“5 Simple Yet Effective Eco Xmas Swaps”
Today I am hitting you with the ‘C’ word…
Christmas!
Yes, I know we’ve not had bonfire night yet but Christmas really is fast approaching, can you believe we only have 7 weekends left!
Which does mean it’s already time to start thinking about all the fun filled festivities and craziness that December brings.
It may surprise you to hear that Achieving Greenness has been thinking about Christmas for a quite a few months already, not in a ‘decorate the house months ahead’ way, but in a ‘busy writing magazine articles on how to be a bit greener at this time of year’ way.
Christmas can be such a lovely and joyful time, but the huge undercurrent of consumption means it is also a very wasteful time and has a big negative impact on our planet.
We already have so much ‘stuff’ and Christmas only adds to this huge pile of often unused and unwanted stuff.
So it is down to us to start side stepping the huge Christmas marketing machine and start thinking about the changes we can all make this year to help reduce the impact we all have on the planet at Christmas.
There is a lot we can do, and if we start thinking about it now the easier it will be to get organized, be more conscious in our consumption, save some money and be greener.
So to help you through the next couple of months, reduce a bit of the Christmas stress, reduce some of the planetary impact, and remove some of the eco guilt and anxiety, here are 5 simple yet effective Eco Xmas Swaps for you to try this year.
1 – The Wrapping Paper and Tape Swap – Step away from the glitter covered wrapping and the normal environmentally UNfriendly and non-recyclable wrapping paper and sticky tape this year, and swap to glitter free, recycled and fully recyclable wrapping paper, paper tape and (reusable) ribbons.
There are so many lovely options to choose from now that all your parcels and gifts will still look just as fabulous under the tree AND be more environmentally friendly.
And if you are canny (and quick enough during the frantic opening) you can whisk away the paper once the presents have been opened and save it for next year too.
2 – The Secret Santa Swap – Prevent some of the stress, time, and cost of having to think about, buy, and then wrap numerous presents for large family or friendship groups this year, and instead try swapping to a Secret Santa approach.
Only having to buy one gift for one person in the group and setting a cash amount will mean real time, energy, and thought can be put into buying that one gift, and everyone in the group will receive something they actually want/need/love.
Everybody saves time, produces less waste, saves money and enjoys the gifting process for a change, what’s not to love about this swap?!
3 – The ‘Experience’ instead of ‘Stuff’ Swap – We all have so much ‘stuff’ these days and Christmas often leaves us with yet more stuff to add to our ever increasing mountain of stuff.
By swapping out the usual physical gifts and gifting experiences instead, it allows us to create fabulous memories and enjoyment which lasts so much longer.
There are so many amazing experience gifting companies around now that you’ll be able to find something for even the hardest person to buy for!
4 – The Christmas Tree Swap – Now we’re not suggesting you get rid of your Christmas Tree altogether in this swap! That would be far too humbug! Instead try swapping from the usual single use cut trees that drop needles all over your house, and try renting one in a pot this year.
By renting a tree it means it can be delivered straight to your door, in a lovely pot, at your convenience ahead of Christmas. You can decorate it to your hearts content as usual, and then it can be picked up again (with all its needles intact) after the festivities are over, what’s not to love?
Or for a longer term investment you could buy your own (UK) pot grown Christmas Tree, then simply move it outside to your garden after Christmas, and bring it back in each year to reuse.
5 – The Christmas Cracker Swap – Again we’re not suggesting you get rid of Christmas Crackers altogether in this swap! Instead you could give reusable Christmas Crackers a try this year and make them as personal and as fun as you want, and reuse them over and over each year.
There are lots of different brands you can try, some sets come with reusable party hats, and there are a few reusable cardboard brands that even come with a supply of the ‘snaps’ too.
So give the usual crackers a miss and opt for this much greener reusable alternative to reduce waste, reduce plastic, and increase enjoyment.
Voila, that’s it! By getting your thinking caps on now and planning in your Christmas swaps you will have already started making the planet a bit greener, and be working towards reducing your Christmas impact.
Yes, it is that simple to make some swaps! We can all have an amazing Christmas at the same time as being that little bit greener.
For more green tips and inspiration pop over to Instagram or LinkedIn and check out @achievinggreenness where we provide you with the motivation, evidence, and tools you may need to become greener.
If you are a business and want help to become greener and have been looking for someone to help you start then get in touch, we offer Mini Green Audits all the way up to helping you obtain green accreditations and ISO certifications, and we provide bespoke Green packages for all your requirements.
