A Guide to a Green Christmas

In an ideal world, we would be celebrating a white Christmas every year, however, our Maltese climate does not permit for such a white Christmas. There is however, an alternative which is also a lot more environmentally friendly; a Green Christmas! In this blogpost we’ll be discussing ways of how to make small changes to our usual busy Christmas schedule to make the holiday more sustainable and eco-friendly.

Creative eco-friendly decorations

Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without the decorations. We can do our part to reduce our environmental impact. This would entail opting for real, natural resources like pinecones, holly and potted plants like poinsettia instead of plastic versions. We could also attempt to create our own decorations using recycled materials like old jars, wine corks and cardboard. Aside from the benefit of being environmentally friendly, it can also be a fun activity for the family to do together and give Christmas an extra personal touch.

This can extend even to lights where we can use energy-efficient LED lights for Christmas decorations. Nowadays, these lights can be programmed with timers and smart plugs to switch on and off automatically, thus resulting in less energy wasted.

Green Gifts

Apart from the decorations, it can be said that Christmas is synonymous with gifts and gift-giving. Here, we can make a big difference, not only in the gifts we give to others but also in the way we wrap them! We could wrap gifts using recycled wrapping paper, or else use reusable gift bags or fabric wraps which are also reusable and offer a certain personal charm when giving out gifts.

In terms of actual gifts, we could opt to go for local products such as pottery, glass or artisan food items which can be sustainably produced. This gifts could also hold a more sentimental value and a level of uniqueness from the general, commercialised gifts that are usually given out during Christmas. There are some gift ideas which produce no waste, these could be digital gifts or experiences such as a guided tour around historical sites. Tangible gift ideas would include reusable water bottles, food containers, small potted plants or shopping bags as these promote sustainability and can help reduce a person’s waste further down the line.

Reducing Food Waste

We all know that Christmas is a time where diets go completely out of the window with events and family gatherings seemingly happening every other day however, we can cut down on that in a couple of ways. Practically most people have some Christmas Day leftovers, these can either be removed entirely through proper portioning of food for the amount of guests present or reinvented into other dishes like ‘ftajjar’ or pies. This would allow us to greatly reduce the amount of food waste that is generated during the Christmas period. Furthermore, we could also donate leftover food portions to charities and those in need. The same can be said for decorations, lights or even old gifts.

Keep it Simple

Most people go over and above to make Christmas some massive spectacle to impress their family and friends, be it on expensive gifts, elaborate decorations or huge meals which often leads to food waste. In truth, Christmas is a time to gather with family and friends to reconnect. The cliché is overplayed, but in truth Christmas really is a time for presence and not presents. Enjoy quality time with your loved ones and perhaps try to go for leisure activities which don’t harm the environment like hikes or walks along the coast. Take time to appreciate what and more importantly who’s around you this holiday season.

Our GO Green Initiative

At GO plc, we’re not just a telecommunications company, we’re a group of people who connect people all over Malta and Gozo. We strive to maintain this connectivity, not just digitally, but also physically. It’s important that we take care of our physical environment so that future generations can also enjoy the same connectivity. That’s why we’ve set up GO Green, an extension of GO primarily focusing on helping sustain and improve the environment whenever possible.

This blog post was written by Benjamin Thomas Scerri – Sustainability Associate, GO Green.

Benjamin is a member of the GO Green team. His main focus is keeping track of new ways in which to make GO more sustainable wherever and whenever possible.