This holiday season, we can set a sustainable example for the little ones in our lives with gifts that consider our impact on the planet. The good news: eco-conscious toy options have expanded dramatically. According to a 2024 Toy Association survey, 45% of parents under 40 now consider a toy’s sustainability credentials before purchasing.

It’s the most consumption-oriented time of the year. In addition to choosing fun, sustainable gifts, set an Earth-conscious example by using waste-free and low-waste gift-wrapping ideas, shopping locally, and planning meals to avoid piles of leftover food after family dinners, and by helping the kiddos understand how and where to recycle cards and gift wrap. You’ll help your descendants set lifelong habits with the efforts you make today.

Join us in making this holiday season green, merry, and bright for our kids and planet.

Explore the growing number of sustainably made, durable, easily recyclable, and entertaining gift ideas that can delight children and demonstrate your family’s commitment to our environment. We’ve updated our list with new options from companies that use sustainably sourced materials, employ responsible manufacturing practices, and offer durable designs built to last.

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Green Toys Recycling Truck teaches sustainability through play.

What better way to introduce environmental concepts than a recycling truck made from recycled materials? This truck features three sorting chutes for bottles, cans, and paper, to help kids learn recycling basics while playing. Made in the USA from 100% recycled plastic milk jugs, it contains no BPA, phthalates, or PVC and is dishwasher safe. Even the packaging uses recycled materials and soy-based inks. Green Toys has led the way in eco-friendly toy manufacturing since its founding, proving sustainable playthings can be as fun as conventional options.

Tegu Magnetic Wooden Blocks combine creativity with social impact.

These ingeniously designed wooden blocks contain safely embedded magnets to let kids build gravity-defying structures. Made from sustainably sourced Honduran hardwoods with non-toxic, water-based lacquer finishes, Tegu blocks are designed to last generations. Beyond materials, Tegu’s mission includes creating jobs and positive social impact in Honduras, one of the Western Hemisphere’s poorest countries. Available in sets from pocket-sized 8-piece pouches to comprehensive 130-piece classroom sets.

PlanToys Wooden Ocean Animal Set brings nature to imaginative play.

This 4-piece Montessori-inspired playset includes a dolphin, an orca, a shark, and a second whale, all crafted from rubberwood trees that no longer produce latex. PlanToys operates a solar-powered factory in Thailand and uses organic pigments, water-based dyes, and formaldehyde-free glue. The company pioneered the use of reclaimed rubber plantation wood for toys over 40 years ago and aims to achieve carbon neutrality, which will set them apart as a leader in sustainable toy manufacturing.

GUND Sustainably Soft Plush Collection offers huggable friends made from recycled materials.

America’s oldest teddy bear maker now offers a line of plush toys crafted entirely from recycled materials—including the fabric, stuffing, thread, and even the packaging. The collection includes teddy bears, bunnies, puppies, baby dolls, and popular characters like Bluey and Bingo. GUND’s sustainable line maintains the same premium softness the brand has been known for since 1898, proving eco-friendly can also be irresistibly cuddly. Gund also offers a remarkable replacement program, Forever Friends, that makes your gift a lifelong companion.

Honeysticks beeswax crayons for many hours of fun.

Made from beeswax and food-grade pigments, Honeysticks’ oversized crayons are a sweet-smelling way for kids to start their relationship with arts and crafts. The jumbo-size crayons are easy to hold and designed to help kids develop their pencil grip. They are made with naturally sourced honey wax and sustainably sourced U.S. soy wax. And Honeysticks’ packaging is made from recycled, recyclable materials.

Wild Planet Ecokins are fun, huggable stuffies for a lifetime of ecological awareness.

Wild Planet offers a menagerie of EcoKins sustainable plush toys, including elephants, alligators, bears, sharks, penguins, and more. You’ll be doing the planet a favor by choosing these stuffed animals made entirely from recycled materials. About 16 PET bottles are recycled to make the large animals’ fabric and stuffing, while the hang tags are produced from post-consumer paper and attached with a cotton, not plastic, string.

