There’s always an opportunity to leave the earth better than we found it, and the holidays are no exception. Make your next holiday party as environmentally conscious and socially responsible as it is fun with these eco-friendly holiday party tips!

1. Give your hostess a charitable gift.

In lieu of host gifts, invite your guests to bring an unwrapped children’s gift for your local Children’s Christmas Fund or ask them to donate cash or a non-perishable food item for your local food bank.

2. Throw a DIY holiday sweater party.

Here’s the catch: all guests’ sweaters need to be second-hand, recycled or reused, and/or decorated with items found around the home.

3. Host a vegetarian or vegan meal.

Reduce your carbon footprint and avoid the temptation of seasonal over-indulgence at the same time by hosting a vegetarian or vegan get-together, featuring tasty treats like these espresso almond butter cups.

4. Choose organic and local food.

Be sure to choose organic options wherever available when whipping up your favorite recipes. Also, consider offering foods made with what’s in season and/or locally sourced from a nearby Christmas market.

5. Use reusable dishes and cutlery.

Alternatively, help your guests contribute to the green effort by providing clearly marked trash receptacles for different types of party waste – compostable food scraps, paper, plastic, glass, etc.

6. Make your décor eco-chic!

Choose a potted tree instead of an artificial one, or get crafty and make your own natural holiday decorations. Another option is to visit your local thrift store to find gently used and vintage pieces. Finally, switch your holiday lighting to LEDs (light-emitting diode bulbs) – they’re 90 percent more efficient than traditional holiday lights, and they last far longer.

7. Have a negative waste party.

Ask your guests to bring hard-to-recycle items like old batteries and LED lights and offer to recycle these for them.

8. Give guests a socially conscious gift.

Send your guests home with party gifts that give back, like our Love Crunch Granola—plus they’ll love waking up to a decadent treat for breakfast the next morning!

9. Use up-cycled gift boxes.

Use an old cereal box to make eco-friendly gift boxes. You can also create a gathering around this activity if holiday sweater parties or cookie swaps aren't your thing.

How can you make your holiday season more eco-friendly?