Green Christmas – sustainable holidays
Christmas. The time of lights, cookies, and presents. Beautiful, cozy, festive, but unfortunately also often quite resource-intensive. If you want to be a little more environmentally conscious amidst the roasts, mulled wine, and wish lists, you don't have to give up everything. With a few simple ideas, the holiday will not only be more joyful but also greener, without sacrificing any of the fun.
Food: Less is more – yet still festive
Good food is as much a part of Christmas as candlelight and carols. But it doesn't have to be an XXL buffet to create a festive atmosphere. Mini-menus with two or three carefully selected courses are not only more manageable, they often taste more intense because quality is paramount. And if you choose regional and seasonal ingredients, you support local producers and reduce transportation distances.
A few vegetarian and vegan options Incidentally, dishes like nut or lentil roasts can be presented just as festively and are also environmentally friendly. And if you cleverly use your leftover vegetables, sauce, or baked goods in the following days, you'll ensure that less food ends up in the trash.
Even small extras like homegrown winter herbs on the windowsill or homemade spiced salt provide aroma and regionality at the same time – perfect for giving as a gift or for your own use at the Christmas table.
Gifts: Personal, creative, meaningful
Giving gifts should bring joy, and that's possible without excessive consumption. If you focus on experiences rather than things, you'll give memories that last longer than the 20th pair of socks. A cooking class, a concert ticket, or a trip together creates moments you'll cherish for years to come. Homemade vouchers for a winter walk, a cozy dinner, or a sustainable workshop are also a wonderful idea. Group gifts are another great approach: instead of many small presents, you can pool your resources to make something bigger happen.
And you can also be sustainable when wrapping gifts: Old calendars, newspapers, or magazines, for example, can be transformed into stylish gift wrap. Or you can try furoshiki: In Japan, this method of wrapping objects in cloths has been used for a long time. You can use this technique for your Christmas gifts and either repurpose old fabric scraps or (new) dish towels or bath towels, which can then also be part of the gift.
If you do want to give a physical gift and need some specific ideas, feel free to take a look. Our Good Travel gift ideas
Traveling at Christmas: Slow and steady wins the race.
The holidays often involve travel, either to visit family in another state or for the subsequent winter vacation – a situation that can quickly become harmful to the climate. Taking the train or using carpooling services not only makes your journey more relaxed but also significantly more environmentally friendly.
And it doesn't always have to be the direct route: A deliberately planned stopover can turn the journey into an experience, such as visiting a regional Christmas market halfway along the way.
Instead of overcrowded tourist destinations or large ski resorts for your Christmas holiday, other options are also available. Winter hikes to less well-known places: fresh air, peace and quiet and the beauty of nature make the holidays particularly relaxing – and greener.
Activities: Festive fun without a big footprint
Creative DIY projects bring children and adults together at Christmas, reduce waste, and create a festive atmosphere. Whether it's crafting decorations from pine cones, dried orange slices, or twigs – it's fun to do together, and the home still looks festive.
Even a sustainable advent calendar for adults can bring joy: A small task or mini-experience each day, consciously free of consumerism, creates moments of reflection in everyday life. If you enjoy watching films, perhaps you could discover regional productions this year and enrich your Christmas culturally, instead of relying on global streaming hits.
Even when baking cookies, you can get creative with regional ingredients: hazelnuts from local farms, flour from the local mill, regional butter, or even honey from the beekeeper around the corner not only give your classic cookies a particularly aromatic profile, but also reduce the long transport routes of typical standard ingredients. If you feel like experimenting, you can also liven up old family recipes with seasonal alternatives: replace oranges with dried apple rings or swap some of the sugar for regional pear syrup.
Do you have any other ideas or perhaps already established routines for making your Christmas a little greener?
Photos: unsplash / Markus Spiske, Pexels / Anastasia Shuraeva, Jeshoots
Nadine Pinezits
Nadine is a freelance editor and copywriter. She lives in Austria and commutes between Salzburg and Vienna. This means she is either in the mountains or in the urban jungle, but at the same time tries to spend as much time as possible in her beloved country, Portugal.
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