Welcome back, everyone. I hope you're all having a good week so far. It's Blogmas Day Six and today's post is all about some really simple ways to help others and make the world a better place this festive season (and beyond) - I think Christmas is definitely a time when we realise just how lucky we are and feel the urge to help those less fortunate than we are so hopefully you'll find some inspiration here.
Buy Charity Christmas Cards.
This is one of the simplest things because almost all of us will be sending Christmas cards this December. Buying Charity Christmas Cards means that some of the price that you'd already be paying goes to a charity to help them with the good work they do. They are also a great way to raise awareness for charities because all of those who receive a card from you will also see the charity you have chosen to support. Paperchase offer twenty-four different designs which each see 50p go to one of twenty-four different charities - including Action on Addiction, Centre Point, the Alzheimer's Society, Autistica and Nordoff Robbins. Charity shops also sell their own cards - check out the British Heart Foundation, their cards are always beautiful.
Donate To Food Banks.
The Trussell Trust runs a network of more than 400 food banks, giving emergency food and support to people in crisis across the UK and with increasing disparities in wealth and the introduction of Universal Credit, more and more people are having to rely on them. There are collection points in Tesco stores up and down the country and their own collection points elsewhere - you can find your nearest collection points here. Something as simple as picking up an extra bag of rice or box of mince pies or tin of beans when you're doing your weekly shop could make the world of difference to a family that is struggling this Christmas.
Wear a Christmas Jumper.
I blogged about Save The Children's Christmas Jumper Day last year and I wanted to mention it again this year because it is such a fun way to make a difference this Christmas. This year, it takes place on the 15th of December. The idea is very simple - you wear a Christmas jumper and raise money and awareness for Save The Children. You could bring Christmas Jumper Day into your workplace, you could get all of your family to join you in sporting their best festive sweaters but even if you're a one man band, you can still proudly wear your jumper and donate (here).
Buy Gifts Mindfully.
Similarly to the Christmas cards, giving Christmas presents is something a lot of us will be doing this month. There are lots of ways that you can give mindful gifts which benefit more than just you and the person who receives it. Whether you choose to buy gifts from which a percentage of the profit goes to a good cause or buy from businesses that support small communities in developing countries or buy from businesses owned by women or PoC, there are plenty of options. I've listed some ideas below but there really are so many more options out there, too.
Feminist Apparel offer t-shirts (and more) which see a percentage of profit go to social justice causes (such as this pin which benefits Black Lives Matter and these lovely t-shirts for The Equality Institute).
L'Occitane are offering this limited edition candle which sees all profits split between three charities - Rosa in the UK, Toutes a l'ecole in Cambodia and Entrepreneurs du Monde in Africa and would be a perfect and affordable gift for any fans of home-ware (it costs £9).
The entirety of the price of Lush's Charity Pot body lotion (minus taxes) goes to grassroots organisations which align with Lush's ethics in the areas of environmental conservation, human rights and animal welfare (and, as it is available in various sizes and at various price points, it has the potential to make a perfect Secret Santa gift or stocking filler).
There's also the option of buying items such as books, DVDs, board games and vinyl records in charity shops, too - I know Oxfam are particularly good for books, for instance, but there are plenty more options so it's worth keeping an eye out.
It's Not Just for Christmas, It's for Life.
As I said at the start of this post, I think we all feel a really strong desire to make the world a better place at Christmas because it is a time when we really see how fortunate we are. However, I think one of the best ways you can do this is, is to make a promise to yourself that you will try and take this spirit into the New Year and keep offering help in whatever way you can. Whether you decide to make a monthly donation to a charity or decide to donate to a food bank every fortnight or give spare change to homeless people on your way home from work or give blood - there are so many ways you can keep up the work you start doing this December. It really isn't that difficult and if we all do something, no matter how small it seems, we really do have the power to make a difference in our local and global communities.
I hope you liked this post and that you have found it helpful.
Do you have any ideas for how we can make a difference this Christmas? Do you have any other comments or suggestions for future posts? Leave a comment to let me know.
See you tomorrow for Blogmas Day Seven!
Enjoy today and let your joy fill the world,
GingerSnaps xxx
