Merry and meaningful: Feel-good, planet-friendly ways to give this year

If December’s sudden arrival caught you by surprise (it did us!) and the sound of jingling bells and carols just reminds you how thoroughly unprepared you are for gift-giving this season, you’re not alone. But luckily, there are some great last-minute gift ideas that won’t cost the earth… We’ve explored feel-good gifting that’s a tad more intentional and less landfill-adjacent. Dive on in!

Caring for critters

Love the furred, feathered and scaly beasties that share our planet? Have a friend who’s into hugging a tree when the opportunity presents itself? ‘Adopting’ or sponsoring a critter is an instant crowd-pleaser for kids, friends, partners, or that aunt that’s always feeding the kookaburras – and it often means you get a little adoption certificate (and sometimes other goodies) to gift to your giftee as a tangible keepsake of making the world a better place. Here are some nifty ideas:

• Aussie Ark allows you to ‘adopt’ a Tasmanian Devil, Eastern Quoll, or Koala, and your money goes directly to supporting insurance populations. The Adoption Pack includes an official adoption certificate, a glossy pic of your adopted animal, fact sheet, brooch of your chosen species, and a sticker!
• The Black Sheep Animal Sanctuary in Otaki, New Zealand allows you to sponsor ‘everyday’ animals: think chooks named Cashew and Walnut, Minerva the turkey, goats and piglets, and a tiny lamb called Fang! You’ll get a printable gift certificate with the name of the person who inspired your gift. Read the lovely profiles here!
• WWF Australia: ‘Symbolically’ adopt a vulnerable animal (including Aussie natives like a platypus or wombat), and receive a welcome pack including an adoption certificate, cuddly plush toy, factbook and more.
• The Penguin Foundation has a bunch of unusual cuties native to Phillip Island to ‘adopt’, including Little Penguins, Bush stone-curlews and Hooded plovers – one for the bird nerds! 
• If you’ve ever seen Stephen Fry’s kākāpō video, you’ll understand why we’re a tad obsessed with this endangered bird… So why not adopt one from the New Zealand Department of Conservation? 

You could also choose to support boots-on-ground organisations on a friend’s behalf. Groups like the Hills Wildlife Sanctuary, Possumwood Wildlife or volunteer-run groups like the Marine Wildlife Rescue Central Coast are all quietly working away in the background, trying to make a difference. Do a quick search for similar groups in your area (you’re guaranteed to find one!) and share some love.

Larger organisations like the Australian Marine Conservation Society keep fighting the good fight, too, while Save the Daintree and Rainforest Rescue sponsorships support the protection of precious ecosystems and buyback of land to keep it safe from development.

The human touch

Supporting vulnerable people and communities is always important, but the festive season adds an extra edge to hardship. 

We’re just a little bit in love with Oxfam Unwrapped’s charity gift cards, which allow you to make a donation on your loved one’s behalf – and you get to pick and personalise a super cute and often punny card to let them know. (So-fish-ticated person, anyone?) You can pick by cause, like women’s empowerment, economic justice, humanitarian aid, climate justice… Or just go straight for the Christmas Goat! 

Buying a cute T-shirt, tote bag or tea towel from folks like Dangerous Females means you can gift something fun – and explain how your gift is helping to raise awareness and much-needed funding for organisations dedicated to supporting victims of domestic violence or abuse. Check out organisations like the Refugee Council of Australia and the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre to see how you can help, or shop from Sisterworks (a not-for-profit social enterprise in Melbourne supporting women refugees, asylum seekers or migrants), or The Social Outfit, a sustainable fashion brand made by migrants in Sydney.

Unsure where you’d like to spend your hard-earned cash? GIVIT is a brilliant platform that connects donors to real needs in real time, so that you can make a considered choice about the kind of impact you want to make. Bonus: it lets you pick and personalise a gift card to show that you’ve donated on someone’s behalf, instead of buying a physical gift.

The gift of time

You don’t have to donate money – donating time can be even more transformative. Volunteering Australia’s GoVolunteer platform matches people who are interested in volunteering with opportunities near them, and Volunteering NZ and Seek Volunteer have plenty of opportunities to help. Join or gift participation in local beach clean-ups, Bushcare groups, community garden working bees, soup kitchens, animal shelter support days, toy drives… Invite a friend (or friends!) along and make Friendmas all about doing good. Or why not make a date of it? We have a new mantra: the couple who helps others together, thrives together! 

Travelling for the holidays? ‘Offset’ your footprint by participating in programs like Visit Noosa’s Tread Lightly, which lets you donate some of your time to support local sustainability projects while you’re relaxing.

Support First Nations organisations

Supporting First Nations communities and creators is a present that does double duty: you’ll delight your giftee with something gorgeous and help keep culture, knowledge and Country thriving. You could donate to incredible organisations like Common Ground, Firesticks Alliance, and Seed Mob (Seed Indigenous Youth Climate Network), or support Blak businesses by buying directly from Indigenous-owned art centres or businesses. Museum stores can be a great place to find First Nations brands, as well as many locally-made artists too. 

For starters, try Aboriginal Art Co, a non-profit who promotes authentic and ethically sourced Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander arts and products, or the Blak Business Directory by Ngarrimili. Look for sellers signed up to the Indigenous Art Code (IartC) to make sure that artists receive fair prices and profits are reinvested back into local communities. Indigenous Art Code’s search and map function can help you find businesses who support fair, transparent and ethical trade with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island visual artists. There are so many options, from fabulous fashion and handcrafted jewellery, artist prints and ceramics, foodie treats and crafts. Every dollar spent should circulate back into First Nations economies, supporting self-determination, cultural knowledge holders and the next generation of Blak creators and business owners. 

Less stuff, more memories

Gifting an experience can create timeless memories and won’t end up in the back of a cupboard, gathering dust. It’s also a great opportunity to bond with the people you love, or even treat them to a solo adventure.

• Glimpse in NSW offers group-based eco-experiences that support non-profits, micro-entrepreneurs and creative individuals. Think coastal foraging with a restaurant chef, a freediving ocean immersion, clothes swap party and caring for Country with Indigenous plant experts.
• ClassBento’s always a winner for interesting hands-on experiences, from dumpling making to clay and sip pottery throwing to making your own terrarium! They offer gift cards and suggestions, too: and for every booking made, ClassBento donates to Dementia Australia.
• AmazingCo’s mystery picnics are perfect for that friend who likes pina coladas and getting caught in the rain…  They’re just the thing to escape from life for a while. Best bit? You can surprise them with a gift card so they can ‘choose their own’, or choose the location, vibe, and budget on their behalf, letting AmazingCo do all the planning. 

Looking for the gift that keeps on giving? An annual pass or membership to places like museums, art galleries, botanic gardens, national parks or zoos not only help to support these vital cultural institutions, but also add ongoing delight to life. And often, joining one means access to others: gifting a membership to the Australian Museum in Sydney, for example, allows access to the National Museum of Australia, Queensland Museum, Museums Victoria, South Australian Museum AND Questacon (The National Science & Technology Centre). Neat, huh?

Or think out of the box: surf or dance lessons, tree-planting excursions (Trees That Count supports native forest restoration in Aotearoa New Zealand, AND you can buy a gift card!), outdoor cinema passes, wildlife encounters, kayak rentals, stargazing sessions (‘Make it spatial’, declares Blue Mountains stargazing!) – think of what makes your person tick, and make it happen.