Zero waste Chinese New Year
This Lunar New Year welcomes in the Year of the Rabbit. The celebrations traditionally last for 16 days and it is an important time for family gatherings. Numerous traditions are honoured, such as family dinners, house cleaning, giving & receiving red pockets… With Chinese New Year just around the corner, what better time than to share with you how to celebrate such traditions in a zero-waste manner. A friendly nudge to make your lucky red traditions, green.
(Did you know that almost a quarter of the global population celebrates the Lunar New Year? That's more than 2 billion of the world's population!)
5 ways to have a zero-waste CNY
Red pockets or lai see
One of the quintessential traditions of the Lunar New Year are represented through the red pockets. Whether they hold money or chocolate coins, these red envelopes symbolise good fortune and wealth for the year. It simply wouldn't be CNY without them. However, every year, around 8 billion lai see pockets are given within families globally. According to Greeners Action, roughly 320 million red pockets are used in Hong Kong. Such consumption is equivalent to deforesting 16,300 tress annually. Now that's a lot. Here are some useful tips to consider:
Avoid discarding into the bin ones that you have received. Check if there aren't any that you can keep and reuse for the following year.
Remind your elders or your parents or yourself not to glue the back flaps shut. Tuck them in instead to allow for reusing.
Purchase red pockets designs that are not limited to the specific Zodiac of the year.
Repurpose them into decorations! Here's a fun way to turn your red pockets into decor: link.
Discard your red pockets responsibly. Greeners Action holds a "Lai See Reuse and Recycle” programme. They give away reborn lai see pockets to be reused and also collect used ones for recycling.
Decorations
Chinese New Year decorations are important displays to have around your house. They are hung to welcome in luck, happiness, good health and prosperity in the new year. From door couplets, red lanterns, paper cuttings and Chinese knots, try opting for designs that can evergreen. Similar to the red pockets, select decor that are non specific to the Zodiac and can be reusable for many years. Additionally, perhaps ‘less is more’ is a difficult argument to have with your relatives but try to buy only what you need and not go overboard. If you are also looking for money-saving alternatives, think creative and turn on crafty side. Revive your old red pockets into fun lanterns or rabbit decor for this year of the rabbit!
Flowers
Don't you love how beautiful the flower markets are during this special time of the year? They are blooming in colours and fragrance, and the symbolic representation of flowers during CNY is even more poetic. They signify the blossoming of life and of good fortune. One iconic floral species is the white daffodils. The belief behind this specific flower is it indicates the good fortune and wealth expected in the new year, depending on how quickly the flower blooms.
So what are ways to be more sustainable with flowers over CNY? We recommend firstly, to be mindful of the packaging when purchasing your flowers. Although a bit heavier, consider buying flowers or plants that are already in pots to avoid plastic and paper wrappers. Otherwise, try vocalising to the florist to use less packaging. Don't forget to prioritise your local florist first to support local!
Cleaning
Decluttering and spring cleaning is a must-do before welcoming the Lunar New Year. It is believed to remove all the bad luck and misfortune, whilst making space for good luck and new things. When clearing out your old clothes or items, try and donate your goods to charities around HK or find a waste collection bin in town. Also, don't forget to make use of eco-friendly cleaning supplies, such as Island Life or Slowood HK.
Food
As we have introduced to you in our previous post regarding eating sustainable fish over Chinese New Year, here we talk about another important tradition, the customary Chinese New Year candy box. They are usually filled with (yes, you guessed it) candies but also with nuts, dried fruits and seeds. This tradition symbolises a sweet start and sweet moments in the new year. Rather than buying individually wrapped candies, try buying ones with no packaging at all. You can even consider making your own candied oranges (you can find this recipe on our Instagram page). As for the nuts, seeds and dried fruits, visit zero wastes stores to buy in bulk. Our partner stores like Slowood and Live Zero are great local stores you can find around Hong Kong to avoid buying with any packaging.
