Check out the latest episode - if you are thinking about having a more environmentally friendly Christmas, I hope it can help in some way!
If you celebrate Christmas, it can be a wonderful time to spend with family, and attend festive events, which will likely be very different this year, perhaps with digital, zooming alternatives.
But with Christmas, and many other festivals we celebrate, also comes a lot of excess – buying of food, presents, and often unnecessary things that can lead to a LOT of waste…
So, I know we still have some time before Christmas, although I'm sure many people have already been thinking about/planning for it, but I wanted to share some tips that may be helpful to think about in the lead up to Christmas, so you can still enjoy a lovely festive season but in a more eco-friendly way.
Gift giving – Christmas epitomises consumerism. Almost as if the amount/financial value of what you buy can show how much you value someone. THIS IS NOT TRUE!! Don’t fall into the consumerist trap.
The relationships you have with friends and family are not determined or strengthened by material possessions you buy for them.
That being said, I know it often feels like the socially accepted thing, or a feeling of tradition and kindness to exchange gifts on Christmas, so how can we do this more consciously and sustainably?
Sustainable Gift Suggestions
- Perhaps set a spending budget with family and friends. This will help you prioritise buying what you think they will actually value/use, and not buy things just for the sake of it.
- Use this as an opportunity to introduce them to a new eco-friendly product they may not have risked to purchase for themselves – bamboo toothbrush, plastic free shampoo etc. you might encourage them to make this change long term once they try it. Also, these items can often pose a financial barrier, but if you give it as a gift, they don’t have to fork out the money, and it is likely money you put aside for a gift for them anyway (quality over quantity).
- Gift them an experience. This is a bit harder in the current climate, but perhaps could plan a trip somewhere nearby, a dinner cooking together, movie night etc.
The joy from experiences and social connections far outlive the joy from a material thing, so consider expressing your appreciation through actions rather than a physical object. It also saves money, and prevents buying something they may not even want/use.
- Skill share – do you have a skill/talent you could make use of for the gift. E.g. I am a qualified sports massage therapist, so for friends/family in the past, I have gifted a massage treatment which has always been greatly valued.
- Other ideas – guitar lessons, cooking them a 3 course meal evening, make something e.g. if you draw, write, sew etc.
- Books – if you have recently read a really good book, once you have finished it, this can be a great gift to pass on to someone else you think would enjoy reading it. Otherwise the book might just sit collecting dust on a book shelf.
- Speak to friends and family – figure out what they really want, don’t just buy for the sake of buying, and see if there's an eco-friendly version of what they want.
- SAY NO TO WRAPPING PAPER – or make sure you get plastic free – good tip, if it stays in a ball when you scrunch it, no plastic! If it pings back out, its got plastic in it. Use newspaper, recycled paper, or just put it in a sack/reusable bags. They can always close their eyes and try figure out what it is by the feel of it.
- Do you need cards? As a family, we now reuse old Christmas cards that we saved and just give them to each other again. Saves money and waste.
Don’t beat yourself up if someone gets you something that e.g. isn’t vegan/cruelty free or is from a brand that don’t align with your values. The person who brought it for you will have done it from a place of care.
Depending on your relationship with them, it could be best to express gratitude, and bring it up with them another time. You can always pass this gift on to someone else if you do not want to use it, so that it doesn’t go to waste.
VEGAN/PLANT BASED CHRISTMAS
Advice to a vegan in a non vegan family – I feel very grateful that my family adopted a vegan diet and share the values I have, so we have been able to have a vegan Christmas. I know this is not the case for so many people, thought of a few bits of advice….
- Bring it up with plenty of time in advance so family can adjust to the idea, and try to voice it in a way that will help prevent them getting defensive. It can be such a tricky thing because food is such a big part of life, socialising, traditions etc. showing your love through food, family members can take it personally as if you don’t appreciate what they do…. So difficult.
But just try to frame it by expressing that these are your values, and you’d really appreciate if they’d respect that, and if they do not want to make a vegan option for you, say that you are happy to cook the extra bit yourself, and offer them things to try too 😊
Also, it shouldn’t be too difficult to make the majority of Christmas dinner vegan!!
- Advice to a family wanting to try plant based – make sure you don’t feel like you’re going without…. If you want to go down meat alternative route, go for it!! Maybe even have a try of some of the alternatives first so they wont be a disappointment on Christmas day if you don’t like them.
WE HAD SOOO MUCH FOOD AT CHRISTMAS :) I think more than before being vegan, as my dad made a mushroom wellington, and my sister made a sweet potato cranberry pie as the meat alternative, and we just wanted to try it all and had sooo much food!! We always have alllll the veg, roast potatoes etc. we have sooo much, vegan Yorkshire puds etc.
