7 Tips for an Eco-Friendly Halloween

Having a Green Halloween is so easy a zombie could do it. By avoiding holiday excess, you can have a fun filled good old fashioned Halloween while leaving only ghostly footprints on the planet! Here are 7 ideas:

1. Make your own costumes. There is nothing better than putting together your own costume from stuff you have laying around , after all, the most interesting and creative costumes are homemade. Here are some easy homemade costume ideas to get you started. If you’re not up to making your own, buy recycled costumes from thrift stores, eBay, etc. Avoid plastic costumes that are full of toxic chemicals. Designing your own costumes is a great way to foster kid’s natural creativity in a world of store bought ideas.

2. Make Halloween delicious for your trick or treaters but make it healthy too. You could always go with apples and raisins but face, it kids want chocolate and candy. Endangered Species Chocolate is an excellent solution . This chocolate company offers great tasting healthy organic milk and dark chocolate candies for Halloween and other occasions. Their chocolate doesn’t contain corn syrup, gluten and artificial flavors and it is derived from all natural and sustainable sources. Best of all they donate 10% of their profits to help endangered species

3.Forget the hollow plastic pumpkins (unless you’ve been reusing the same one) and plastic bags. Instead bring along pillow cases like in the old days or use your canvas shopping bags.

4. Get your pumpkins locally and compost them when the season's over.


5.Make the season very special and old fashioned by using the guts of your Jack O’ Lantern to make pumpkin pie or pumpkin soup from scratch. And don’t forget to save the seeds for roasting!

6. Don’t drive your kids around to trick or treat. Obviously, having your car idling while kids go up to each house isn’t doing any good in stopping climate change. The kids are going to need the exercise too to burn off all that extra energy and calories from their treats. If you don’t live in an area where there are a lot of opportunities for plentiful trick or treating, drive to one that is close, park, and walk with your kids; the exercise is good for you too!

7. Make your own decorations out of reusable or recyclable items. Turn off all your lights and use soy and/or beeswax candles to create a spooky ambiance. Avoid 'mischief' activities and littering such as silly string, toilet paper, eggs, etc.

Side Note:

For the safety of your pets, keep them inside on Halloween night and the night before. Cats, especially black ones, are unfortunately prone to cruel tricks and even torture, while dogs can feel very threatened and confused about the plethora of costumes around them and could become fearfully aggressive.