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Have you ever paused to think about how you can be less wasteful for Halloween? Let’s be honest… sometimes we’re distracted by our busy lives and resort to quick and convenient over Earth-friendly. This Halloween, let’s slow down and dare to blend some green in with the orange and black!  Because unnecessary waste is much more terrifying than witches or zombies.

Tip 1: Make a Spooky Statement in a Homemade Costume

Check out this cutie! He dressed up as WALL-E, but instead of buying a costume, made one using old computer boxes and packaging material! It’s scary, (in a good way) how crafty you can get with creating a unique, homemade costume all your own. Plus, you can guarantee you don’t have to fret about showing up in the same costume as everyone else. Hit up thrift stores, yard sales, or even your friends wardrobe to assemble your costume. Eco-friendly costumes are simpler to make than purchasing one because they don’t contain harmful chemicals, there’s no lingering waste. Win a costume contest with any of these homemade options!

Tip 2: Give Eco-Friendly Treats 

It’s estimated that that the average American ingests 1.2 pounds of candy on Halloween. That’s a lot of Fun-Size Twix and Starbursts! This year, skip over the packaged candies and pick up some treat with little or no packaging. If you really wanted to be extra green, you could forget candy altogether and pass out practical treats from the dollar store like playing cards or coloring supplies. Feel like getting a little culinary? Give those trick-or-treaters something special like roasted pumpkin seeds or popcorn balls! Dress them up in recycled paper, and you’ll have saved the planet extra packaging waste.

Tip 3: Walk Instead of Driving

There will roughly be 41 million princesses, pirates, and pop stars venturing to your neighborhood to trick-or-treat. With that many kids running around, why not join them? Every two minutes of car idling consumes the same amount of gas required to drive approximately one mile. Make it a family affair and walk the neighborhood together… remember you have 1.2 pounds of candy to burn off!

Tip 4: Dress-up Your Haunted House with Homemade Decorations

Don’t waste your time shopping for decorations you’ll use once and then toss. Decorate for Halloween with what’s already around you. Visit a farmers market to stock up on cornstalks, hay bales, and pumpkins. With the beautiful autumn leaves as a backdrop, your Halloween scene is set! Get extra points if you upcycle decorations. We have all seen these gallon ghosts  illuminate driveways and front porches. If you must buy decorations, purchase ones you can reuse ever year. Also, avoid plastic decorations that can house toxic chemicals like BPA and PVC.

Tip 5: Compost That Jack-o’-Lantern For Next Year

Halloween is an excellent time to try composting! Use any organic material around your house or yard like leaves, food scraps, and even those decomposing jack-o’-lanterns! Grow your pumpkins for next year, with your pumpkins from last year! You’ll be helping to cut down on the 1.1 billion pounds of annual pumpkin waste by composting yours, and saving a few bucks next fall when you grow your own pumpkin patch.

Tip 6: Maintain the Momentum

Living a green lifestyle shouldn’t stop on November 1. There are countless way to reduce waste and help the planet each day. You’ll find how simple it’s to make eco-conscious choices, and apply them to all holidays and aspects of your life. Don’t be sacred, you can do it! 

Remember how we suggested applying green initiatives to your every day life? Why not start with us? FundingFactory is a 100% free fundraising-thru-recycling program that pays you for your printer cartridges and small electronics. Since  1997, we have made quite an impact.  Register and start greening your school, community, or nonprofit today!

Resources:

http://holidays.thefuntimesguide.com/2008/10/green_halloween.php

http://www.thedailygreen.com/green-homes/latest/recycled-halloween-costume-470708?click=pp

http://visual.ly/halloween-statistics-2012-creepy-calculations