Fall is a fun time of year with the emerging colder weather, fun-coloured decorations and of course, Halloween. Families across the country will be gearing up their kids to go trick-or-treating in their neighbourhoods collecting candy from door to door on Oct 31st. While this tradition is one of the most fun of the year, there are always ways to improve tradition to bring it up to the 21st century. In this case, making Halloween more eco-friendly.
There are lots of ways to curb your impact this Halloween, that really doesn’t go outside of societal norms or add much of anything to the annual fall budget (you might even save money while helping the environment!).
- Eco-friendly Halloween Costumes
DIY-ing your costume vs. buying a new one from the store is one way to reduce your footprint this Halloween. Reusing boxes, bottles or other items designated for ‘trash’ is a great way to incorporate something that would otherwise end up in the landfill. Of course, this is highly dependant on the costume itself and what you can use to make it ‘come to life.’ Thrifting clothes from the local thrift store is a great way to use items that need a new life. If your costume looks appealing and trendy to the point where others would want to wear it, you could always sell the costume after – extending the life of your costume and its components.
- Eco-friendly Halloween Décor
This is a great holiday for eco-friendly décor as there are lots of natural items you can incorporate for both indoor and outdoor use. Beautifully coloured fall leaves make a great accessory to any table, as well as outdoor display. This is the same with pumpkins, hay bails, corn stalks and coloured corn on the cob – all natural and all compostable products. Additionally, a fun craft for children is to make their own decorations out of recyclables or ‘garbage’ – this is a great way to get some nice new decorations with no cost and all the fun!
- Eco-friendly Halloween Candy
Sustainably sourced candy is the best option to please both trick-or-treating children, and the environment. The real eco-friendly option would be apples or a transportable fruit of some kind, but unfortunately, kids are not excited to receive that like candy. Anything that is sourced sustainably, non-GMO or organic would be good options that would put a smile on children’s faces and limit environmental impact.
- Eco-friendly Trick-or-Treating (Bags/Buckets & Travel)
When sending your kids out to trick or treat, try to stay in your own neighbourhood if possible and walk from house to house. Not only is this great exercise, but it limits greenhouse gas emissions from driving around the neighbourhood to establish the same result. Although walking maybe slower, it is a healthy and sustainable choice. Additionally, always send your kids with reusable candy buckets/bags that they can use for years to come, this way they are discarding a plastic bag every year. Personally, our office agrees that the best option for carrying candy is a pillowcase! They are sustainable, they carry a good amount of candy and can be carried easily – the perfect candy carrying vessel!
So this Halloween, try to think a big more sustainably, and try some of our eco-friendly Halloween initiatives. It might not be that hard to incorporate or it might be really challenging, but taking the extra step to make a holiday eco-friendly is just one more thing we can do to reduce our carbon footprint!