SACRAMENTO – The Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) presents its Green Gift Guide for the 2015 holiday season.

All of this year’s selections are meant to give loved ones a gentle nudge toward sustainability.

These environmentally conscious gifts will help recipients save money, protect our natural resources and encourage subtle lifestyle changes for a greener 2016.

CalRecycle's 2015 Green Gift Guide

– Bicycle. An eco-friendly gift that doesn’t feel like one. Help a loved one get healthy and eliminate their carbon footprint at the same time.

– Composter. Customize the size of this gift to fit the recipient’s space restrictions. Small tumblers or large bins keep food and yard waste out of landfills and provide mulch, potting mix, or a soil booster for the yard.

– Rain barrel. Don’t waste a drop that falls from the sky. Rain barrels can help plants and grass get through the dry months.

– Reusable containers. Water bottles, coffee cups, sandwich bags. Save money – and the earth – year-round by ditching the disposables. Don’t forget the cookie tins, flower pots and baskets that can all be repurposed.

– LED lights. Give a gift basket of bulbs or a new string of energy-efficient holiday lights. Many people want to make the switch but don’t want to spend the money; make it easy for them.

– Cloth bags. Help loved ones ditch the plastic and realize the benefits of these multi-use bags. Shopping. Storage. Future gift bags. So many options!

– Rechargeable batteries. Short-term cost, long-term gain. Help take the pain out of the initial purchase and give these batteries in a gift basket with a charger or as an add-on to an electronic purchase.

– Cloth napkins. Use them to wrap a gift, or buy a bunch for a gift basket. This classy offering exudes sophistication and reduces trash. Tea towels would work, too.

– Experience gifts. Tickets, gift certificates, memberships. This is the stuff that memories are made of--and it comes with zero waste.

– Commuter pass. Help loved ones ditch the car for a day (or week or year) and buy them passes for the bus, light rail, or train. Think of the money – and eco-savings – with public transit.

– Plants. Give a gift that gives gifts. Live plants, fruits and veggies for the garden, or seeds can all be used as stand-alone presents or coupled with a gardening box or container for the green thumb in your life.

If you’d like more gift ideas, check out CalRecycle’s Recycle Store to find innovative recycled-content product manufacturers who use California waste as feedstock for their materials.