Green gifts for grads

Graduation is upon up us. What to get the eco-conscious grad?

Money of course is about as eco-friendly as you can get.

But avoid gift cards made from plastic. While the cards themselves may be recyclable, the magnetic strips are not. (Plus $6.8 billion in gift cards is never redeemed! That’s not green-either for the grad or your wallet.)

Cash in an envelope you’ve made from say a map or page from a magazine the grad favors, is sure to be gratefully used-and recycled.

(Here’s a freebie. Envelopes are ridiculously easy to make. Find an envelope the size you want and open it so it lays flat. Use this as a template. Lay it on top of your map or magazine page, draw around the it, cut out on the line, fold and glue. Voila! You’ll never need to buy envelopes again and making them as you’ll discover, takes about five minutes and can be quite addictive! Oh, and don’t forget to re-glue your “template” so you can use it. But we digress…)

For the female green grad

For your favorite young woman, a piece of jewelry that can be worn for the rest of her life is a meaningful way to mark the occasion.

OK, we’re prejudiced, but we think the Celebrate Reclaimed Silver necklace from Barbara Michelle Jacobs that we carry in our Open Sky shop, would make a memorable gift. It is cast from a real beech seed, so is a permanent link to nature and arrives in eco-friendly packaging of course.

If we were giving this necklace, we would in a note, talk about seeds and how they signify beginnings and hold within them, all the possibilities of life, just as our graduate does. We would add that we know she will fulfill her promise and that if ever she is in doubt, she should wear the necklace as a reminder.

What a wonderful way to put the meaning in the greening as we like to say.

For the green grad guy

Giving equal time to the guys, (not that young women wouldn’t love this one too), how about a solar charger for his gadgets. This one from Solio started the revolution in battery-free charging.

For any green grad

And for any grad who takes his or her social responsibility seriously, we’d suggest a gift certificate from Donor’s Choose or Network for Good. The former allows recipients to select from a variety of classroom projects that are seeking funding around the U.S. (What grad wouldn’t want to help those following in her footsteps to have more educational opportunities?)

Network for Good allows grads to give to any charity anywhere as easily as they shop online. You can print out a Network for Good gift card (Hooray! No metal strip!-and of course you’ll print on 100% recycled paper), in any amount starting at $10. There is a $5 handling fee per card.

Whether it’s cash, a gift with meaning, something you make yourself or a donation, believe us, it will feel great to give an eco-friendly gift to your favorite green grad!

More ideas for greener graduations are available on our website and of course in our book, Celebrate Green!