially every year, I like to put the lil’ cactus babies in cute pots and give them to pals.
Bob – I must say I create a very delicious sourdough English muffin. Sometimes I have enough to share.

Is there a favorite fair trade/organic/locally produced good you like to give?

Kathy – I am starting to give nice, local, handmade soap. It’s not wrapped in plastic, and it gets used up!
Laura – KaKao Chocolate would be the one!
Jenn– Kakao Chocolate for me too. Pretty much the best gift.
Jen – local brews and spirits. Exclusive Green Dining Alliance bamboo cutlery kits.

What environmentally responsible gift would you like to receive this year?

Kathy – I would like my husband to plan a National Park camping and hiking trip!
Laura – Electronic Christmas cards, for crying out loud!
Jenn – An electric motor for my bicycle. My birthday is coming up, so this could count as a bday/xmas gift!

What low-impact activity you enjoy during the holidays?

Kathy – Playing games while listening to Christmas carols or sledding when we’re in Michigan!
Jen M. – Ice skating….well, watching my kids ice skate. I conduct quality control over the local beer selection at the rink.
Laura – Spending time with family and good friends, talking and enjoying being together, making memories and catching up. Being grateful for another year together!
Jenn – Sleeping. So much sleeping.
Bob – I am hoping to spend lots of time with Kelly doing Awareness Through Movement Feldenkrais lessons. Better than a massage and so nurturing to my nervous system! And then getting out into the cold wintry woods for day hikes!

Is Christmas paper recyclable? Even with glitter?

Yes! Republic Services will accept Christmas wrapping paper in the single stream. (Remove the bows and ribbons, though!)

Should I get a real Christmas tree or a fake plastic tree?

If you get a real Christmas tree, probably grown in Michigan as a mono-culture with little value to wildlife habitat and shipped to St. Louis, make sure you clean it of all the tinsel and decorations and place in the holiday tree pickup in early January for mulching. You could also help clear out invasive cedar trees by cutting one from certain areas to bring back a more diverse habitat. Check with the Open Space Council or Master Naturalist group in your area. Another choice for a real tree is to purchase a potted tree that can continue its life after the holiday season. Perhaps forgo the tree altogether and just use boughs and branches. When you trim low hanging branches you are being fire-safe to protect your property from ground fires that can climb into the canopy from catching low-hanging branches.

Consider St. Louis Earth Day in your year-end giving in 2016!