Children can happily help save our planet by hosting green birthday parties....and it is very easy to do.
- Send handmade invites or e-invites.
- No Balloons.
- Reusable or biodegradable crockery and cutlery. Choice of steel, leaf , clay, bamboo etc.
- No thermo coal or Styrofoam products to be used.
- Glasses for drinks must be reusable.
- Bamboo or paper straws- that too only if needed.
- Use reusable cloth table covers and napkins. Wash them and keep for next year.
- Decor can be done using paper streamers, cloth buntings, flowers, plants.
- Make hand-painted posters or ask children to paint small paper/ old cardboard cut outs for decor.
- Activity table does not need to have plastic items to decorate, beading etc. Rather it can have clay to mould items and paint with simple water colours – no glitter.
- Face fainting using simple water colours -not metallic colour.
- No plastic party whistles or horns. Use wooden / metal whistles which can be reused for other parties, year after year.
- Don’t waste paper on packing gifts – neither ones to give neither the return favours.
- Gift responsible return gifts– Reusable alternatives for plastics which can be used by school going children , like Steel water bottles, bamboo toothbrushes, their own set of bamboo or steel cutlery and straws, Pencil and note book set made from newspaper/ recycled paper etc.
- Gift a small potted plant, which the child can nurture. Child can role play a parent to the plant.
- Paper Candy bags with non plastic wrapped candy.
- Use leftover food next day or gift it to a homeless shelter or to the poor people.
Parents in a locality can also create a crockery bank with steel plates, glasses, spoons; a bank of wooden / metallic/ cloth/ paper decorations and other party items. These can be borrowed for use, by all in the locality. People can add other special items to their own parties. This will help green celebrations. Segregation of waste at parties is also important, after the party send dry waste for recycling and wet waste for composting.
Birthday parties are filled with fun and friendship. So let’s encourage all the children to make a new friend – Make our Planet our Friend.... our lifelong friend.
By
ADITYA MUKARJI
Volunteer Chintan Environmental Research and Action group
15 year old Student, Eco-warrior
#RefuseIfYouCannotReuse
