“Every year, the British public celebrates Christmas by cutting down eight million trees, wrapping enough presents to smother Guernsey, binning billions of greetings cards, and then throwing away £l billion worth of food.”.
Author(s): M. Harris
Source: Volume 6, Issue 12, December 2011, p. 30 – 33
If that’s not reason to be start being a bit more conscious about your consumerism this Christmas, I don’t know what is.
But more on how you can do that in part 2.
Firstly, let’s talk Craftivism, a term coined by writer and crafter Betsy Greer. According to the Craftivism Collective founder, Sarah Corbett, this, ‘Unique ‘gentle protest’ approach to activism has helped to change hearts, minds, policies and laws around the world through our thoughtful and compassionate actions that provoke reflection and respectful conversation instead of aggression and division.
Craftivism is for everyone wherever you are: from skilled crafters to burnt out activists, introverts, highly sensitive people, people struggling with anxiety and those people who want to challenge injustice in the world but don’t know what to do, where to start or how to prioritise their energies and time.’
So, the Sea Mills and Coombe Dingle Climate Action group decided that this would be a great way to engage the local community in having climate conversations about Christmas consumerism, in a gentle and positive way.
Here’s the idea and we want you to run with it in whatever way you see fit.
- Create your own Christmas decorations, (or card or gifts), using recycled/recyclable goodies at home (see photos for inspiration).
- Write a catchy sustainable message on them eg ‘I’m dreaming of a green Christmas’ or, ‘Make Christmas Green again’.
- Give them out to friends, family, neighbours, teachers and perhaps it’ll spark a conversation! You can then direct them to part 2 of this blog post for inspiration and ideas on how they can create a more sustainable Christmas.
- Consider who else you might like to send one to. Perhaps your local MP or other Members of Parliament like Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Perhaps the CEO of your Supermarket or even the company you work for. What message would you like to give them? What commitment would you like from them in 2021 to impact on the global climate crisis or local environmental issues that are important to you?
- Spread the planet-love further by sharing this post on your facebook page or emailing it to friends and family far and wide and remember to share your creations with us over on our Facebook page.
It’s as simple as that.
And if you’d like to join us in creating some crafts together and having some fun and inspiring conversations along the way head to the Sea Mills & Coombe Dingle Action page and look out for the next online event.