Swale Friends of the Earth’s popular Green Christmas Market takes place this year on Saturday 4th December at Faversham’s historic Guildhall.
This is the 14th Green Christmas Market - it was established to encourage the public to ‘shop green, shop local’ for Christmas, as awareness rises of the impact of our activities on the planet. The market will feature small local businesses, charities and craft-makers across Swale who offer shoppers good-quality, eco-friendly and ethical Christmas gifts that reduce damage to the environment or communities. With festive music, hot drinks and mince pies in the beautiful surroundings of the mediaeval Guildhall, it’s a community shopping event that everyone enjoys.
Martin Collins of Swale FoE said;
“We’re looking forward to our traditional Green Christmas Market on Dec 4th. The market will be packed full of ethically sourced and environmentally friendly presents for all ages to help us all have a Greener Christmas.
It’s also a way to support small local businesses. The rampant consumerism of Black Friday is looming and we urge people to ignore the fake bargains of mass-produced items driven or flown halfway round the world.
Instead think local and think greener by shopping from small independent suppliers and reducing the carbon footprint of the things you buy.”
With heightened awareness about the climate emergency, plastic pollution and threats to nature, Swale Friends of the Earth is also offering advice on how we can all have a greener Christmas this year - from the food we buy to the presents we give.
Top tips for a Greener Christmas:
Shop local and give gifts like crafts, organic hampers, or locally-brewed beer
Avoid mass-produced, plastic or energy-wasting products
Give with love by making your own presents, such as home-made chutneys or chocolates
Treat family or friends to things they love to do, like cinema & theatre tickets or book vouchers
Help our wildlife by buying bee-friendly plants or seeds, bird-feeders or planting a tree
For your own festive food and drink, choose local, seasonal, high-welfare produce
Avoid plastic packaging and disposable plates and cups, and send e-cards
Compost your kitchen waste
Recycle cards and wrapping and check if you can get your tree collected.
Swale Friends of the Earth’s website offers lots of tips for green living throughout the year, so that we can reduce our carbon footprint and impact on nature. Raising awareness about issues such as climate change, plastics, air pollution, development and threats to wildlife, it presents positive solutions and opportunities to get involved in the group’s projects and campaigns for a cleaner, healthier environment and a greener Swale.
