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Have yourself a sustainable Christmas and let your heart be light
"Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things"
- Mary Oliver’s Wild Geese -
With the festive season on our doorsteps, arguably the least sustainable time of the year, how can you make an effort to give a little back? Making some changes, no matter how big or small, can make all the difference when it comes to becoming more sustainable. We’ve rounded up some top tips on how to enjoy a guilt-free celebration and have yourself an eco-friendly Christmas.
Think Before You Wrap
Remember glitter can’t be recycled, so opt for more eco-friendly styles to wrap your gifts. Want to know whether your wrap can be recycled? Scrunch up the paper and then let go, if the paper stays scrunched then it can be recycled, if it bounces back into shape, it likely contains non-recyclable elements.
Recycled fabric is a great way to wrap gifts. With many styles, patterns, and colors to choose from, you can pick something you know they’ll love and hopefully reuse. The age-old trick of reusing last year’s Christmas cards as tags is a good alternative to buying new ones too. For a stylish finishing touch, use fresh springs of pine instead of non-recyclable bows.
Recycle or rubbish?
If Christmas waste is unavoidable, it might be a good idea to stay on top of what you can and can’t recycle. The best place to start is your council website, which often provides A-Z guides on recycling and waste.
And we suggest you to keep and reuse your artificial tree for up to five years to make it a greener option. Prefer the real thing? Make sure you look into Christmas tree recycling in your local area, this way you’ll ensure it’ll be sustainably disposed of or even replanted for next year.
Reduce Food Waste
Let’s not let Christmas become about materialism and the turkey on the table. If you are truly wanting a sustainable Christmas, then you would need to look at the foods you are consuming. Food choices have the biggest impact on the environment.
Plan ahead and resist the urge to impulse buy. Work out how much food you need, especially if you’re hosting and keep wastage in mind whilst you’re doing the big shop. Try to clear your freezer leading up to Christmas to make space for freezing leftovers. Make friends with your food waste caddy for when you simply can’t do any more with the leftovers. It makes perfect compost for the garden.
Christmas isn't a season! It's a feeling
"Christmas is the spirit of giving without a thought of getting. It is happiness because we see joy in people. It is forgetting self and finding time for others. It is discarding the meaningless and stressing the true values"
- Thomas S. Monson -
Although Christmas is a time for joy for many, for those doing it tough – it is often challenging, heartbreaking and isolating. Hence, this season is that not only are we able to receive this gift, but we are able to share it with others on Christmas and every other day of the year. Perhaps donate your time and effort in the coming months could be your new year's resolution.
The Smith Family
The Smith Family is such an institute where volunteering is gratefully appreciated and was actually started back in 1922 when five businessmen decided to deliver toys on Christmas Eve. With more than 1.2 million Australian children and young people living in poverty, the ability to share gifts and book packs to some 29,000 disadvantaged children is a great way to help them feel included and help spread some Christmas cheer.
Melbourne Animal Rescue Bennettswood
The Melbourne Animal Rescue Bennettwood has a no kill policy and space is at a premium, with the preferred method of housing animals in the interim prior to adoption being within someone’s home – if you are able to offer room, and are an animal lover, and at a time of year where pets are often given as unwanted gifts, this is a great way to help out from the comfort of your own home.
St Vincent de Paul Society
Vinnies Christmas Appeal are looking for people to donate to their Christmas Appeal to help transform the lives of Australian parents and children who are struggling with the pain of hunger and poverty. You can also find out how to become a Vinnies volunteer.
Giving opens the way for receiving
By allowing an income tax deduction for charitable contributions the government, the person that makes the gift (the donor) is the person that can claim a deduction.
To claim a tax deduction for a gift or donation you make, it must meet the following four conditions. The gift or donation:
must be made to a DGRs (deductible gift recipients)
must truly be a gift or donation – that is, you are voluntarily transferring money or property without receiving, or expecting to receive, any material benefit or advantage in return. A material benefit is an item that has a monetary value
must be of money or property – this can include financial assets such as shares
must comply with any relevant gift conditions – for some DGRs, the income tax law adds extra conditions affecting types of deductible gifts they can receive.
To claim a deduction, you must have a record of your donation such as a receipt.
Are your ABN details up-to-date?
There's a lot that we do to prepare for year-end, however, have you thought about your Australian business number (ABN) details?
It's your responsibility to maintain your Australian business number (ABN) details. You must update your details within 28 days of becoming aware of changes. Keeping your contact details up to date can help emergency services and other government agencies identify where businesses need assistance during difficulty.
How to update your ABN details?
The fastest way to update your details is through ABR online services. Log in using myGovID and Relationship Authorisation Manager (RAM). All changes made to your ABN online will take effect immediately. There are details you can’t change in ABR online services, see What can’t be updated.
If you can't access ABR online services, you can:
ask your tax professional to update your details
complete and mail a form.
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU
It's the most wonderful time of the year! Christmas is coming!
Lynden Group appreciate working with you and would like to share our gratitude to you. We wish we will have a mutual beneficial relationship with many Holidays season to come.
Merry Christmas!
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