Make your own food based gifts such as cookies, cakes or truffles. You could also make your own flavored organic olive oil, adding dried chillies, garlic or herbs.

If you are buying toys or electrical goods that need batteries, buy rechargeable ones, then add a battery charger to your shopping list.

Send a holiday e-card instead! There are lots of sites offering free holiday e-card services.

Take public transportation to go Christmas shopping.

Buy recycled wrapping paper and holiday cards. Around 744 million holiday cards are sent each holiday season. If all these were made from recycled paper, it would help to save the equivalent of 248,000 trees.

Buy cards made from paper (not plastic) and without lots of added decorations, as these cards cannot be recycled.

Make recyclable decorations out of construction paper, or reuse common household packaging.

When buying presents, keep an eye out for those with minimal packaging, or items packed in recycled materials.

Find new to you seasonal decorations at resale shops or reuse last year’s.

We produce 25% more trash during the holiday season – 25 million extra tons of waste. Find ways to cut your contribution.