How to buy eco-friendly and fair trade gifts

• When you give green gifts you are looking for gifts that are eco friendly and socially responsible.

• Green gifts are made from products like bamboo or they are organic so they are free from pesticides.

• Small steps can really help the planet. Such as buying an organic wine over a conventional wine.

• When buying green gifts you can look for items labeled as Fair Trade. That means that the people who made it are given a fair wage for their work. Additionally, your money goes to help fund social and health spending in those communities.

• Find green gifts made from recycled materials like throw blankets made from old sweaters or coasters made out of old records.

• You can find Fair Trade gifts or those made from recycled materials in stores such as Crate and Barrel or Target.

• Shop online for green, eco-friendly gifts at sites like “worldofgood.com” or “thegreenloop.com”.

STACEY: I’m Stacey Tisdale for howdini. Giving the gift of green doesn’t mean handing out wads of cash, as keeping the environment in mind when you choose presents. With us today is Christine Richmond, Senior Editor and green expert at Natural Health magazine. Welcome, Christine.

CHRISTINE: Thank you so much for having me, Stacey.

STACEY: What is a green gift?

CHRISTINE: Well, when you give green, you’re looking for presents that are more eco-friendly. They also, they tend to be more socially responsible. So they’re made from items like, you know, bamboo, or they’re organic so they’re not using pesticides. Just various ways to help preserve the earth’s resources.

STACEY: This seems to be taking on particular significance now. Do you think that’s because all of the concerns about global warming?

CHRISTINE:I think that people are starting to realize that even really small steps that they take can have a really big effect on the planet. So, choosing an organic wine over a conventional wine is something you can do that’s really easy, but it has a big impact on the climate.

STACEY: And what are some examples of products that are considered green?

CHRISTINE:Well, one thing you can look for is an item that’s fair trade. And what that means, is that the people who made it are given a fair wage for their work. And in addition, your money will go to help fund social and health spending in those communities. So, for example, there’s a great eco-fashion company called Stewart & Brown, and they make these gorgeous cashmere sweaters, and they’re knit by artisans in Mongolia. So you can feel good about knowing you’re helping those people improve their lives while getting a really gorgeous product. Another example, there’s a lot of, people are getting really creative with recycling, so you can find a lot of items that are made from repurposed materials, like throw-blankets made out of old sweaters, coasters made out of old records. There’s a lot of really fun stuff out there that has a nice, green message to it.

STACEY: And where can we find eco-friendly, recycle or fair trade gifts?

CHRISTINE: You can start to look in stores, it’s becoming more and more popular. So places like Crate and Barrel and Target are now selling eco-friendly presents. You can also look online. Some of Natural Health’s favorite websites are worldofgood, you can get a lot of fair trade items there, and also thegreenloop.com sells some great eco-fashion and accessories.

STACEY: Great Tips. Christine Richmond, Senior Editor and green expert at Natural Health magazine. Thank you so much for joining us.

CHRISTINE: Thank you so much for having me.