Gift Giving

Gift Giving

 

We all want to be generous but in a way that is good for all of us - our kids, our families, our communities and as well as our planet,  It is nice to give things that won't end up in landfill or that won't create more problems than we already have.  

The diagram below lists some ideas for gifts that can help us think about doing this.   

 Ideas for gifts could be tickets for events, meal vouchers at a local restaurant, or simply a promise (perhaps a home-made “voucher”) to take someone out for a fun activity or help them out in some way. someone once gave me a voucher that I could use to call on her for help in my garden.  It was great to get the help and wonderful to get it as a gift. 

 

If you still want to give people something more material, then there are numerous options from making and upcycling, to buying them something that is produced locally.  There are even local businesses out there that will upcycle for you if you don’t have the time or skills.

If you must buy something new, then get it from a small local business and buy something that won’t end up in the rubbish soon after Christmas. This helps keep money local, so it can be respent locally and is therefore better for others in our community.

More gifts are not necessarily better.  Maybe think about giving one good, long lasting item rather than many items that will just end up in the bottom of the toy box.    Some families with many cousins band together and organise themselves so that each child gets one good present from their cousins. 

If doing a secret squirrel, consider making something consumable – some fudge, or fruit balls or similar small treats that can be shared and enjoyed by the recipient of your gift, if they don’t want it themselves.  This avoids silly presents being put in the landfill as soon as they get home

Wrapping:  The way we wrap gifts can also result in a lot of rubbish.   The question is, are there other ways that you might wrap presents that result in less rubbish?   An option is to have reusable paper bags or even boxes that fold down flat but which you bring out for Christmas and birthdays each year.  If they are kept from year to year then these can be decorated by kids as their contribution to giving.   

 A second option might be to avoid wrapping a present at all and perhaps just decorate it in some way.  

 Reusing wrapping paper is something many people do.   On some occasions, even wrapping presents in newspaper can be all that is needed to provide the excitement of unwrapping a present without producing a lot of extra rubbish.