'Tis the Season for Excess

"The holidays are marked by a heightenedperiod of consumption, which produces more waste thanusual," says Kim Carlson, host of Livin' the Green Life on VoiceAmerica radio. "But you can participate in the festivities and stillbe green; just make more earth-friendly choices." How to start:

• Reset your table
  "Cloth napkins eliminate paper waste and can be reused for years," says Carlson.
• Give the gift of experience
  "Tickets to a game will be appreciated more than anothercoffeemaker," says Carlson. Not only does thisreduce garbage, but it creates a memory.
• Read the labels
  Whenever possible, buy gifts made from natural materials ratherthan plastics, which contain petroleum.
• Pack it up right
  Ditch the paper, andwrap with reusable materials. (Slip agift into a scarf and tie it with a ribbon.)