It’s that time of year again, when we spend up big to give presents to friends and loved ones, with many gifts ending up surplus to requirements and just so much extra landfill. One option is to donate to charity in lieu of a gift. If this approach appeals to you, Care Australia is offering Christmas Gifts that Save Lives and the Australian Red Cross has Real Good Gifts. If you still want to buy something tangible, make an ethical choice that puts profit in the right people’s pockets without doing harm to the environment. Here’s ten options to get you started in your hunt.
1.This Christmas Bon Bon features graphics inspired by leadlight windows and is filled with delicious chocolate. According to the Shop Ethical! App, Haigh’s Chocolate is a Member of the World Cocoa Foundation committed to creating a sustainable cocoa economy and signatory to the Australian Packaging Covenant, a voluntary agreement to encourage waste minimisation. Only $19.90 from Haigh’s.
2. Haus of Dizzy is a brand by Indigenous Australian jewellery designer Kristy Dickinson whose designs feature empowering slogans for Indigenous people, queer people and women. Her Stop violence against women earrings were recently worn by Larissa Waters on International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women while she secured a Senate agreement that the Family Law inquiry should not proceed with hearings until the government could guarantee strong safeguards for witnesses. Goddess Earrings from $39 on Haus of Dizzy.
3. Koskela’s Social Impact Set includes ethical gifts in a little pack beautifully wrapped in Galiwin’ku Christmas wrap made in collaboration with Northern Territory-based Indigenous arts centre Elcho Island Arts. Each set includes: Kakadu Plum Christmas Spiced Chocolate, Live Softly Mini Felt Glasses Case or Phone Case, eco-friendly Western Desert Bush Balm and a Girringun Tea towel. Only $95 from Koskela.
4. The only shop to make it for the third time onto The Design Writer’s Ethical Gift Guide (see previous guides here and here), The Social Outfit has this year collaborated with Indian-born, Sydney-based paper artist Gunjan Aylawadi on a new fashion range featuring Gunjan’s textile designs, inspired by repeating geometric patterns and relief work from in and around India. The Social Outfit is an ethical trading social enterprise that provides employment and training in the fashion industry to people from refugee and new migrant communities. Scarves, bags and garments start from $49 on The Social Outfit.
5. The Two Good Christmas Treatbox + Cookbook Bundle includes Two Good bliss balls, granola, cookies and spiced nuts PLUS The Two Good Cook Book. For each bundle sold, Two Good will donate another treatbox on your behalf to a woman staying in a safe house over the holidays and all funds raised from The Two Good Cook Book go towards Two Good’s employment pathways program. Only $105 from Two Good.
6. Coloured pencils make the perfect gift for kids and adults alike and Faber Castell rates highly on the Shop Ethical! App, with a reforestation program in Brazil, forests and factories FSC certified, and a positive Child labour scorecard, plus it is a signatory on the Australian Packaging Covenant. The Albrecht Dürer Magnus watercolour pencil, tin of 12 (pictured) goes for around $28 from Art Supplies Australia.
7. Not sure what to get that architect or design-lover in your life? The Fazeek range of soaps features designs that mimic terrazzo, and bricks and mortar. Handmade in Melbourne, all soaps are 100% pure vegan base made from coconut oil, palm oil free, detergent free and not tested on animals. Only $16 from Fazeek.
8. Waverley Mills is Australia’s oldest working textile mill and uses natural fibres which are biodegradable, recyclable, and a natural resource. They are committed to minimising waste and have a history of working with charities, creating Welfare Blankets for St Vincent de Paul and donating a portion of profits to Mary’s House in Sydney, a not-for-profit organisation helping women and children who have experienced domestic violence. For decades, their recycled woollen blankets and throws have been made using offcuts from the mill’s factory floor. Recycled throws are $199 from Waverley Mills.
9. Tackling the barriers that artists with an intellectual disability face, Studio A sells some beautiful work, including textiles, scarves, Christmas decorations and lots more. Revenue derived from the program’s activities is invested back into the program to increase its artistic and social outcomes, and income derived from the sale and exhibition of artwork directly benefits the artist. The Helo Sunshine tea towel goes for $25 and is available at the Australian Design Centre’s Object Shop (which also has a whole host of other locally-made gifts).
10. One way to stay ethical is to buy your work directly from a designer/maker so your dollar helps a family rather than a corporation. Elbow Workshop is one such organisation, with leather bags and accessories designed and made by hand by James B. Young and Elliat Rich. The Crescent Keyring goes for $40 from Elbow Workshop.
What ethical products are you buying your loved ones this holiday season?