Seventh Generation Blog

Give Better to Get More
Posted By
the Inkslinger
December 2, 2008

Eco PresentsAnd so the season of giving is upon us. It's a peculiar time of year to be environmentally aware. We're flooded with messages urging us to shop and spend, buy and give even as our better instincts caution us against consumerism in a time of growing ecological and financial pressure.

My proposed answer to this dilemma is something I call "conscious giving." This means give unto others in a way that gives something more -- gifts whose purchase sends hopeful ripples of good tidings and positive change out into the world. We asked around the Seventh Generation office for some ideas about where such gifts might be found. Here are a few staff favorites. We hope you will read them, then respond to this post with some of your own suggestions.

As a company, Seventh Generation believes in charitable giving, dedicating 10% of our profits to non-profit community, environmental, health, and responsible business organizations working for positive change. One of our favorite causes is the Whole Planet Foundation, which makes grants to microlending institutions that offer small business loans to poor, working individuals in the developing world, with a focus on women. Whole Food Market covers all of the foundation’s operating costs so 100% of your donation will go to the microlending programs.

Another charity we recommend is the ABC Home & Planet Foundation. Their Gifts of Compassion program lets you give the people on your list gift certificates that include providing a Congolese war survivor with a year of schooling, purchasing birth kits that save the lives of mothers and children, and channeling funds to preserve polar bear habitat. The certificates come in an envelope made of vintage silk sari material.

Here in the office, chocolate is rightfully omnipresent during the holidays. A new favorite are the goodies from Tcho, an eco-minded company sourcing the world's best beans and providing their growers with an equitable price.

The non-profit that wins both our heart and our award for most clever video marketing campaign is Changing the Present, an organization that lets you browse causes to find gifts that make a difference, or search from a list of non-profits to make a donation in your own name or in the name of a friend or family member.

Those of us into the convenience of gift cards love the offerings from Global Giving. Recipients get to browse the organization's online catalog of worthy projects and choose one or more.

Fair trade is the name of the giving game at Global Exchange, which has all kinds of handmade gifts, including food, whose purchase provides artisans and farmers with just compensation for their labors.

A Greater Gift is another resource for fair trade goods that promote livable wages, women's rights, and environmental sanity around the world.

If you're looking for unique handcrafted objets d'art, try World of Good, an program that links indigenous artists and artisan cooperatives in other countries with U.S. consumers while supporting fair wages, safe working conditions, and economic sustainability.

Another wonderful gift-giving resource is Ten Thousand Villages, which offers a large collection of one-of-a-kind creations from the four corners of the Earth (and lots of ways to shop for them, too).

For some re-gifting of a different kind, try Green With Envy. They've got a slew of unique recycled-material gift ideas from art to clothing that you'll not likely find anywhere else.

That's what's on our shopping list. What's on yours? Where are you shopping and what interesting eco-items and socially responsible gifts are you giving this year? Share your finds with us by replying to this post, and help us make this a sustainable holiday season for everyone.

photo: Michael Wade


Category: Sustainability 
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Comments
Nail Polish
Posted by vogue0009 | Wed, Dec. 3, 2008

There is a nail polish company called Peace Keepers that donate all of their profits after taxes to women's health advocacy and urgent human rights issues. Their website is www.iamapeacekeeper.com. They have a variety of colors that I love!

The Greater Good Network
Posted by per_gaby | Wed, Dec. 3, 2008

I do a lot of my holiday shopping online through:
shop.thehungersite.com
shop.animalrescuesite.com
shop.therainforestsite.com
shop.thebreastcancersite.com

They will donate various things to different charities depending on where you purchase your gifts from. The best part is that there is a flat rate shipping fee of $3.95 for the whole order... A lot of the artisan crafts they sell are fair traded too!

Heifer
Posted by isis.lyman | Wed, Dec. 3, 2008

I often do a lot of holiday gifting through Heifer International. They are an organization that provides livestock and training to people in poverty, working on the principle of giving self-sustainability. Each recipient of an animal promises to "pass on the gift" by giving one of its female offspring to someone else in need in their community. They've really done a lot to alleviate hunger by going to the source rather than only looking to temporary solutions.

