adminneed to go green and transfer our love for the Environment/Planet after all Roses are Green so let us think about breaking Valentine’s Day traditions
The Environmental Management Agency is therefore encouraging people to:
Rethink Romantic Gifts
We know, we know: Valentine’s Day is a consumerist day invented by greeting-card companies, jewellers and chocolatiers. But that doesn’t mean it can’t be enjoyed responsibly and in a giving spirit.
This year, consider giving e-cards instead of paper cards, antique or recycled jewellery, ethical chocolate, organic (or home-grown) flowers, and digital playlists instead of packaged CDs. If you must wrap your gift, consider planet-friendly options.
Green greetings
More than 180 million cards are exchanged on Valentine’s Day. Since paper is made of trees and paper mills use immense amounts of water and emit tonnes of chemicals, imagine the impact it would make if all those cards were recycled.
Even recycled cards, though, end up in the landfill, where they emit methane as they decompose. One alternative is to make a card out of old magazines and wall calendars. Another is to give a card made of plant able seed paper, bury it and when the paper bio-degrades, the seeds grow into wildflowers.
Let love blossom
It’s little-known, but the flower industry is pretty environmentally destructive. To minimise your impact, consider ordering an organic bouquet.
Better yet, pluck some peonies from your own garden or ride over to your neighbourhood farmers’ market to buy a locally grown burst of colour (make sure to ask the farmer whether what you are buying is free of pesticides). Remember too, that a plant that is in a pot always lasts longer.
Look behind the Shine
Vintage jewellery is a great choice for romantic souls who don’t romanticise the environmental and human-rights problems associated with mining diamonds.
For a bold (and not necessarily bank-breaking) statement, consider a distinctive piece made from recycled metal, or other re-purposed materials.
Plan an Eco-Friendly Outing
When going out to eat, choose a restaurant that uses local, seasonal, organic ingredients and has lots of vegetarian options. Wherever you go, co-ordinate so that you use public transport or cycle.
Mother Nature Shows Some Love
On Valentine’s Day, love will be in the air or under a bug. If you and your Valentine decide to go outside to share your affection today, keep an eye for that typical symbol of love that is natural.
Share experiences, not things
If you give your Valentine a present, consider how soon it may end up in a landfill. Instead, you can plan a hike and a picnic in your mutually favourite nature spot.
Other memorable small-footprint ideas include a day at an organic spa, a gift certificate to a vegetarian restaurant, a cooking or dancing class; tickets to a nearby concert or play, or you can even adopt a Nature Park or street in your sweetheart’s name.
Choose chocolate consciously
Go for a less packaged (but just as romantic) option.
Buy local, seasonal treats
Ask yourself whether you really need those strawberries that were flown all the way from Europe, Asia or United States into Zimbabwe.
A great way to reduce your carbon footprint is to think seasonally, by finding out what foods are being grown where you live.
One option for finding fresh, local produce is to frequent your nearest farmers’ market.
For more information about the Green Valentine dinner contact Caroline Washa-yamoyo (0772433901), Violet Makoto (0772749082), Veronica Gutu (0772496626) or email to [email protected]. Give a gift that keeps on giving. Please talk to us, we are ready to listen. Email [email protected], telephone 04-305543, tollfree 08080028
Online Reporter