Green gifts are a welcome gesture and can help the Earth

By Jennie Miller
C & G Staff Writer

» Click on image to view full size « Photo courtesy of The Nature Conservancy Coral reefs, acres of land and hummingbird habitats are among the items donors to The Nature Conservancy can choose from when selecting regions to protect through gifts. Photo courtesy of The Nature Conservancy Coral reefs, acres of land and hummingbird habitats are among the items donors to The Nature Conservancy can choose from when selecting regions to protect through gifts.

Fill two needs with one deed this holiday season by giving gifts that also give back to nature.

Organizations like the World Wildlife Fund and The Nature Conservancy and so many others offer many opportunities for green gift giving, such as adopting endangered animals in someone’s name, preserving an acre of rainforest, planting trees or providing clean drinking water.

“A lot of them are feel-good stuff,” said Melissa Soule, marketing manager for The Nature Conservancy. “It’s not money to waste; it’s money to help. We take every dollar seriously, and we care about donor intent, as well. Every penny goes — not only does it help globally, but also locally.”

Donors to The Nature Conservancy can specify a particular region or habitat they wish to help with their contribution. They can adopt a coral reef, plant trees in Brazil, protect hummingbird habitats or even localize their gift to the Midwest.

“Fifty bucks could purchase 200 white pines to restore a forest near Lake Superior,” Soule said. “(You can) restore our Lake Erie marsh preserve to reconnect it to Lake Erie, so it helps water filter naturally and restores some of those degraded and missing wetlands.”

There’s also a $50 animal adoption kit that allows the donor to receive a backpack full of stuffed animals, each one representing an animal the organization is trying to protect — a sea turtle, jaguar, rhinoceros and orangutan.

“As a mom, I’d rather give that (to a child) and feel good about that then a bunch of stuff,” she said. “The kids get something they get to open and play with, and the parents get the satisfaction that it goes to something good.”

Because these kinds of gifts are becoming more and more popular, the World Wildlife Fund has launched a 60-page holiday gift catalogue with items for children and adults alike to receive in exchange for their support of the organization’s conservation efforts around the world.

The most popular gift-giving donation to the WWF is a symbolic animal adoption, and at the top of people’s lists this year seem to be tigers, pandas, polar bears, emperor penguins and sea turtles, according to Jenna Bonello of the WWF. Donors have many other adoption options, including a trio of cubs — a tiger, a snow leopard and a cheetah, each threatened by habitat loss, as well as hunting, poaching and diminished food supply. Adoption kits can include a stuffed animal, photo, adoption certificate and tote bag. The organization is also offering items like a collectible hand-blown glass panda ornament of a mother and her cub, and a 2012 WWF calendar.

Eco-friendly gifts are also available at a local level, with state and county park organizations offering gift certificates to utilize natural resources.

“Give the gift of health and recreation and all that good stuff,” said Dan Stencil, executive officer of Oakland County Parks. “We have gift cards in any denomination that can be used for golf, camping, water parks,” and admission to any county park to use bike paths, nature trails, picnic areas and beaches.

“As a society, we’re getting a little more in tune with living healthy lifestyles, and I think the stressful lifestyle that we do live, parks and recreation creates opportunities for people to de-stress, reconnect with family and loved ones, and there’s no better time to give that gift than at the holiday season,” Stencil said.

For more information about Oakland County Parks gift cards, which are rechargeable, call (888) OCPARKS or visit www.destinationoakland.com.

For more information about The Nature Conservancy, call (800) 613-6402 or visit www.nature.org. For more information about the World Wildlife Fund, call (800) 960-0993 or visit www.worldwildlife.org.
 

You can reach C & G Staff Writer Jennie Miller at jmiller@candgnews.com or at (586)279-1108.