Have a Green Halloween

(From Journal Newspapers, WA area)
The fall and winter holiday season is upon us. Beginning with Halloween and culminating with a new year, it's a time when most American households celebrate in some way. But celebrating, unfortunately, often means increased wastefulness and a slacking off from regular health habits. But it doesn't have to be that way. In fact, according to the authors of the newly released book Celebrate Green, Corey Colwell-Lipson and Lynn Colwell, holidays are the perfect time to step up your focus on good health and Earth-friendly practices.

Corey, a local mom and founder of the Green Halloween movement, says parents who try to instill healthy habits in their kids throughout the year often become anxious during holidays, knowing that, especially Halloween, is all about the candy. "What else do you do? Not celebrate?" asks Corey of the dilemma parents face. There's no need to steal the fun from holidays like the Grinch - just add a little creativity to the mix and you'll have as much fun, if not more - making the holidays a little greener.

The inspiration for Green Halloween, a nonprofit, grassroots effort to promote child- and Earth-friendly festivities, came in 2006 while Corey was trick-or-treating with her two children. "A couple of houses were handing out non-candy items," recalled Corey, whose kids were thrilled with the trinkets. "It struck me that kids are overexposed to traditional candy, and maybe that's why something different gets them excited." The thought stuck in her mind, and, at the urging of her friends, Corey decided to approach several natural food stores about offering eco-friendly, healthy Halloween treats for parents who were interested in alternatives to candy. The store managers she spoke with loved the idea. Corey also shared the idea with her mom, Lynn, who had raised Corey with green practices long before they were hip. "We had a choice: Do we jump through the window when it's open, or let [the stores] handle it?" she said of her decision to create Green Halloween. "My mom and I are 'jump through the window' kind of people."

The pair had no trouble getting community involvement and support for the idea. In 2007, they chose Treeswing, an organization dedicated to improving the health and wellness of children - especially reversing the childhood obesity trend through physical activity and exercise - as their founding partners. "They helped us sculpt this, and Green Halloween is an official program of theirs this year," said Corey.
Thanks to some great national press coverage, Green Halloween is catching on in other cities around the country this year, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Daytona Beach and Canton, Conn. Although Corey and Lynn encourage buying less "stuff" in general during all holidays, they realize it's more realistic for some to consider smaller, more affordable purchases of products that use less packaging or are otherwise more eco-friendly. The Green Halloween Web site, www.greenhalloween.org, offers hundreds of ideas for food, decorations, costumes and other new ways of celebrating this year.

With the release of Celebrate Green on Oct. 1, the principles for Green Halloween are applied to celebrations throughout the year, including birthdays, family reunions, office parties, baby showers, weddings and other momentous occasions. "The idea behind the book is really creating meaning versus buying all this stuff," said Corey.
Lynn, who has experience as a published writer and public relations professional, and currently coaches others to follow their dreams through her life coaching business, was the perfect partner for the book project. In fact, when the publisher went out of business, Lynn took over publishing and collaborated with graphic designer Jeff Duckworth to get the book out on schedule this fall. The result is a colorful guide filled with low cost, waste reducing, eco-friendly and healthy recipes, activities, games, traditions and tips for any celebration, printed on (of course) FSC certified paper. A portion of the proceeds from the book will go to Treeswing.
"People don't think about how often we celebrate in this country. The occasions are endless," said Lynn. "People may have thought about recycling, but when it comes to birthdays, they're still getting bottled water. We're realists. We want people to take the first step, look at the book, pick out one or two ideas and say, 'I'm going to try it this year.' Once that kind of things starts, it will be a groundswell."
Corey echoes that small shifts in thinking or behavior are what generate habits. "Once people start doing things green, they don't go backwards. Nobody starts recycling and then stops," she said. "We hope to be working ourselves out of a job. In a couple of years, what will we need Green Halloween for? It will be, 'of course.'"
The book is all about simplicity, says Corey. "The holidays are a perfect platform to talk about these issues and keep it fun. We try to make it fun and interesting. Being positive works."