Green Toys Build-a-Bouquet blooms year-round from recycled milk jugs.

This colorful 44-piece set lets kids create endless floral arrangements with stackable lilies, petunias, and daisies. Made in the USA from 100% recycled plastic milk jugs, it develops fine motor skills while saving energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions compared to virgin plastic production. The vibrant flowers stack interchangeably on stems for limitless creativity in all seasons.

Reusable Magnetic Water Balloons eliminate single-use summer waste.

Traditional water balloons create significant litter and pose wildlife hazards. Smirodi’s silicone alternatives can be reused over 1,000 times. And filling them is easy: submerge them in water to fill, and the magnetic seal snaps closed. When the fun is done, no balloon fragments litter your yard. Several brands offer sets of 6-12 balloons with mesh storage bags, making them an economical and eco-responsible choice for summer parties.

Deluxebase Eco 3D Wooden Puzzles build fine motor skills and wildlife awareness.

These laser-cut animal puzzles are crafted from sustainably sourced natural wood, with smooth edges that make them safe for young builders. Choose from more than 30 creatures that kids can build to develop hand-eye coordination, spatial awareness, and patience. Unlike single-use craft kits, these puzzles can be assembled and disassembled repeatedly for lasting play value. Deluxebase brings over 25 years of toy design experience to this collection, and the wildlife themes offer natural opportunities to discuss animal habitats and conservation. At party-favor-friendly prices, they make excellent alternatives to plastic goodie bag fillers.

Customize the lunchtime experience with Lunchbots Build-a-Bento.

It may be time for a practical holiday gift. If you want to give a gift that reminds your kids of the holidays every day, the Lunchbots Build-a-Bento lunch box is a colorful and durable choice. Your kids can customize the interior, allowing them to choose the number of spaces they want. Made of BPA-free food-grade silicone, this bento is dishwasher and microwave-safe, ready for the toughest lunchroom use. When it’s time to retire this bento box, you may not have a local silicone recycling option, but the company also offers stainless steel options.

Kids always need to have a book close at hand. It keeps them thinking and busy and helps build their ability to focus. Here are a few of our favorite books recognized for their environmental messages.

Help your kids become an Eyewitness Climate Change.

Give your kiddos a solid foundation for understanding the complicated issue of climate change. As Earth911 contributor Sarah Lozanova wrote, “This book presents a solid overview of the climate, both past and present, and the impacts of climate change. The book concludes with positive actions on how to cut carbon emissions through green transportation, energy efficiency, nuclear power, and renewable energy.”

How to Change Everything: The Young Human’s Guide to Protecting the Planet and Each Other empowers the next generation.

Award-winning journalist Naomi Klein adapted her two decades of climate reporting to create this comprehensive environmental guide for young readers. The book provides a thorough look at how we got here, where climate science stands today, and—most importantly—what young people can do about it. Full of empowering stories of youth climate leaders from around the world, it connects climate action to broader social justice movements. Kirkus Reviews gave it a starred review, calling it “a uniquely inclusive perspective that will inspire conviction, passion, and action. If you can get only one climate change book for youth, let it be this one.” Ideal for ages 10 and up.

Get activated with To Change a Planet.

Selected as the 2023 Green Earth Book Awards-winning picture book, this beautiful, color-saturated story by Christina Soontornvat and illustrated by Rahele Jomeour Bellfollows follows diverse characters through their daily lives until their stories converge at a climate march in Washington, D.C. The well-researched environmental messages are presented in calm, simple language that even the youngest children can understand.

Consider experience gifts instead of physical items.

Museum memberships, nature center passes, music lessons, or a camping trip create lasting memories without adding to the toy pile. Many families find that the gift of experience can become cherished traditions.

DIY toys reduce packaging waste to zero.

A jumbo cardboard box can become hours of entertainment as a playhouse or rocket ship. Pinterest offers countless ideas for homemade toys, and for those with woodworking skills, plans for wooden toys are readily available online.

Editor’s Note: Our first kids gift list was published on November 28, 2023. This article was updated with new selections in December 2025.