December 14, 1999

Contact:
Carolyn Duncan (206) 296-8304
Suzette Riley (206) 296-4352

Looking for a gift that's less wasteful?
Give experiences instead of stuff this holiday season

The holidays are one of the most wasteful times of year, with Americans generating an extra one million tons of trash. The average King County family will wrap and give 30 presents this year. Stack up all of the boxes and wrapping paper from gifts exchanged in King County and they would reach 400 times the height of Mt. Rainier.

To lighten this impact on the environment, King County's fourth annual
Waste-Free Fridays program offers an alternative: give experiences instead of stuff. From November 26 through the end of December, over 40 local arts, sports and entertainment organizations are offering up to a 50% discount on Friday purchases of gift certificates and tickets good for over a hundred events and memberships.

This is great news for gift-givers-instead of the mounds of boxes, wrapping paper, ribbons, styrofoam peanuts, plastic wrap and unwanted trinkets associated with holiday gift-giving, they can shower their loved ones with family memberships to the Pacific Science Center or the Henry Art Gallery, tickets to memorable events ranging from the Pacific Northwest Ballet's Nutcracker, Cabaret at the Paramount, performances by the Seattle Opera and the Seattle Children's Theatre, to Seattle Sonics games and the U.S. Hot Rod Monster Jam. They can even adopt a zoo animal at the Woodland Park Zoo. This adds up to a mountain of memories without the waste.

"We are really excited to partner with all of these amazing community organizations to provide a reward for giving experiences instead of stuff," says Rod Hansen, Solid Waste Division Manager. "An entire family can enjoy the gift with the added bonus that it requires no wrapping or packaging. It really is a creative way to conserve resources during the holidays."

Gift certificates and tickets can be purchased on Fridays from participating organization box offices, and tickets for select events are available through Ticketmaster. For a complete listing of organizations, events and box office information call the Waste-Free Fridays Hotline at 206-405-4FUN or look for Waste-Free Fridays at www.metrokc.gov.

Waste-Free Fridays is an on-going effort by King County to educate people on simple, effective ways of reducing waste in their everyday lives.

Waste-Free Fridays is presented by King County Solid Waste Division in partnership with AT&T Media Services, KMTT and Seattle's Best Coffee.

Editor's Note:

Event and participant photos will be made available to the media. For more information, please contact Jennifer Stephens at 206.623.0232 x231.

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