Suggestion of reducing meat – it can be such a strong tradition in the family, if you are vegan and have non vegans eating meat it can feel uncomfortable, upsetting to be misunderstood etc. but maybe Christmas isn’t the time to bring up a lot of these conversations.
Maybe before Christmas just decide how you will organise the Christmas, and see if you can all come to an agreement not to discuss it in detail on Christmas, so that you can all enjoy the day together
USE UP LEFTOVERS AND DON’T OVER-BUY ON FOOD.
Make sure you don’t buy too much and think of interesting ways to use up leftovers. (I'm sure many of you do this already, but often we can easily forget about things lurking at the back of the fridge when times get busy).
Here's a link to the Food Waste episode which may be helpful:
Advice on being vegan at family/friend get togethers – maybe bring your own dish, so even if there's no vegan option there, you have something to eat, and also things for others to try.
BE PREPARED FOR UNCOMFORTABLE COMMENTS/QUESTIONS, stay calm, limit confrontation, and you do you. Try to be strong and trust you know your reasons for your choices, and it's not your fault if others around you don't understand/respect your choices.
Fashion – maybe not as tricky since social gatherings won’t be happening much, but if there are some, remember you don’t always need a brand new outfit! You can wear things again, people won’t remember, and so what if they do?!?
Kathleen Varendia shared super useful tips and information when I talked with her about fast fashion and how to be more sustainable in our fashion choices, So here's the link if you'd like more info on that:
ADVENT CALENDAR – do you need one?? I know it can be tradition – you’ve had one every year since you were a kid, and you might think "it’s just one" but if everyone in the world thinks that, it’s a LOT!! You could try hand made advent gifts, I've seen some awesome DIY examples online! Or maybe invest in one of the advent calendars you reuse every year etc. or maybe this is something to think about for next year.
CHRISTMAS CRACKERS – do you need them? They often contain plastic rubbish toys that don’t even work, and tend to end up in the bin which is very wasteful.
RSPB CRACKERS - Crackers are a Christmas tradition in most households. So, if you aren't prepared to let go of this tradition, but aren't quite ready to delve into making your own, RSPB have ethically made Christmas crackers, and they're boxed in plastic-free packaging. All paper is FSC® certified to ensure it's sustainably sourced, and components are recyclable!
These are more expensive, BUT if you are budgeting your Christmas, money saved elsewhere from buying less (crap) can then be used to purchase a more sustainable version of something you still really want to have.
It might encourage you to be more conscious of your purchases, and help you realise what you value most at Christmas, which shouldn’t really be material things anyway. The atmosphere, company, etc. are much more meaningful, but I understand some traditions require 'things' and can be hard to let go of.
However, it's worth taking time to recognise whether this is because you really enjoy the tradition rather than it just being a habit you buy into every year because society sells you it.
RSPB CHRISTMAS SHOP – more sustainable Christmas cards, gifts, plastic free etc.
Decorations – you don’t need to buy new each year. REUSE, and then when they do need replacing, opt for a better alternative e.g. non plastic decorations where possible!!
I hope I've given some useful tips and things to think about, and I hope you find ways to have a special time this Christmas in amongst all the chaos.
Of course, don’t be too hard on yourself. It would be horrible to spend your Christmas with family feeling guilty about what you wish you had done better, feeling frustrated with others for not doing enough.
This year has been so challenging and overwhelming in so many ways, and we are all in very different situations. We can only do what we can, and we should be proud of the positive steps we do take this Christmas. Take note of what we want to do better and apply that next year.
I also want to send my thoughts and love to those of you who maybe don’t enjoy the Christmas period so much, or to those who may not be spending Christmas with loved ones.
I may not be spending Christmas with family this year, and initially I felt very sad about that, I still do, but I also recognise I have been incredibly lucky to be able to have 21 years spending Christmas with my family, where it has been a joyful time, and this is not the case for so many people.
I'm sending my thoughts and love out to you all, and especially to those who Christmas may not be such a happy time.
Christmas can be such a joyous times, but we should take moments to recognise this isn’t the case for everyone. In the same way we should always take moments to consider and reflect on our situations, the privileges at play within them, and how recognising this can motivate you to learn how your actions, and I include my own within this, could help as opposed to hinder a reshaping of the world to be filled with more hope, justice and kindness.
This may feel like a mammoth task, but it can really start with questioning your actions and beliefs, challenging them, learning, treating others with kindness, embracing mistakes and how these allow you to do better.
I keep reminding myself of the power of ripple effects, especially when I'm feeling overwhelmed. Your choices do matter so much, so make them consciously rather than habitually, as these habits could be upholding something much more damaging than you realise.
I’ll leave it there for today’s episode, but I hope there’s been some useful information for you to take away.
If you’d like to get in touch, you can find me on Instagram @alittlebitoflagom or drop me an email to alittlebitoflagom@gmail.com. I’d love to hear about what you’re learning and the habits you're challenging and changing in your lives.