How to give climate-friendly gifts this holiday season » Yale Climate Connection

The holidays are here, and we're thinking about ways to make gift-giving more environmentally friendly. Features Editor Pearl Marvell has lots of ideas for how to shop cleaner. Director of Audience Experience Sam Harrington likes to buy secondhand. Editor-in-Chief Sara Peach prefers experiences, especially weird home crafts, to gifts. How are you making your holidays climate-friendly this year?

This discussion has been edited and condensed.

Sam: The reason we think about climate change and gift-giving is because, like we talked about before, consumption requires a lot of energy, and producing all these things out of plastic requires oil and a lot of energy and the burning of fossil fuels and so on. You’re giving gifts, what do you think about the climate footprint of festive gift-giving?

Sarah: Pearl, do you want to go first? Because I have a very Grinch answer to this question.

pearl: Well, yeah, I've been thinking about that and I'm thinking about what a waste the holidays are, really. Ultimately, one of the best things is to not do too much and not overdo it, which is very difficult when you have a 3-year-old who wants a bunch of trucks.

I have a few brands that are my go-tos that would probably make me a very weird friend when it comes to gifts I give to people. And then I also have ways of figuring out, “Is this a company I want to do business with?” Third, I really try to make it as local as possible.

One of my favorite companies, have you heard of Tanit? [Editor’s note: Yale Climate Connections doesn’t accept advertising and isn’t affiliated with this or any other company mentioned in this conversation.] I'm trying to reduce my plastic intake and output, but it's very difficult.

Sam: Oh yes.

pearl: Long story short, I tried this company. They're a Quebec company, their shampoo bars and conditioner bars are amazing, and they have a lot of different health products, beauty products, and cleaning products. I really like them.

Sam: Sounds cool. I haven't had any success using a shampoo bar yet. I think the bubble is gone.

pearl: And dish soap. I haven't tried theirs yet, but yeah, I haven't found a good foaming dish soap yet. I did get the plastic free dishwasher tablet. Then they have some good toothpaste tablets. My only problem with them is that they tend to get slimy when you're in a hot climate.

Sarah: This may be a problem in the South.

pearl: This is definitely something to be aware of. But yeah, I'll often give my friends cleaning products and toothpaste and I don't know how they feel about me doing that, like they think I think their house isn't clean or something, but I want to give them something that they use. I haven't given toilet paper to anyone yet and I think this would actually be a really good gift because who doesn't need toilet paper?

Sarah: Just draw a clear line.

pearl: Yeah? Yeah?

Sam: What is the name of toilet paper?

pearl: Who cares. The packaging is very nice and you can get a variety of different packaging with different qualities. It is recycled in some way. I don't know how this happened, and maybe I don't want to know, but yes, it's really good. [Editor’s note: It is made from recycled paper, not used toilet paper.] We've been using it for a year now and have no complaints.

Sarah: Pearl, can you elaborate on the strategies you use to evaluate companies?

pearl: I have been looking for companies on Bcorporation.net. There are thousands of companies. Their company must comply with certain requirements in order to be classified as a B Corporation.

Sam: Back to the idea of ​​normal gifts, toilet paper might not be the most normal. But I do think second-hand gifts should be more accepted than they are now.

pearl: must.

Sarah: Absolutely.

Sam: I recently bought a friend two really cool faux Tiffany stained glass lamps for her birthday on Facebook Marketplace for $50.

Sarah: This is a great gift.

Sam: Additionally, there are many holiday artist markets around town. So try to buy gifts or make something yourself there too. My dad gets Christmas cookies every Christmas.

pearl: Hopefully we can get away from stuff that has to be brand new and in this bright shiny box that's advertised on TV. It should mean something to you and that person, even if it's a second-hand book that means something to you. I think these gifts are more valuable than something brand new.

Sarah: There is an element in the example of vintage lamps that is special and beautiful. It's not like you bought someone a used mop.

pearl: Or underwear.

Sam: And many times it’s quite affordable.

Sarah: Yes, that's a huge advantage too.

Sam: I think, as Pearl said, this can get tricky in front of kids. She can't read, so I guess it would be nice to say this: I'm giving my friend's three-year-old a tea set I found in my parents' basement when I was a kid.

pearl: Oh, that's great.

Sam: But it's hard because they want the latest Disney merchandise or something.

pearl: Yes, see young girls already being targeted by beauty companies.

Where I grew up was the Caribbean, and there wasn't a lot there, so coming here, it was like, “Oh, yeah, beautiful, shiny, really fun.” Now I'm like, I'm good. This is too much for me. I've had enough.

