The holiday season is a time for joy, connection, and giving back. But it’s also a time when waste tends to spike with extra packaging, fast decor, and once-a-year items that don’t always see a second life. According to Stanford researchers, Americans generate about 25% more waste from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Eve, creating a mountain of plastic and packaging that often ends up in landfills.
This year, Goodwill of Silicon Valley invites you to celebrate A Greener Christmas by choosing mindful, budget-friendly, and planet-positive alternatives that make the season shine even brighter.
A Greener Christmas: Celebrate the Season withh Purpose
The holiday season is a time for joy, connection, and giving back. But it’s also a time when waste tends to spike with extra packaging, fast decor, and once-a-year items that don’t always see a second life. According to Stanford researchers, Americans generate about 25% more waste from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Eve, creating a mountain of plastic and packaging that often ends up in landfills.
This year, Goodwill of Silicon Valley invites you to celebrate A Greener Christmas by choosing mindful, budget-friendly, and planet-positive alternatives that make the season shine even brighter.
A Smarter, More Sustainable Way to Celebrate
At Goodwill, sustainability isn’t a trend, it’s part of our mission. As a leader in circular economy efforts, we keep usable goods in circulation and out of landfills. Last year alone, Goodwill of Silicon Valley diverted more than 35 million pounds of material from local landfills through resale and responsible recycling partnerships. When you choose to thrift your holiday essentials, you’re helping reduce waste and make the season a little greener for our community. When you thrift your holiday essentials, you cut waste and make the holidays a little greener for our community.
Thrifted Decor That Tells a Story
Skip the mass-produced holiday decor and explore the magic of second-hand treasures. Our stores are bright, organized, and filled with carefully selected merchandise that prioritizes quality and current styles, including unique ornaments, vintage wreaths, cozy candlescapes, and festive home accents waiting to be rediscovered. Because our inventory changes daily, you never know what one-of-a-kind finds you’ll uncover.
Gift With Heart (and Less Waste)
Think big-store convenience, variety, and fun, with one important difference: every dollar spent at Goodwill stays in our community, directly supporting programs for veterans, unhoused residents, people with disabilities, justice-involved individuals, at-risk youth, and others facing barriers to employment.
Thoughtful gifting doesn’t have to come with excess packaging or a high price tag. At Goodwill, you can curate meaningful, personalized, and sustainable gifts such as:
- A stack of books for the avid reader
- Chic, pre-loved fashion for the trendsetter
- Board games or puzzles for family night
- Vintage glassware for the host in your life
- Cozy throw blankets, candles, or home accents for the comfort-seeker
- Family-friendly games perfect for shared laughter
- STEM and building toys for budding problem-solvers
- Pretend-play sets like play kitchens or dollhouses for imaginative kids
- “New goods” like cozy slipper socks for a universally loved stocking stuffer
Pair your gift with a reusable basket or thrifted tin instead of single-use wrapping. It’s an eco-friendly touch that elevates your presentation and reduces waste.
DIY Holiday Magic
If you love a festive project, Goodwill is the perfect place to gather supplies for your next holiday DIY. From crafting ornaments to upcycling sweaters into decor, the possibilities are endless. Not only does DIY crafting keep materials out of landfills, it also adds a personal touch to your home and holiday celebrations.
You can even turn it into a family activity and create new traditions centered around sustainability, creativity, and connection.
Give Back While You Celebrate
Choosing Goodwill this season means supporting more than just sustainable shopping. Every purchase fuels programs that empower individuals across Silicon Valley, from job training to employment support and essential community services.
Your holiday spending can create measurable impact for your neighbors, helping them achieve self-sufficiency, reduce recidivism, and lessen reliance on public assistance, strengthening families and neighborhoods while saving taxpayer dollars.
This Christmas, let’s celebrate the season with purpose.
Do good. Give good. Thrift good.