Season's greetings: some tips for circular and sustainable winter holidays

Serena
Thematic Area Lead
Built Environment

While wishing you to enjoy these winter holidays and embracing them as a moment of recharge, I invite all of us to reflect on the role we covered on pushing for a circular and just transition. Let’s don’t forget this also when we’ll detach a bit from our job, when we are at home, with family and friends, on our daily behaviour. Many are the sustainable habits we could decide to start implementing from next year, but I encourage all of you to speak out, raise your voices for the planet, share your knowledge and awareness. Today, more than ever, community efforts are needed to make a circular revolution.

During this gift-giving season, we use a lot of paper for wrapping. Instead, you can use fabrics and continue using them every year for the same purpose.

Tugce
Thematic Area Lead
Policy and Governance

Françoise
Secretary General

This year, let’s think beyond material presents and offer something truly meaningful: a gift that helps protect our planet’s biodiversity.

Because protecting and restoring ecosystems is a must for us and future generations, instead of traditional gifts, consider helping to address the main cause of nature’s decline, particularly the food system and climate change:

• Restoring underwater meadows, which are vital for marine ecosystems and capture carbon.
• Funding coral immunology research, ensuring the survival of these vibrant marine life hotspots.
• Planting trees to restore forests and create habitats for countless species.
• Adopting a species, supporting conservation efforts for endangered animals.

As the year ends, take a second to reflect on it, identify the achievements and the happy moments you had, along with the nice habits and lifestyle you had. Stop for a moment. Be proud of those. Make them even better in 2025, push for even more of those around you, your families, friends, colleagues, neighbours and beyond. Then, this time next year, be even prouder of yourself. That matters.

Ernest
Thematic Area Lead
Circular Lifestyles

Agnese
Thematic Area Lead
Sustainable Food Systems

Food items procured from the short circuits are a triple win! Not only they are produced by local small-scale farmers (often organic). They also come with less/no packaging! When you purchase locally, you support a fair income to small-scale farmers (whom otherwise would have to abide to blurry long-chain market conditions), you produce less packaging waste, and you -very often - eat healthier. To do so you can look for options such as direct producer-consumer networks, zero-km markets, or community-supported agriculture (CSA) in your surroundings.

We have too many objetcts cluttering our homes and our lives. This year, consider offering other types of presents: a family trip, a training course to discover new things, a pass to visit museums... Precious moments with your loved ones that will give you everlasting memories !

Jean-Benoît
Thematic Area Lead
Waste and Material Flows

Gaëlle
Communications

Once Christmas is over, have you ever noticed the countless trees lining the streets, discarded after just a few short weeks of standing in people's living-rooms? It’s a bit heartbreaking to see those trees, grown for years, discarded so fast. The good news is that there are more sustainable options! The internet is full of ideas with reused wood, cardboard, books... And if you love the charm of a real tree, why not consider renting one for next year?