Like Christmas, although to a much lesser degree, Easter is a time of high consumption. Big feasts, heaps of chocolates…. we all tend to indulge more than normal. As Easter is upon us all this week, I thought I’d share seven ways to make your Easter more sustainable.
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1. Give Bilbies not Bunnies
Given rabbits cause extensive damage to our landscape and wildlife, and cost governments billions of dollars to manage each year, it really doesn’t make economic or ecological sense to promote the purchase of bunnies.
By gifting Bilbies rather than Bunnies this Easter (and every Easter) your purchase will help conserve this unique Australian marsupial. Click here to discover 3 Reasons To Choose An Easter Bilby Over a Bunny.
2. Opt for sustainably sourced, fair trade chocolate with NO palm oil.
Seeking out fair trade, sustainable chocolate, not only means you’ll enjoy delicious, good quality chocolate – you’re also making a difference to the working and living standards for cocoa farmers, their families and communities. Look for the Fairtrade symbol on packaging to ensure your selection is certified Fairtrade.
3. Gift Something Other Than Chocolate Eggs
Instead of gifting traditional eggs or bunnies, consider decorative ceramic, glass or wooden eggs, a lovely plant or even a thoughtful homemade preserve. Easter doesn’t always have to be about gormandizing on chocolate!
4. Have a fish-free Good Friday
Did you know that over 80% of the world’s fish stocks are now over-exploited or fished right up to their limit? If you follow Christian traditions and eat fish on Good Friday, consider giving our oceans a break by choosing a vegetarian meal instead. There’s heaps of sustainable and planet-friendly recipes in my Ecotarian Guide, which you can pick up here.
If you possibly can’t go without your seafood fix, check out the Australian Sustainable Seafood Guide to see the vulnerability status of your favourite seafood and choose a suitable alternative.
5. Recycle Your Easter Egg Wrappers
Australians are some of the biggest consumers of Easter Eggs in the world – eating more than 20 eggs per person each year! As a result we produce tonnes of additional packaging waste at Easter time.
If gifting traditional chocolate eggs, make the effort to collect the Aluminium foil wrappers for recycling. This is obviously a bit tricky to do if they’re all in little scraps so instead, scrunch wrappers together into one big ball and place in the recycling bin. Placing a bowl in the centre of a table for everyone to place their empty wrappers in makes this super easy to do.
6. Make Your Own Hot Cross Buns
Kiss the packaging and preservatives goodbye and have a go at making your own organic Hot Cross Buns. You’ll find my recipe here.
7. Holiday Locally
For many, Easter is a time to getaway and relax. If you’re holidaying over the Easter Break, consider conserving emissions and holidaying locally. Click here for 14 Ways To Eco-fy Your Holiday.
Take these seven tips on board and you’ll not only enjoy the Easter period, you’ll do your little bit to help make green mainstream!
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Laura Trotta is one of Australia’s leading home sustainability experts. She has a Bachelor of Environmental Engineering, a Masters of Science (in Environmental Chemistry) and spent 11 years working as an environmental professional before creating her first online eco business, Sustainababy, in 2009. She has won numerous regional and national awards for her fresh and inspiring take on living an ‘ecoceptional’ life (including most recently winning the Brand South Australia Flinders University Education Award (2015) for the north-west region in SA and silver in the Eco-friendly category of the 2015 Ausmumpreneur Awards). With a regular segment on ABC Radio and with her work featured in publications like Nurture Parenting and My Child Magazine, Laura is an eco thought leader who’s not afraid to challenge the status quo. A passionate believer in addressing the small things to achieve big change, and protecting the planet in practical ways, Laura lives with her husband and two sons in outback South Australia. 