Sarah: There are no children in my immediate family now, which I think is important. But a few years ago, we both admitted that we weren't too keen on giving each other gifts and would rather spend our money on experiences together.

Especially in the age of COVID, it sounds healthy for us to do crafts together during the holidays, but that’s not how it works in my house. Last Christmas we made a gingerbread house together, but we turned the gingerbread house into a crime scene. We set up this whole little scene where a gingerbread man is murdered.

pearl: I see health disappearing

Sarah: We used red icing to paint a puddle of blood around the gingerbread man. My family really enjoys doing things like this together.

pearl: That's beautiful. There are some studies that show that when you give something something, the brain releases dopamine or serotonin and enjoys it, but quickly gets used to it and gets over it. And with an experience, the memory of that experience grows and creates those happy chemicals in your brain. I think it makes sense to give away experiences instead of items.

Sam: Going back to Pearl's earlier point, trying to do less is probably the most helpful thing.

pearl: Which is great because I spent Christmas in America and I don't even remember what I received because you're in this state of being overwhelmed. I'd rather get one or two things, but of course there's more to experience the situation.

Sam: I don't actually think about the climate cost of books, but if I need something from someone, I'll run to the local bookstore. Is that bad? I have no idea.

pearl: Are there any second-hand bookstores nearby?

Sam: really. Yes, I love supporting a bookstore because it’s queer and trans-owned and full of new books. Okay, maybe that's not actually true. They must have used children's books.

pearl: Yeah, but if you find a bookstore that's owned by someone who represents a certain demographic, sure, it's paper and all that stuff, but I think it's still worth buying new when you know who it's targeting. When I buy a book, I always buy it from a specific Puerto Rican bookstore because I know where it's going. Or coffee, all my coffee comes from Puerto Rico.

Sarah: The TV show “The Good Place” addressed this issue, so it's not new territory, but it's really complicated as a consumer right now. And there is no perfect choice. We all have multiple values, one of which is protecting the climate. Sometimes these values ​​are contrary to a certain purchase. But I mean, this is a book. This is the gift of knowledge.

pearl: Now this is very important.

Sam: Books can also be an experience that says, “I really enjoyed this,” and then you can discuss it together.

pearl: I have books from my childhood and I remember who gave me each one.

Sam: real. Yes. Michael Svoboda usually gives us a list of holiday climate books, so depending on when this and that book was published, we'll link to it (stay tuned, that will be posted on 12/9).

Sarah: Daisy Simmons has an upcoming article about donating to environmental organizations.

pearl: It’s also a cool gift: “I’m donating to this place in your honor.”

Sam: I think it's a really good set of strategies. If you're buying new stuff, you can buy second-hand stuff, you can do an experience, have some choices that are consistent with your values. Are there any other top considerations for you?

pearl: I think one thing we're missing is a big name like Patagonia. You know companies that take things back when they are no longer usable. But it has to be for someone you really like.

Sam: Another thing we didn’t talk about is the wrapping of the gift. I absolutely love wrapping things in a scarf and then recycling it after unwrapping it.

pearl: Anyway, I'm not good at packaging things. I shouldn't be allowed near wrapping paper or scissors. So that's a lot of family, put it in a bag and reuse the bag. Many people receive gifts that go like this: “Congratulations, you have a baby boy!” package.

Sarah: Yes, there was a red bag that went around my family on their birthdays.

Sam: Amazing. Finally, I would agree with Sarah that it's hard and if you're trying it and you're thinking about it, that's fine.

pearl: Yes, nothing is perfect. I think that's one of the hardest things about the climate movement and environmentalism. People will be afraid, or worried that others will think you're not doing it right, or that you need to do more. You did what you could, and that's enough.

Sam: Yes. Also, on the other hand, just because you can't make a perfect choice 100% of the time, doesn't mean you shouldn't try to make better choices. The choices you make do matter.

Sarah: We all have different forms of power at different times in our lives, and when we anticipate that the U.S. federal government may not be doing as much on climate change in the coming years, consumer power is where people can make things happen.

pearl: If they're of a certain age, you can hide your children's toys for a few months and then re-gift them to them.

Sam: If you really splurged on gifts and want to tie a bow on your car, get an electric vehicle tax credit or buy someone a heat pump.

Sarah: If anyone wants to buy me a heat pump please send me an email.

pearl: I can drive an electric car, no problem.

Sam: OK Okay, thank you both, and happy holidays.