There are many on-line posts offering gift ideas, but GGW Board members have a few local ideas to add:
- Give Wilmette Gift Cards for local shopping and dining.
- Give a certificate to our two local coffee shops – Central Station Coffee & Tea and Alchemy Coffee House and Roastery.
- Share a “take ‘n bake” scone wheel from Alchemy Coffee for THE best home-baked scones available.
- Sign your family up for weekly compost pick up or offer a group composting gift to your neighborhood or faith community.
- Make a certificate to set up a backyard composting system in the spring with a store-bought bin or a promise to build the “Cadillac of compost bins.“
- Create a DIY “gift card” to GGW’s Native Plant Sale along with a copy of Doug Tallamy’s book, Nature’s Best Hope.
- Visit The Book Stall in Winnetka for a copy of Katherine Hayhoe’s book, Saving Us, for a hopeful spin on our future — and thousands of other titles for everyone on your list. Or offer a gift certificate and an outing there.
- Arrange for a membership to the Chicago Botanic Garden and plan a visit.
- Plan a mini-vacation to nearby Galena (no jet fuel used) where you can hike or snowshoe with friendly goats, snow board at Chestnut Mountain, bike or cross country ski on the Galena River Trail, or taste local wines.
- Give an “excursion” and gift card to the Village Farm Stand in Evanston.
- Buy an ownership in the Wild Onion Market food co-op.
- Book a private penguin experience at the Brookfield Zoo. (Check other similar opportunities at the Lincoln Park Zoo and the Shedd Aquarium.)
- Book a class or party at The Waste Shed or Evanston Rebuilding Warehouse.
- Give a nature immersion or forest bathing experience at The Morton Arboretum.
- Don’t forget local theater, restaurant and museum gift certificates.
- Donate to an environmental group your loved one supports in their name.
- Want to go BIG? Surprise your family with a promise of an electric car or solar panels!
Check out this greening the holidays tip list for more ideas.
