A green Christmas

It's that time of the year when the holidays are just around the corner, and we eat the most food, spend the most money, and of course, enjoy ourselves in the company of family and friends. Christmas is by far one of the busiest and most celebrated holidays but while we feast, wine, and dine our way through December and into January, what toll does Christmas have on the environment?

In the last century, excess has seemed normal - even welcomed - especially around the holidays. We overeat, overdrink, elaborately decorate, and of course, frivolously shop. However, the spirit of Christmas is embodied in values like family, love, friendship, and sharing. With some time and good planning, it's possible to have a memorable green Christmas without spending a lot of money. Resorting to overconsumption doesn't guarantee happiness as it is a good idea to avoid the "excessive consumerism" trap. 

Christmas has dramatically been commercialized over the years, benefitting large retail stores and credit card companies. As a result, the holiday season is becoming increasingly expensive and stressful for the average household. So, how much overconsumption is our fault? After all, our economic system does promote this kind of behavior; whether it's going to a mall and buying things we don’t need, or the large amounts of food that go to waste after a function - all this adds up and tallies against the long-term health of the planet. It's the fault of our system that as people earn more money, they drive carbon-intensive consumerism. We can make conscious individual choices to reduce our carbon footprint by slowly getting over consumerism and our culture that fuels climate change.

For instance, wrapping paper and other packaging, including shopping bags used, adversely affect the environment. A study recently found out that as little as 1 kilogram of wrapping paper can emit 3.5 kilograms of carbon dioxide during its production process, thereby consuming around 1.5 kilograms of coal. Not only this, but with all the focus on gift-giving, one can easily forget the other cause for excessive emissions during the holidays: food. Christmas food, something that everyone loves, shockingly also has some form of impact on the environment. During Christmas, an entire nation eats 80% more food than the rest of the year. The University of Manchester recently calculated that our combined Christmas dinners produce the same carbon footprint as a single car traveling 6,000 times worldwide. Thirdly, as people scramble back home to be with their loved ones for the holidays, emissions caused by private vehicles and airplanes increase dramatically.   

    

Furthermore, some of you might argue in favor of artificial trees being used over real ones for the reason of going green by saving trees. There is no doubt that cutting down trees is bad for the environment; however, you might want to reconsider when it comes to Christmas trees. Here's why: artificial trees have a carbon footprint of around 40kg of greenhouse gas. To add to this, the primary material used in the making of artificial trees is plastic. This contributes to plastic pollution problems around the world, making it impossible to recycle. In contrast, if real Christmas trees are grown as crops over 6-7 years and are not cut down on a large scale from forests, they can prove to be biodegradable. They are usually grown on hills unsuitable for farming, so it does not even need fertile land that could be used to grow crops. Moreover, as the cherry on the cake, they look much prettier compared to artificial ones. So, if you ever think of getting a Christmas tree, then a real tree is your answer. 

In summary, the holiday period promotes consumerism and can harm both the environment and the wallet. This doesn't mean that we shouldn't enjoy Christmas, or that we should feel guilty about wrapping presents for our friends and family. Being eco-friendly doesn't mean you have to cancel Christmas. There are plenty of ways you can help the environment while celebrating the holiday. 

Our steps towards enjoying a Green Christmas:

1. Switch to rechargeable batteries for gifts.

2. Buy sustainable or reusable decorations.

3. Freeze Christmas dinner leftovers. They could either be consumed later or donated to the needy (After all, spreading joy is the real spirit of Christmas!)

4. Buy environment-friendly Christmas cards.

5. Use recycled paper for wrapping presents.

6. Buy items with less packaging.

7. Our personal favorite: Upcycle. Instead of mindlessly throwing things away, think about how you could turn them into something completely different and gift them. A little bit of creativity goes a long way! For example, jam jars make excellent candleholders, while empty yogurt pots are great for germinating seedlings.

8. Buy real Christmas trees.

9. Buy from shops with locally sourced goods. Since these goods have travelled a minuscule amount, they have a smaller carbon footprint.

10. Use paper/ cloth/ jute bags while shopping.

11. Lastly, avoid online shopping. All the packaging and transportation that goes into delivering the gift to your doorstep leaves a way bigger carbon footprint than just going to the store yourself.

Let's get into the festive spirit by showing the environment some kindness this Christmas. After all, as stated earlier, the true spirit of Christmas does not come from buying expensive things but by showing one another love, kindness and compassion.

Hey, it's the holidays — what better time for a miracle!