It’s the time of year when we all gather together to give thanks for our family, friends, and life. Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday. We have a lot to be thankful for in our lives and having a beautiful planet to live on is one of those things.

If you’d like to honor the planet while you are sharing this holiday with friends, here are a few tips for making your Thanksgiving a sustainable one.

Ask your guests to bring Tupperware

The biggest aspect of Thanksgiving that can cause a burden on the planet is food waste. Approximately 200 million pounds of turkey get thrown out over this holiday, uneaten. That’s about 6 million whole turkeys, for this one weekend alone.

That’s a huge amount of waste! You can help reduce this unnecessary waste by sending leftover turkey and other foods home with guests.

If It’s Gross Don’t Serve It

 Let’s face it, there’s always that one dish that is served every year that everyone hates. Maybe it’s the macaroni salad, or maybe your deviled eggs leave something to be desired. If no one ever touches that dish year in and year out, leave it off the menu.

Use Reusable

It may be tempting to spread out the paper plates and plastic forks so there are fewer dishes to wash, but this can end up with a lot of unnecessary garbage. If you want to cut down on that waste, use reusable dishes including plates, napkins, and forks whenever possible.

If you have a lot of guests, consider setting up a washing station with soap water ready to go. Your guests may well wash their own plate for you, even if all you do is ask them to rinse it and put it in the water.

Another option for larger parties is to rent the dishes needed. This not only provides enough dishes for 30 people, but also the final washing. All you have to do is rinse the debris off the plates and send them back.

Pardon the Turkey

For some people, Thanksgiving Day turkey is an absolute must. That’s okay. If your family doesn’t eat much turkey though, consider skipping it all together. It takes a lot more resources to create a turkey than it does to grow a potato or a carrot.

That’s because not only is energy put into housing and caring for the turkey, but also the food that they ate required a field, water, and fertilizer as well.

There’s no reason to have a turkey just because it is Thanksgiving, so feel free to try an alternative if it isn’t your family’s thing. There’s also a huge number of turkey alternatives out there these days, so if you’re feeling adventurous you may give these a try and see if they measure up.

Thanksgiving is a time about being thankful for what we have. Our planet provides everything that we love and care about. If we can make a few small changes during our holiday to help create a better world to be in, these are great steps to take.