Tips for a lowcarbon gift shop

To minimise gift emissions this year, here’s some advice from the experts

PLAN IN ADVANCE

Before you start shopping, you can set gift expectations with the wider family, such as arranging a Secret Santa for the adults, Victoria University psychologist Dougal Sutherland says. Setting a budget and list of presents will avoid a last-minute panic shop. ‘‘I’ve been in the position where you think: ‘Jeez, I haven’t got anything’, so you rush out and you buy something quickly,’’ he says. ‘‘At that time, you’re probably more susceptible to marketing anyway, because you’re not thinking as clearly.’’

BUY SECOND HAND

Re-used goods can have a carbon footprint just onethird the size of a new product, according to Ben Gleisner, who developed carbon-counting app CoGo. That’s because the total manufacturing emissions of the item are shared across each person who uses it (the same effect kicks in when you rent a product, instead of buying it). A pre-loved or upcycled gift doesn’t carry the same stigma as it once did, Gleisner says. Second-hand clothing boutiques are popular places to shop. ‘‘There’s so many more options now for secondhand.’’

OPT FOR LOCAL, SERVICE GIFTS

Non-physical gifts can be a thoughtful option for those people who have everything. However, these gifts can produce a lotmore greenhouse gas than a physical item, particularly if the activity burns a lot of fuel (so perhaps avoid that private jet hire). However, a person’s time doesn’t create a lot of additional greenhouse gas, says Gleisner, making a voucher for amassage, facial or an art or yoga class a climatefriendly choice. ‘‘There is very, very little carbon.’’ If you go down the experiential gift road, consider proximity. If your loved ones must drive across the country to cash in a restaurant voucher, those carbon emissions are on you. Minimise this by choosing local businesses within walking or cycling distance of their home.

SUPPORT ONSHORE BUSINESSES

As well as keeping the regional economy healthy, shopping from local retailers can reduce emissions, even if the product was manufactured overseas. If you buy directly from a foreign store, it’s likely to be air freighted, whereas your downtown toy shop probably had the item shipped by sea. If you’re browsing online, check to see if the business drop-ships. That’s when a firm – even those operating domestically – only sends the item into the country after your order is placed. As the parcel will arrive by plane, this is a carbon-intensive technique.

MAKE A DAY OF IT

Keep in mind the transport of the goods from the store to your home is a key component of any product’s emissions. If it’s feasible, attempt a car-less shop, using your feet, a bike or public transport. If you need to take the car, try to get everything you’ll need in one go – another reason why a gift list is a good idea. If you end up forgetting one item, Thinkstep’s Barbara Nebel suggests you look online (froma local store, of course). As long as it doesn’t involve a plane journey, home delivery is often a lower-carbon option. That’s because it’s a lotmore efficient for a courier van or delivery truck to drop hundreds of parcels around the neighbourhood than for all those households to drive to the shops and back.