Links to external sites:

Get Green with the National Wildlife Federation

Simplify the Holidays

Recycled Christmas Craft Ideas

Recycled Holiday Crafts

42 Ways to Trim Your Holiday Wasteline

Green Gift Guide

After the holiday, reuse your real tree by putting it outside and decorating with edible ornaments for wildlife:

Ranger Rick tells you how to decorate a tree for the birds

Decorate with Wildlife Ornaments (great recipes for the birds)

All the decorations on our tree are made from things you would usually throw away. For example, the garland is made from plastic packing "peanuts" strung together on thread. We've cut out the pictures from old greeting cards, punched a small hole in the top, and added a ribbon. We've also made ornaments from pine cones and sweet gum seed balls. Even the tree itself was destined for the trash heap before a co-worker donated it for our use.

Use your imagination and see what ornaments you can make from things you would normally throw away. You can get some ideas by looking at details of our ornaments, including some new examples. You can even learn to make a snowman from an old lightbulb.

Each year, 25 million extra tons of trash is generated between Thanksgiving and New Years in the U.S. Think about how you can reduce, reuse, and recycle. The links (at left) can help you get started.

Recycling Homepage