For Christmas, Bella, from Lewisham, is hoping for a pair of roller skates. The eight-year-old from south London just has one proviso: they have to be secondhand – or, as she puts it, preloved. Other items on her Christmas list include watching a play in the Shakespeare’s Globe theatre and baking a cake.
Bella decided to draw up a different kind of Christmas list this year because she realised the presents she’d asked for in previous years were mostly plastic toys that polluted the environment. “It’s kinder to the planet to receive real-life experiences and preloved items as gifts,” she says.
When we think of kids at Christmas, we tend to think of them as eager recipients of the latest must-have toys and video games. But Bella is part of a new vanguard of children and teenagers who are refashioning the festive season in the name of helping the environment. Indeed, instead of being one of the key drivers of rampant seasonal consumerism, many young people are now forcing family Christmas celebrations to grow up.
Bella became aware of the climate crisis earlier this year after picking up a book of speeches by teenage environmental activist, Greta Thunberg. Young people have been galvanised into action by a feeling that politicians aren’t paying attention to their voices and their concerns. After all, they will bear the disastrous cost of climate inaction, and yet they don’t get to vote. Moreover, climate change is already blighting the lives of their fellow kids around the world.
“My school friends are trying to save the planet, too,” says Bella. “Lots of us went on [a climate change school] strike.”
Given the potency of so-called pester power, changing values among small children could perhaps have an outsize impact on family spending habits.
Other kids are taking their lead from their parents. Luca, a five-year-old from Shooters Hill, has drafted a Christmas wishlist that includes not just Lego but also cooking lessons from his Sri Lankan grandfather and donations for a gift pack for his family to hand out to homeless people. “Some kids don’t have shoes or food and we have lots of shoes,” he says. “We can send them so they don’t hurt their feet.”
His father, Joel, adds: “These are things he came up with, with some guidance from us – things he thought would make a difference.”
Daisy, a 13-year-old from Hackney, is taking an environmental stand about the types of presents she gives and, hopefully, receives. “I don’t buy plastic tat any more and I don’t want to be given plastic tat either,” she says.
Instead of random gifts she might not use, Daisy would like gift cards or cash from her parents, or things she really wants or needs. “Things that will last,” she adds.
Last year, Daisy made most of the presents she gave, opting for a Secret Santa with her friends, so they only had to buy one present between 15 or so people. This was partly to save money but also because other friends at her state comprehensive in north London are worried about the planet.
Kimberley Scharf, head of economics at Birmingham Business School, part of the University of Birmingham, predicts a generational shift in gift-giving, with homemade presents and upcycling taking precedence over purchased gifts. “The giver gets a warm glow from the effort of handcrafting [something] and the recipient gets more joy when they think about the effort that has gone into their gift,” she says.
Her daughter, Maxine Perroni-Scharf, 21, says her two standout gifts from last Christmas were a homemade mug from her boyfriend and a simple tree ornament made out of a piece of paper from a friend. “A lot more people make gifts, even if it’s something really small and simple such as homemade chocolates or food,” she says, adding that her motives are helping the planet and enjoying being creative. Perroni-Scharf, who is a third-year student at New Hampshire’s Dartmouth College, US, also plans to trawl secondhand shops for any Christmas outfits, an increasingly common pastime for a generation growing sick of the ubiquity of fast fashion and the toll the industry takes on the environment.
And when it comes to experience-based gifts, some young people say they sometimes find the option easier. “It’s not a problem finding non-physical presents for my dad,” explains Isabella Ramchandani, a 24-year-old north Londoner who works in a law firm. “He likes music so I can take him to a gig or give him a playlist. And he and I are both pescatarian, so I can always take him out for a meal without meat. I think [these kinds of gifts] are generally a good idea because the gifts are nicer and they’re more sustainable.”
And, of course, charity shops also feature in more and more young people’s Christmas shopping sprees. Ellie Pilcher, 24, who works in publishing in Tottenham, nabbed a £5 dress from a Marie Curie charity shop for her Christmas parties: although originally from New Look, the garment is getting a second life.
“Present-wise, I tend towards gift vouchers or life experiences, such as tickets to a show or a spa trip rather than presents, mostly because I’m afraid the receiver won’t like it,” she says. “[And] in the past, I have bought things from flea markets and charity shops as gifts – such as vases and vintage cases, and these have gone down well.”
And as for that seasonal staple, the kitschy itchy Christmas jumper, Ellie says she rewears the one she bought when she was 18.
For inspiration on gifts that don’t hurt the planet and the people in it, visit the Oxfam Christmas gift guide
