How to celebrate a sustainable christmas
The festive season has started, and Christmas is just around the corner. Even in those difficult times, it might be worth considering celebrating Christmas more sustainably. During this time of the year pollution effects are particularly high because of an increase in packaging waste, higher electricity consumption and an increase in food waste. Let’s have a look at some ideas that might turn your traditional Christmas celebration into a circular one.
# The tree
The traditional fir tree has been part of the Christmas celebrations for thousands of years. While pagan religions decorated the green branches as a reminder of the approaching spring time, Christians regarded it as a sign of everlasting life with god. There is also evidence that people used to hang their tree from the ceiling as a sort of chandelier. Nowadays, people have probably very different reasons for having a tree at Christmas. Nevertheless, it’s definitely part of most European’s Christmas tradition with demand for a live tree reaching 50 million every year. These trees are grown for years before they are finally cut and used for decorating Europe’s homes for a couple of days until they are disposed of. Now, are there alternatives to this rather unsustainable procedure?
One option is a fake tree made of plastic. Compared to the traditional cut live tree, an artificial tree has a longer life and can be re-used several times. However, the carbon footprint of it’s production is almost twice as high as the carbon footprint of a live tree that’s disposed of in landfill.
Rent a tree
The concept of ownership has long been starting to change and platforms for renting clothes, cars, services etc. have become more and more popular. So why not extend the concept to the old-fashioned Christmas tree?
How does it work?
A company is growing the trees all year long and once they are big enough, they are available for rent. The trees are carefully removed, put into a pot and delivered to your home. After Christmas you can send it back and it will join it’s tree friends again.
For Germany, Weihnachtsbaumfreunde is offering this service for a couple of German cities. For a comprehensive overview of tree renting providers, visit baumeria. For the UK visit rentalclaus, London Christmas Tree Rental, Rental Christmas Tree or Christmas on the Hills.
Other alternatives include some do-it-yourself practice. A wooden ladder can be turned into an exquisite Christmas tree, just as books or driftwood provide an excellent base for crafting your individual tree. See Livekindly for some inspiration on becoming artsy this year.
# The presents
The tradition of giving each other presents at Christmas derives from Christianity. To celebrate the birth of Jesus, the three wise men offered gold, myrrh and incense to the newborn child. If you don’t want to go zero-presents, choosing eco-friendly and fair gifts might be an option for you. Sustainablylazy has put together 50 ethical Christmas gifts that are worth a look. For sustainable gift-wrap visit ecocult. If you are a do-it-yourself green hero/ine, these ideas might be just the right inspiration.
# The food
Celebrating special events with a big feast is a tradition of many households. However, importing foreign products, more packaging waste and possible food waste can turn your celebration into an environmental disaster. BBCgoodfood provides ideas on how to cook a sustainable Christmas dinner and the sustainable food trust has a closer look at the sustainability of Christmas groceries.
Whatever your way of celebrating Christmas is, we wish you a very happy one 😊