So have you decided what your New Year’s resolution will be yet? Same as last year’s? Still resolving to give up the chocolate, stop smoking, or lose the weight? No worries—you have plenty of time to do it from now on. AND you can do it and be green at the same time, so it benefits both you and the planet.

• Get fit and lose weight by walking and biking: About 70% of car trips are less than five miles or less, so get on that bike or put on your walking shoes. If you’re traveling long distances, you can offset your car or airplane carbon emissions by purchasing carbon credits from companies like TerraPass.
• Simplify your life and reduce stress: Apply the recycling slogan, “reduce, reuse, recycle” to all parts of your life—see what you can get rid of, reuse, or give away and make room in the New Year. This also includes buying used and trading on sites such as Freecyle.
• Save some money: One easy way to do this is to reduce your energy use: Does the TV really need to be on in the background while you do your chores? How about all the lights? Why not change them to the compact fluorescent (CFL) kind? Bonus: You can put the money you save in a socially responsible fund and watch it grow.

If you’re really curious about your impact on the environment, you can calculate your ecological footprint and from there, decide what else you’d like to change. Remember, it takes at least 30 days to create a new habit, so if you’re serious about that resolution, keep doing it daily for 30 days. It’ll become easier and easier to make it part of your lifestyle.

I must say, not much gets me teary, but I won’t mind telling you the outrage and sadness I felt over this story, and I did indeed shed a tear. Such a beautiful animal here on this earth for millions of years and we killed it; the first cetacean to go extinct in modern times. We did it. All of us. Whether you live in China or not, the world is connected. I have said it time and time again - everything you do makes a difference - and all of humanity shares this terrible burden. And make no mistake, this magnificent dolphin is not an exception. Plants and animals go extinct every day all over the world. Rarely are they so large and magnificent as this one, but each is an important creature nonetheless. ‘Who cares,’ you may ask? Shame on you! Life’s richness does not come from owning the biggest SUV. No one ever dies saying, “Gee, I wish I’d had more money, or more stuff.” The richness of life is in its diversity, and the diversity of this world is dwindling, my friends. However, just as we all share in the sadness of our failures, we also share the joy of our successes. Let’s keep fighting for those successes and one day they will outnumber our failures.

So how many parties have you gone to in the last couple of weeks? I’m guessing you’ve lost count by now. And now you’re planning on throwing one?? Well, if you’ve got the energy, read on, to make your party as green as your Christmas tree or Hanukkah bush or the other green plants in your house.

• Send electronic invitations: Use evite - it’s quick, easy, and everyone is joined at the hip to their computers anyway. If this is a more formal gathering, use postcards with self-mailer panels or invites printed on recycled paper.
• Buy food in bulk: This saves on packaging - and of course, it’s even better if you buy organic and limit quantities to what will be consumed. Visit the Eat Well Guide to find farmers, grocery stores, and restaurants in your area that offer sustainable food choices.
• Decorate with flowers, plants and fabrics: Try to steer clear of plastic streamers, balloons, or Mylar decorations.
• Use reusable tableware: If you don’t have enough, borrow from your neighbor or friends, or rent them. If you’re tempted to use disposable cups, they had better be recyclable or have recycled paper content!
• Place clearly-marked recycling containers in strategic spots: I’ve found it’s easier to have the recycling and trash containers next to each other so people aren’t tempted to use the trash for recyclables out of laziness (or because they’ve had one too many drinks and can’t quite locate the other container). Visit the Internet Consumer Recycling Guide if you need a reminder on what can and can’t be recycled, and check with your county’s waste management department, since recycling rules vary by location.
• Encourage the use of public transportation, carpooling, and biking.

And have a glass of organic wine for me!

Have you been waiting until the last minute to do your holiday shopping? Me too! For those of you, however, who have been organized enough to have bought your gifts and are now thinking about getting some nice shiny paper with pretty pictures to wrap them in, DON’T. Or at least not until you’ve read below for other wrapping ideas:

• Reuse wrapping paper: Did you know that, on average, each of us wraps 20 gifts during the holidays? We could save enough paper to cover 45,000 football fields if we wrapped just three of those gifts in alternative ways. That’s a lot of trees!! Wrinkled paper and ribbons can be ironed out with a warm iron, so no excuses!
• Use cloth gift bags: Instead of a regular gift bag, use an attractive canvas bag that can later be used for toting groceries. Or try a hand-dyed cloth Wrap Sack that can be reused and tracked on the Internet.
• Use the gift as wrapping: Use a scarf or tie as ribbon, put cookies in a decorative tin, or wrap the dishes in a tablecloth - you get the idea!
• Recycle items: Things you were thinking of donating or tossing could make great containers or wraps, such as baskets and magazines, old maps, or comic strips.
• Get creative: Many things in your home can be used to wrap gifts. Turn that brown paper bag from the store inside out, grab some markers, and voilá two presents in one (your artwork is priceless!).
• Forget the wrapping: For oversized gifts, just put a bow(tie)on it.

If you do decide to buy wrapping paper, look for 100 percent post-consumer waste (PCW) content or papers made from natural elements whenever possible. And save the wrapping and boxes from gifts you receive for next year.

I must admit that we, in the conservation industry, are not always good at providing solutions. As you saw from my last blog about the LA Times article website, there is a lot of scary information out there. The problem is that it’s rarely connected to solutions. That’s what I like about this article - the author, a good friend of mine, is focused on solutions. Expect this from your politicians. Show them that this is an issue that affects your decision at the polls.

We have to show others that we are all citizens of this water planet because, as with all citizenship, the privileges we enjoy come also with responsibility. You understand that.

In the words of poet Maya Angelou, “Nobody, but nobody, can make it out here alone.”

We’re all on the same ride together. And that’s why we need to continue not only to educate the public, industry, and government; but also to insist upon action to achieve solutions. Environmental degradation, and especially climate change, is a challenge which will require innovative solutions from all sectors of society.

This website is outstanding! A great resource that covers many of the serious problems we are facing in the ocean. I love it when there is serious attention paid to these issues. I just wish that they would focus more on the solutions.

Do we really need to? Maybe. If you aren’t looking forward to battling the crowds and waiting in long lines while listening to ‘Here Comes Santa Claus,’ but want to show your love and keep it green, you’ve got many choices.

• Get creative, use your talents: write a song, paint a portrait, give a foot massage, you get the idea
• Give an experience: theater or concert tickets, a cooking class, a spa day, a ride in a hot air balloon (I particularly like that one!)
• Subscribe or donate: Subscribe to an eco magazine, make a contribution to a green organization such as the Ocean Conservancy on behalf of your loved one, or adopt a sea turtle or other ocean animal in his/her name from Oceana.

If you’d still like to give something tangible, consider green gifts and using the Internet, since it’s easier and allows you to avoid the craziness of the malls

• Buy gifts with little packaging: For example, music downloads instead of CDs
• Shop green: There are quite a few sites with green gifts, such as EcoMall and Gaiam. For more ideas, check out these great green gift guides from Treehugger and Co-op America.

And if you’re brave enough to get out there, remember to use a cloth or reusable bag to do your shopping and say no to plastic!