Mother’s Day is all about love. It’s the perfect time to show our mothers and grandmothers how much we love them by also loving Mother Earth. Holidays can be tricky when it comes to making eco-friendly choices with all the cards, gifts, and meals involved. But with a few simple changes, we can express our love and still be mindful of our environmental and plastic footprint. Here are some ways to green this Mother’s Day.

Send Electronic Cards Instead Of Paper Ones

Nearly 80 percent of people will give cards on Mother’s Day. Imagine all of that paper that gets read for one minute and then is tossed aside, probably to end up in a landfill. We can make a huge impact by cutting back on our paper use, including switching from paper to online cards for loved ones. Here is an example of what you will save by going paperless:

• Trees. An estimated 18 million acres of forest are lost each year. Trees produce oxygen, protecting the planet from further global warming. When you save a tree, you ensure that enough oxygen is produced for 3 people to breathe.
• Fuel consumption. It takes fuel for the delivery trucks and Postal Service and to get all of those Mother’s Day cards to stores and to moms’ homes.
• Clean air. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), pulp and paper mills are among the worst polluters to air, water, and land of any industry. Each year millions of pounds of highly toxic chemicals are released into the air and water from papermaking plants around the world.
• Greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change. The pulp and paper industry is the fourth largest emitter of greenhouse gases among U.S. manufacturing industries. Additionally, paper decomposing in landfills produces methane, a greenhouse gas with 23 times the heat-trapping capacity of carbon dioxide.

Choose Eco-Friendly Gifts

In 2018, the National Retail Federation (NRF) estimated that US consumers will spend about $23 billion on gifts for Mother’s Day. We have a major opportunity to make a difference and protect the environment through our gift purchases. First of all, gift cards are a really wonderful gift option when we don’t know what someone wants. If possible, choose the electronic version instead of the plastic ones to cut back on plastic waste. Speaking of reducing plastic waste, you can put together a lovely bundle of our products that your mom will adore. She will be thrilled to relax with Plaine Products’ shampoo, conditioner, body wash, lotion, and facial products. There are also many other types of products out there that support reducing our plastic footprint in the kitchen, at the gym, and in our closet.

Another fabulous way to celebrate your mother is to give her a gift that involves spending time together doing something fun outdoors. Sharing these special moments together will be super meaningful to her and something she’ll treasure forever. Some ideas include spending the day at the beach; going for a hike on a nature trail; renting a boat and enjoying the gorgeous water views; planning a picnic at a local park; and visiting an arboretum, butterfly garden, or other outdoor oasis.

Opt For Sustainable Gift Wrap to Go Green this Mother’s Day

Gift wrap tends to be wasteful. Whether you use wrapping paper (sold in plastic) or cellophane. Fortunately, there are plenty of creative ways to present your gifts to your loved ones.

• Make the wrapping part of the gift by using items like handkerchiefs, scarves, blankets, or placemats. Our friends at Simply Zero have a great blog article on how to use fabric to wrap.
• Use fun cloth bags of all sizes and patterns to enclose your gift.
• Make your own wrapping paper by using the plain backside of used paper and decorating it with stamps or other design elements like flowers and hearts.
• Go rustic by using recycled brown parcel or butcher paper tied in twine or cloth ribbon.
• For smaller gifts, try using jars or reusable containers.
• If you have something fragile, opt for shredded paper or used tissue paper instead of polystyrene packing material.

Make Reservations At Green Restaurants

Many families have the tradition of going out for brunch, lunch, or dinner to honor mothers and grandmothers on this special day. If possible, to go green this Mother’s Day, choose a restaurant that is committed to sustainability. Examples of this include having lots of organic and locally grown items on the menu, making an effort to be energy-efficient such as with solar panels, and/or committing to reducing plastic (no plastic straws, bags, or takeout containers).

Search for Surfrider Foundation’s Ocean Friendly Restaurants (OFR) near you and enjoy them with your family. There are hundreds of OFR restaurants working to increase awareness, drive behavioral change, and reduce our plastic footprint in these states: Alaska, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, North Carolina, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Washington, D.C.

Happy Mother’s Day to all the amazing moms out there, including our own! We salute all of the hard work and dedication that goes into raising children and we think you should celebrate yourself with some self-love. If it happens to benefit the planet and Mother Earth, all the better!