Top 11 Eco-friendly Gift Ideas for the Holidays!
With the holiday season right around the corner, we all seek to surprise and delight our families and loved ones with special gifts. We want to shower them with our love and service.
Society, companies, and governments want us to spend, spend, spend to achieve this. Brands use the holiday season to increase their sales and profits. As consumers, we often outsource (purchase) our gifts, cashing in on short-term pleasure until we move on to the next new “thing.”
But does it have to be this way? Why don’t we redesign our culture to make our own gifts, design our own experiences, and support local moms and papas, farmers, and small businesses? Why don’t we keep our dollars in our local economy—if not our own pocket? What if we gifted experiences, homemade items, local goodies, or loving service to our loved ones?
Material things don’t make us happy in the long run!
On the other hand, our happiness does increase when we spend time with friends, partners, or family and enjoy nature and quality time, all with good mental health. Doing good in the world—by giving back, lending support to others, or volunteering for a cause—also makes us happy.
A 2016 study from the University of the South shows that “random acts of kindness” for others or for the world can boost your mood. Interestingly, the study found that “helping others can boost your mood more than if you had done something to help yourself. Why? It encourages our body to release dopamine, which gives you what some call a ‘helper’s high.’” A 2017 survey from the Women’s Philanthropy Institute noted that people are happier overall when they give to others and that the more they do or give, the happier they tend to be. It’s simply referred to as “the joy of giving.”
Life is short. We should enjoy it. It’s not about not consuming; it’s about consuming consciously to meet our basic necessities and within our means. Ultimately, the things that will help us live a more fulfilled life (and give meaningful gifts!) will be the experiences we have and our inner happiness—not the possessions that we own.
Here are 11 eco-friendly gift ideas that are thoughtful, sustainable, and sure to be appreciated:
Plant a tree together.
Go to your local nursery, farmers market or seed exchange and find a special fruit tree or native tree. Then, plan a time to go together with your family to a local park or your own backyard, and plant this tree. Make a big enough hole for the roots to expand and grow, and put some extra compost or black soil from the forest in there.
Trees have an exponential positive impact. They benefit everyone and everything in so many ways: people, the environment, food, oxygen, carbon sequestration, medicines, building materials, wildlife habitats, and economic tools for farmers! If you can’t plant a tree yourself, consider donating to
tree planting as a regenerative gift
for your family, and talk to them about the importance of giving back to the environment and this planet.
Trees have an exponential positive impact.
They benefit everyone and everything in so many ways: people, the environment, food, oxygen, carbon sequestration, medicines, building materials, wildlife habitats, and economic tools for farmers!
2. Plan a special experience.
Memories last a lifetime and bond families and friends together. An experiential gift could take the form of a family camping trip, an outing to a special concert, a picnic and hike, or some other form of play and connection. Write out your plan for this special experience and wrap it in a shoe box with newspaper or magazine wrapping. Use your imagination to make it memorable and tailored to you and your loved one.
Additionally, we can host you for a special private retreat focus on regeneration of mind, body & earth.
3. I owe you! A special service.
When we were growing up, our mother may have loved receiving hand-made “I owe you” gift certificates for yard work in the garden, cleaning the back deck, or other household needs. This is an excellent idea for showing your love and care for family and partners. Here is a template for an “I owe you” gift. Wrap this paper in in a shoe box with newspaper or magazine wrapping for eco-friendly packaging.
Designed by Jean in Canva
4. A list of all the reasons you love your friend, partner or child!
Not only does this list make your loved one feel so nice, but it feels good to write it, too. We like to post these lists on our mirror as reminders of why our loved one cares so much about us. Here is is template you can fill out, or you can let your inner designer out and make your own:
Designed by Jean in Canva
5. Make a handmade piece of art!
Every time we receive a piece of art from our friends or family, we cherish it for a lifetime. We think of the artist each time we see it. One of our favorite activities to do with children or friends of all ages is to paint rocks, make plastic flowers reusing our plastic waste, and recycle old clothing with tie-dying or upcycle into bags or vests. For rocks, go out and find a special flat rock from the river, forest or beach near you. This is a perfect paperweight, or a unique piece of art for the garden or home. To make plastic flowers, we cut up plastic that we are no longer using into leaves and petals. Then we paint and super glue or hot glue the flower together for a recycled and beautiful piece of art. Here is a youtube video for more inspiration. This is a fantastic decoration for the home or outdoor spaces.
Fay Colmar, My Grandma’s Upcycled Art
Plastic Flower inspiration
Tie-dying old clothes and upcycling into a new favorite shirt by tie dying was always a favorite family activity. These gifts will be unique to you and remind your loved ones how much you care for them.
Tie-dye idea from Kay Pullen.
Make upcycled bags or vest with old clothes. This is an example from Salad Bowl Dress. Here is a guide to make your own.
Mary Colmar, Upcycled Bag from used clothing!
6. Craft handmade goodies or teas.
We love receiving cookies and homemade teas as a gift. Creations handmade with love are the best demonstration of time and care. Check out our favorite plant-based cookie recipe here!
One tea idea is to craft a mint, lemongrass and basil blend. Dry the herbs, and place into a special jar with a handmade label. This tea blend assists in digestion and immunity, and will be sure to delight your loved ones.
7. Gift an indoor or outdoor plant.
It is so easy to propagate plants from our garden and give them to others to keep for many years to come as an indoor plant or an outdoor plant. One of our favorites is the snake plant. We love the zen feel of snake plants in our home, and they have a number of health benefits, too:
Filter indoor air and remove toxic pollutants.
Effective against allergies.
Help boost mental health with live plants in the home.
Helps enhance the “energy” of a space, according to feng shui.
Easy to maintain and require very little water.
Snake Plant inspiration from Pinterest.
8. Gift a book! Our Top Regenerative Books:
nourishing our garden & Earth
2. Regenerate Your Reality
Books are an excellent tool that can be passed on and enjoyed again and again.
Nourishing Our Garden & Earth, illustrated children’s book aims to educate and inspire children (and the young at heart!) about the importance of food sovereignty, biodiverse organic agriculture, seed saving and the cycles of growth for healthy people and a healthy planet. This book is for you, for the next generation, for generations to come, and for all life! Find the book on Amazon, our website, or any major distributor!
If you purchase through our website we will gift a book for each book purchased to local schools in Costa Rica and Guatemala.
Regenerate Your Reality. It shows you how you can: apply principles of regeneration, diversify your income, grow your way out of crisis, nurture the earth, and live holistically and passionately. Our connection to the earth is related to everything else in our lives, and this best-selling book offers suggestions to regenerate yourself, your communities, and the environment. Find the book on Amazon, our website, or any major distributor!
Much of the proceeds from this book will be filtered back to regenerative community-based farming models and planting trees that feed through Kiss the Ground and Jungle Project!
Image by Publish your Gift, publishers of the Regenerate Your Reality book.
9. Eco-Friendly Candles:
Look for candles made from natural wax (like soy or beeswax) with cotton wicks and no harmful chemicals, packaged in recyclable materials.
10. Bamboo Utensil Set
A portable set of bamboo utensils (fork, knife, spoon, chopsticks) is perfect for those who like to eat on the go and want to minimize single-use plastics.
11. Reusable Tote Bags
Stylish and practical, reusable bags reduce plastic waste and can be used for grocery shopping, beach outings, or everyday errands.
These gifts not only show you care but also promote sustainability and encourage eco-conscious habits.
We hope these gift ideas inspire you to regenerate the way you look at holiday time and gifting culture.