Christmas is about giving, sharing, and doing all we can to bring joy to the world. However, we have this terrible habit of bringing mountains of rubbish instead, and it’s safe to say the world is far from joyous about it.
Every year during the festive period, the UK produces an obscene amount of extra waste - approximately 125,000 tonnes of plastic packaging is binned rather than recycled, and around 83 square kilometres of wrapping paper is thrown out or burnt.
Thankfully, there are a great many ways you can shake off this seasonal surplus and enjoy a clean, green and eco-friendly Christmas.
Here are our top 10 suggestions:
1. Use less plastic – remember your reusable carrier bags, and avoid buying excessively packaged products. If you’re keen to join the plastic-free revolution, reusable straws, bottles and coffee cups all make fantastic gifts.
2. Make your own gifts - it’s easy to whip up a microbead-free body scrub with a bit of coconut oil and brown sugar.
3. Buy a real Christmas tree – put it in a pot and leave it in the garden during the year – nothing beats the smell of a fresh tree!
4. Send e-cards - instead of printed Christmas cards send your Christmas greetings via email, and donate the money saved to your favourite charity.
5. Don’t buy gifts for landfill – if you’re struggling for gift ideas, resist the urge to panic buy things which will only get thrown away. Consider giving experiences instead - we have plenty available at our online shop - shop.hiwwt.org.uk
6. Give a bird a break – going vegetarian is a great way to reduce your carbon footprint, and there are plenty of delicious, meat-free recipe ideas online.
7. Go organic – if you can’t get past the meat craving, choose free-range, organic meat and support greener, small-scale farming. It may be slightly more expensive, but meat from humanely reared animals is easier to swallow than cheap and cheerless meat from intensive farms.
8. Don’t bin your left-overs – save them to make new recipes or donate them to your local soup kitchen. What you can’t repurpose, you can compost.
9. Alternative gift wrapping – rather than buying wrapping paper, use brown paper, newspapers or magazines.
10. DIY décor – why not make your own eco-friendly decorations? You could create a wreath out of pinecones, or bunting from last year’s cards. You could even use raffia or twine instead of ribbons, or green foliage (ivy or holly for example) rather than bows.
Finally, and most importantly, keep in mind that Christmas is about more than just ‘stuff’. Spend time with your loved ones, enjoy the festive spirit and tread lightly on the earth.
The Grinch had the right idea (eventually)…
‘He puzzled and puzzled till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before. Maybe Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store. Maybe Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more!’