Going 'green' for the holidays

There is something about the combination of purchasing a latte served in a snowflake-patterned cup, watching the CNN reports about the hysteria of Black Friday shoppers, and watching neighbors put up lights over Thanksgiving break that creates a perfect storm causing even the weariest end-of-semester student to daydream about walking down Newbury Street, toting four or five large shopping bags full of opulently wrapped gifts.

But this year, another pre-holiday phenomenon has entered the mix: glossy spreads and talk show segments about ringing in the holiday season with Mother Earth in mind.

With every gift purchased, tissue paper and plastic bags follow. With every trip to the outlets, a gallon of gas and a cup of Dunkin' Donuts coffee are consumed. With every Christmas morning or Hanukkah evening, a garbage bag full of wrapping paper reminds the contented revelers of the waste inherent in modern gift giving.

According to the Environ

mental Protection Agency, Americans create 25 percent more waste between Thanksgiving and Christmas than at other times of the year.

This year, "going green" became a national obsession, at least for the media. Former presidential candidate Al Gore reinvented himself as a spokesperson for the movement, which culminated in his Nobel Peace Prize win in October. Movie star Leonardo DiCaprio wrote, narrated, and produced The 11th Hour, a documentary which looks at the earth's unhealthy ecosystems and ways to improve them.

This week, The New York Times House and Home section featured a story that profiled planners of the most exclusive galas attempting to make their extravagant parties more eco-friendly. In July, national organic and natural foods chain Whole Foods Market caused a shopper - and later media - frenzy when they sold designer Anya Hindmarch's canvas bags with "I'm Not a Plastic Bag" written across the front. "I hate the idea of making the environment trendy, but you need to make it cool and then it becomes a habit," Hindmarch told The New York Times. Three thousand of her bags were sold in 29 minutes at a New York City store. With endorsements from politicians, movie makers, party planners, and fashionistas, being green has received a lot of press.

This Christmas will be the ultimate test: As shoppers flex their spending muscles, will they decide to use their green to "go green?"

Boston-based strategy and communications firm Cone Inc. found that 59 percent of Americans surveyed will make more of an effort to buy "green" this holiday season than in previous years. They also found that 54 percent of respondents said they would pay more for a product if it were eco-friendly. But struggling eco-systems are not necessarily the reason for shoppers' changing tastes. More than half (52 percent) of those surveyed said they are motivated to shop "green" to lessen the guilt produced by all of those gift exchanges and holiday parties.

"During the holidays we drive a lot more than when we are at school, we use more wrapping paper and more energy with all of our decorations," said Mary Sasso, A&S '08. "I mean, look at our Mod, we have tons of lights." She added that this year, however, she and her roommates diligently turn the lights off whenever they are asleep or are not in the room. LED (light emitting diode) holiday lights are now widely available but are considerably more expensive. One Web site merchant, Holidayleds.com, says that while they are more expensive, the benefits far outweigh the costs. Standard incandescent lights only last for approximately 2,000 hours while LED lamps can last as long as 200,000 hours.

The merchants also remind customers that there are no glass bulbs to break, and LED lights require only 10 percent of the energy used to power a traditional strand of holiday lights. They estimate a typical household would save $20 over the 30-day holiday season. At $20 a strand for the Warm White Mini LED Lights, "going green" in this way may not be for everyone, but Sasso says it can be manageable. "If everyone in your apartment chips in, it's not that bad and you've made an investment," she said.

With or without a celebrity endorsement, gift givers and decorators are seeking eco-friendly alternatives because of high gas prices and energy costs. By sending e-cards instead of paper cards, families can cut down on waste and cost. By forgoing wrapping paper and instead using recycled newspaper to cover presents, a family saves money as well. A personally decorated canvas tote performs double duty as a gift bag and a gift.

Not all reusable bags are costly. Even Wal-Mart rolled out reusable shopping bags made of 85 percent recycled materials this winter for only $1. Blogger Leah Ingram calls herself the Lean Green Mom and says she'll use these Wal-Mart bags as gift bags all season long. At $1, they're cheaper than the average Hallmark-style gift bag and come with a trendy slogan: "Paper or Plastic? Neither."

As with any Christmas season, the top gifts touted by media outlets are those that have been deemed cool, and the "green" trend is no different.

Sasso and her roommate, Megan Wheeler, A&S '09, stipulated that a "green" gift still had to be cute, preferring a T-shirt made out of organic cotton over a pack of compact fluorescent light bulbs. "When are light bulbs ever a good gift, environmentally friendly or not?" Sasso asked rhetorically.

Both agreed that they would rather receive a cool gift without wrapping paper or a gift ordered online. Stephanie Seitz, CSOM '11, was willing to let her wish list take a hit this season. "I think our environment is important, so I would be fine with getting an eco-friendly gift for Christmas," she said.

For college kids, the "green" trend can be a good reason to save money on friends' presents. "This year, we're not giving each other gifts," said Meg Ward A&S '08. "We're all going out to dinner. I'm not sure if that will cut down on emissions, but at least we won't be using wrapping paper." Forgoing physical gifts altogether is an increasingly visible trend with so many charities packaging donations as gift options.