Part one of five in our holiday gift guide
Today, in part one of our five part holiday gift guide, we are looking at ideas for those who are nature lovers. All of our recommended items are earth-friendly in some way, from sustainably harvested wood to recycled content. But more importantly, they each is as unique, providing an good idea for anyone from golfers to hikers to athletes.

The book also includes 80 pages of full color plates featuring paintings and photographs by Ansel Adams, Eliot Porter and more. It is printed on acid-free paper with 50% post-consumer waste and the illustration is printed on New Leaf Sakura, the first acid-free paper available in the U.S. that contains 100% post-consumer waste and is processed chlorine free. Even the ink used by the printer was soy- or vegetable- based and 90% of the paper came from certified sources.  I received a copy of the book in the office and everyone in the office was impressed by both the content as well as the beautiful images. At $32, it’s a gift that I have “ear-marked” for a few people on my list. You can learn more about the book at American Earth.

Adirondack Golf, is adapted from a game born in the early 1900s. The original game concept was born from an old New York outdoor club that wanted to introduce golfing to a wood surrounding. The game evolved into using large wooden headed golf clubs on wooden shafts with hard rubber balls. The designs were perfect for an in the woods game. The new Retro Lawn Golf game, with wooden clubs made entirely in the USA from sustainable US hardwoods brings back this old-school game. Regular golfers will enjoy the opportunity to plan in any location and this game has much lower land use than the traditional game. The golf sets start at $595 and include all the pieces need to design a course and play. See the product at Adirondack Golf.

Energizer introduced a new line of portable solar-driven rechargeable power packs with models designed to power up cell and smart phones, iPod® and MP3 players, GPS units, Bluetooth®, and digital cameras. These Energi To Go® SP products are made with Lithium Polymer battery cells and can be rechargeable up to 500 times. It also has integrated PowerSafe™ technology for charge, temperature, and short circuit protection as well as built-in power shut-off mode to maintain longer charge life. I put this one on my own gift request list. MSRP: $49.99

For any gardener or nature lover, a Bee Lover’s Garden 2010 Annual calendar fits the bill.  It features twelve framable quality illustrations of plants that bees love, by famous western North Carolina artist Jay Pfeil.  It is designed to educate people about the importance of bees, and inspire and empower them to plant these bee nurturing plants in their gardens.  A portion of sales will go to support the research needed to restore the health of our bees. It is printed on certified green seal paper and printed in the USA. It retails for $20. More information is at A Bee Lovers Garden.

Not every dog enjoys nature as much as their owner, so the Cloudburst™ jackets is a great choice for that outdoor dog lover in you family. The dog raincoat is made of 100% recycled materials and when you’re done with it, you can send it back to the company and they will recycle it again. If you have a small dog like Samantha in our office, this coat makes a great gift choice. Find more information at Waggys Eco Pet Products.

Any one who has been seen in the livestrong wristbands, would appreciate our last idea – Green Laces. GreenLaces.org is a movement and an organization that activates athletes and their fans to improve our planet.  Athletes and fans of all ages make a promise to the planet, who are in turn gifted the GreenLaces and wear them to show their support for the environment. In addition, Team GreenLaces” will launch with Winter Olympians when Team USA althete Lowell Bailey and others will be wearing the GreenLaces as they compete in Canada. At just $5, the 100% post consumer-recycled-plastic shoelaces act as a symbolic way of expressing one’s environmental value.
For more information, visit GreenLaces.