You can donate various amounts, and you get a card that you can fill out to tell the recipient that you provided an animal (flock of chicks, goat, cow etc.) to a family in need in their name.

Fair Trade Global Exchange Bamboo Straws and Divine Chocolate
Posted by smorgasbite | Wed, Dec. 3, 2008

I love the Fair Trade Global Exchange website and just posted on my blog about some great bamboo straws from Laos.

Divine Chocolate is another great company that does Fair Trade business with farmers in Ghana. Yummy chocolate too!

The Better World Shopping Guide
Posted by KariP | Wed, Dec. 3, 2008

Hello,

When I got your newsletter that featured the book

"The Better World Shopping Guide #2" by Ellis Jones

I instantly wanted to go out and get a copy.

When I read it I knew right away what I was going to do for Holiday gifts this year. I went to get more copies of this book and included it as a part of some eco-friendly, socially responsible gift baskets. I got a bunch of goodies all from the "A" list and put them together as wonderful gift baskets with this book front and center!

I know family & friends will love the time, thought, and care I've put into these gifts and I can't wait for everyone to open them up! Not only that but I'm sure this book will create interesting conversation while we all gather around sampling some of the snacks that were a part of this gift. How fun!

This book is my new favorite. It goes with me when ever I go shopping and as a result I've made quite a few changes for the better as a consumer because of it.

Thanks!
- kari

local giving
Posted by jenniferfeline | Thu, Dec. 4, 2008

I like thie ideas in the Give Better to Give More article, but I'm going to shop local artisans in an effort to help my regional community survive in these hard times. That those reading and posting (and others) are thinking more consciously is a warm feeling though.

TOMS Shoes
Posted by andreacroth | Thu, Dec. 4, 2008

TOMS Shoes is an incredible company that donates one pair of shoes for every pair purchased to a child in need. They've given hundreds of thousands of shoes to children in South American and Africa. We're giving TOMS as gifts this year: not only will our loved ones receive a stylish and comfortable pair of shoes, children in Ethopia will be protected from contracting dangerous diseases through their feet! Check out www.tomsshoes.com/ for more info.

ReasonToGive.com - Great place to do your holiday shopping
Posted by shannonmedic | Thu, Dec. 4, 2008

Reason to Give is an online storefront where you can shop for families in need.

Go online, watch videos of families telling their stories and with one click you can purchase specific items for them or donate to a holiday gift card pool and let the families buy their own dinner or presents.

Plus all the retailers that Reason to Give purchases from are fair trade, eco-friendly, and donate all or part of their profit to charity, so every purchase does twice the good.

Oh yeah- you also get a free Give t-shirt (organic cotton) or tote when you donate, which you can have sent as a gift to someone else as well.

It's a really unique sight - I am going to purchase a few items in my friends names as part of their gift this year and give them the free t-shirts!

www.ReasontoGive.com

lasermonks.com
Posted by susanhoglund | Thu, Dec. 4, 2008

This is a site worth checking out. Monks living in a monastery in Sparta, Wisconsin sell printer cartriges, fruit preserves, gift baskets, and various other items online. In addition to supporting their monastery, profits from their products help to support various charities around the world. www.lasermonks.com

charitable gifts from ChangingThePresent.org
Posted by Robert Tolmach | Mon, Dec. 15, 2008

Thanks so much for the nice mention of the videos for www.ChangingThePresent.org. They were created pro-bono by the wonderful ad agency, StrawberrryFrog.

For your readers who want to know more, the site offers more than 1,600 charitable gifts, such as:
• preserve an acre of the wilderness
• provide a child with her first book
• fund an hour of cancer research
• feed a family for a week
• or even sponsor cataract surgery to restore a blind person’s sight.

You can also personalize beautiful printed greeting cards, which include a photo and description of your gift, right from the site.