Green your holidays with this collection of eco-friendly gift wrapping ideas! According to Sustainable America, an estimated 8,000 tons of wrapping paper is used during the holiday season – that equals roughly 50,000 trees!

Wrapping paper is designed for single-use, and although the patterns can be cheerful and bright, the environmental impact is anything but. Think you'll just recycle the gift wrap? Think again! Most wrapping paper is not recyclable – meaning its final destination is a landfill. 

Instead, everyday household items can be repurposed into creative gift wraps for the holidays or any occasion! 

The handmade cosmetics and beauty products company Lush was inspired by the traditional Japanese art of wrapping cloth called Furoshiki. The company sells colorful eco-friendly fabric wraps in-store and online. The scarfs are made from either organic cotton or two recycled plastic bottles! They'll even throw in instruction cards with directions on how to wrap all of your goodies. The wraps are basically a gift within itself, and the recipient can either pay-it-forward and reuse the fabric to wrap their next gift in or use it as a tote, scarf, or headband.

Never heard of Lush? The company is against animal testing and all products are 100 percent vegetarian. Try the shampoo bar! Ditch the shampoo bottles and use a bar instead (there's even a tin you can purchase to store it in). Conditioner bars are available too.

Here are five ways you can reuse your knot wrap via LushUSA.com. 

Easy peasy and adorable! Check out this idea from "SustainableMags."

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• Grab an empty cereal box

 

• Cut the tabs off the top of the box

 

• Use a hole punch to make two holes on either side of the box

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• Thread ribbon, twine, shoestrings (or anything you can think of) through the holes and tie a knot on the ends

​Got a gift certificate or small item such as a bracelet or other trinket? Try this recycled pillow boxes idea from Older and Wisor. How cute are these?

Put a bow on it – you're done! How about this great idea from "Creative Homemaking?" Use your leftover fabric scraps to make fabric twine! 

I am definitely no expert on gardening, heck, I've only been doing it for a few months. However, I am good at taking something that might seem overwhelming and complex and JUST DOING IT! (For example, I'm not very good at blogging as it takes me a long time to write just one measly blog, but here I am). You want to learn how to swim, you jump in a pool. You want to learn guitar, you get a guitar. You want to grow your own food, you get seeds, dirt and a pot. Keep it basic. But, like everything else that matters in life, it takes a little patience, a willingness to make mistakes and a determination to keep trying.

I love this website because it lets you know when produce is in season in your state! Do you have a favorite fruit or vegetable, and you'd love to get it fresh and local, but you don't know when it is normally harvested in your area?  Then you are in luck: click the button below to get the United States first national crop harvest calendars.

Our nonprofit has seen tremendous growth over these last few years which is an amazing feat considering it is run by a small group of volunteers already dedicated to full-time careers. We've seen what we can accomplish given limited resources and time and now we are ready to see what good things we can do given the opportunity. Successes in our events like Northeast Florida Veg Fest and No Meat March get bigger and bigger each year and we need to build on that momentum and mobilize people throughout the year. We are hoping by entering One Spark we can do the unimaginable here in our little corner of the world and forever change the landscape of Florida, figuratively and literally.

We want to host an effective Southeast Conference that will accomplish positive changes in three main areas: the environment, animals and our health. In order to succeed we will be reaching out to leaders, activists, civil servants, lawmakers, city organizers and people hungry for change inviting them to gather in Jacksonville, Florida in 2015. If change is going to happen, we need to demand it, our voices need to be unified and strong and we can do that by connecting and stay connected year after year. The goals of the conference are:

• To exchange information and connect with leaders and their members in an effort to grow our combined network list exponentially.
  

• To build morale and show individuals that hundreds of other people are fighting for similar causes.
  

• To solve problems that have gained traction in other cities/states and determine the most effective way to translate those successes in other regions.
  

• To initiate policy on key issues that will be followed and carried out by all participating organizations, businesses and individuals.
  

• To execute a 5-year business plan that will tackle the most pressing causes facing the Southeast.
  
• To designate time periods in each of the five years that will be devoted to one particular cause and then work together towards its resolution.
  
• To inspire continued efforts in establishing local and statewide change year round.
  
• To share success stories over the course that the 5-year business plan is in effect.
  

What are the most pressing issues facing us in the Southeast? Here is our preliminary list, but we plan to build on this once a survey is collected from all the potential participants.

1. To replace unhealthy, high-fat foods in public school lunches with healthier, yet delicious options.
2. To help steer industry away from single-use plastics and Styrofoam.
3. To remove greyhound racing from the gambling industry.
4. To phase out inherently cruel delicacies which are foie gras and veal.
5. To see an end to the use of electrical prods and bull hooks on animals.
6. To even the playing field and end bait and canned hunting.
7. To protect our health and drinking water by ending water fluoridation.
8. To minimize harmful environmental practices in businesses looking to get established in the Southeast.

Please, won't you join us on our journey? Continue to follow The Girls Gone Green while we try and solve the many environmental, animal and health problems by proposing viable solutions that can be adopted on a city and state level.

Help us get to where we want to go and come hear us pitch our idea now that we are an official One Spark creator!

On Friday, April 11th at 6:30 p.m. in Hemming Plaza, Julie Watkins, Executive Director of The Girls Gone Green will take the stage for a brief 5 minutes to try and convince you why our nonprofit deserves to be awarded.

If you can't make our pitch no worries, we will be out there all day Wednesday through Sunday (April 9-13) at Main Street Park! Please swing by our tent, take pics with our mascots, try some free samples and most importantly - VOTE FOR OUR PROJECT!

What sets your Project apart from what is currently available?

Not many organizations fight for healthy eating habits and protection of the environment and animals as passionately as we do. We are a volunteer-run organization working with a limited budget. Successes include the growth of our Northeast Florida Veg Fest every year since 2010, turning our local campaign, No Meat Meat, into an international initiative, raising awareness about health and nutrition, phasing out Styrofoam in restaurants at the beaches and more. We are ready to take these wins and experience gained to a bigger platform which will make an even bigger difference.

Why are you and your team the best people on the planet to handle this project?

We are driven by our hearts and our need to make our community better, cleaner, healthier and more humane. Five ladies have been able to effectively tackle issues that come with a lot of stigma, and we've done it with a positive attitude. We have seen our local community transform since starting our nonprofit and we are ready to spread that transformation beyond our city limits.

CLICK HERE TO RSVP TO THE ONE SPARK PITCH!