The holiday break is a great chance to slow down, enjoy quality time with family and friends, and get out into nature. While it can be tempting to buy into the consumerist bent of the holiday season, continue your environmental habits by building in one or more of the following green winter activities into your celebrations.
Green Holiday Ideas
- Celebrate the shortest day of the day (and the return to longer days) with these Solstice activities.
- Try a crafty project that uses materials you can find in nature or around the house.
- Host a clothing swap of warm winter garments to share what you have in your community instead of buying new.
- Whip up some yummy seasonal soups, stews, and baking to stay cozy.
- Discover a new park or trail and see what fauna you can spot. A surprising number of animals do not hibernate in the winter and you can see them out and about if you pay attention.
- Make some holiday ornaments to spruce up your home!
- If you missed our Green Holiday story last year, click here for a few more ideas.
Be Green in 2017
Are you already thinking ahead to the new year? Participating in the Ontario EcoSchools program is a good way to consistently set environmental goals. However, why not take some time over the break to think about your eco values and what inspires you? If you’re on Twitter, share your #ecoresolution with us @ON_EcoSchools.
Campaigns for a New Year
Your New Year’s Resolution could also be to plan one of these popular energy conservation campaigns – perfect for frosty days.
- National Sweater Day is on February 2nd. According to the WWF, heating accounts for about 80% of residential energy use in Canada. Turn down the heat by a couple of degrees and encourage students to dress up in their finest (or ugliest) sweaters to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and have fun doing it.
- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: your school can collect gently used outdoor clothing for donation, host a knitting bee, or a swap party after the holidays.
- Winter Walk Day takes place on February 1st. Bundle up and built some heat by helping students get active on their way to and from school. There are plenty of ideas to get those feet moving here.
Campaigns are a fantastic way for EcoTeam members to build leadership skills and encourage their classmates to get active and make a difference for the environment. You can claim whole-school campaigns under Environmental Stewardship, so long as the entire student community has the opportunity to participate. Be sure to refer to the 2016-17 Certification Guide for full requirements.
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