Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Earth Day Party Ideas

This weekend is Earth Day, and while it is a holiday that is often overlooked, it's also a great opportunity to round some friends and have a good time. I know what you're thinking - regardless of how important it is to preserve the planet we call home, planting trees and beautifying neighborhoods is a lot of hard, manual work, and on weekends such tasks are usually miles away from all of our minds. But if that's not your scene, there are still other ways to help and appreciate our planet. You can celebrate Earth Day - and do some good - without ever picking up a shovel.

Idea #1 - Recycling craft day.

Plastic and styrofoam take longer to degrade than paper, and unnecessarily fill our landfills. Instead of throwing things out, save the earth and have some fun with a craft day. Take something old and junky and turn it into something new and great!

There are plenty of inventive things (bookshelves, pencil holders, flower vases, etc.) you can craft and create out of empty plastic bottles. Check out some of these designs for inspiration, and come up with more of your own! You can also make new items out of styrofoam or packing peanuts. Re-stuff an old beanbag chair, or create your own pet bed for your favorite furry friend by taking an old pillowcase and stuffing it with packing peanuts. Make a seed germinator out of an old to-go restaurant container. Make finger puppets out of empty yogurt containers. The possibilities are practically endless, and it can be a lot of fun to come up with your own ideas.

Idea #2 - Have fun and donate money to an environmental charity.

If the weather's nice, gather some friends or family for a game of ultimate frisbee, horseshoes, touch football, or capture the flag, and enjoy the nice weather. Add an Earth Day twist and create a little friendly competition by asking each member of the losing team to donate a few dollars (decide on the exact amount before the start of the game) to the environmental charity of the winning team's choice.

Not athletic? There are other fun ways to raise money. Have a friendly game of poker - whoever wins the pot gets to pick which environmental charity to donate it to. Or adjust your favorite board game's rules so that you're playing for money and do the same thing. Hold a garage sale to get rid of some of your clutter or sell some of the great recycled crafts you made (see Idea #1), and donate any profits to charity. There are tons of options!

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