For those who love Christmas but hate waste, there’s Thriftmas | 24CA News

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This week:

• For those that love Christmas however hate waste, there’s Thriftmas
• Agrivoltaics give new which means to ‘photo voltaic farm’ 
• COP15: Why it issues and what’s at stake

For those that love Christmas however hate waste, there’s Thriftmas

You can love the vacation season however nonetheless fear about what it does to the planet. 

Sure, there’s the togetherness, the reminiscences and, in case you have youngsters who imagine in Santa and elves, the magic. But there’s additionally the packaging, plastic and waste that appear to come back with gift-giving.

That’s why some environmentally minded households have embraced Thriftmas, the place you supply every part you need for the season second-hand, from presents and clothes to decor.

“I know that I can find what I’m looking for, nine times out of 10, if I just put in the effort,” stated Sinclair Strand, 26, of Surrey, B.C.

Strand, who has a three-year-old son, estimates that 80 per cent of what she brings into her house is thrifted. That contains the Christmas presents she’s discovered for her son to date: a toy leaf blower that she is aware of he’ll be thrilled with and a bag of Little People farm equipment. 

She additionally not too long ago picked up a classic Coca-Cola Santa cutout to brighten up their house, in addition to some rustic ornaments which are again in model.

Strand posts her finds — and suggestions — on TikTok, the place she tries to normalize second-hand gift-giving (and the place #thriftmas is a well-liked subject).

“Why does it matter where you bought it or how you found it?” Strand stated. “Overconsumption in general is just crazy, but especially around the holidays … so many people are just buying things for the sake of buying things.”

We do love shopping for issues this time of 12 months. Canadian retail gross sales are anticipated to develop 5.7 per cent this vacation season in comparison with final 12 months, and a whopping 21 per cent since 2019 (pre-pandemic), in line with a brand new survey from Mastercard SpendingPulse. That’s regardless of excessive inflation, which has led many Canadians to say they should rein of their spending this 12 months.

According to Statista, the common Canadian family spends most of its Christmas finances on items ($1,308), adopted by decorations ($616) and meals ($451).

The downside with all that stuff? We do not use it. Or we do, for a short time, however then it goes out of fashion, or we get tired of it, and it piles up and we really feel the urge to purge. Household waste can enhance by as a lot as 25 per cent through the vacation season, in line with Zero Waste Canada.

“Instead of banning gifts, perhaps it is time to rethink what we actually are giving,” the group notes in a latest Zero Waste Christmas report. “Our planet simply cannot sustain our ‘shop ’til we drop’ mentality.”

That rising sense of local weather nervousness is why Emma Jackson has embraced Thriftmas — not simply through the holidays, however as a life-style all 12 months. Jackson estimates that 80 per cent of what comes into her home is thrifted indirectly.

“It always made me feel anxious to see how much we throw away. Especially at Christmas, the packaging is out of control,” stated Jackson, 35, who lives in Ottawa and runs an Instagram account referred to as Nothing New Ottawa.

Jackson nonetheless needs her two younger youngsters to have items to open on Christmas morning. And they are going to, due to the puzzles, board video games, skates and the massive Hatchimals haul she’s thrifted to date. All of it comes with out the packaging that will be included if she’d purchased the gadgets new.

Here are a number of present concepts from our Thriftmasers:

• Unique stemware, glasses, teacups or mugs. You can add a bag of truthful commerce espresso that helps an area business.

• Decor, comparable to retro hand towels, vases or candlesticks. 

• Flower pots and used home vegetation. Lots of people purge vegetation on-line.

• Baskets or canisters. You can add consumables like native candies.

• A ebook you personal that you just cherished and know a pal would love, too. Add a home made bookmark.

• Brand-name winter jackets or boots. (Some folks promote or donate new gadgets they can not be bothered to return.)

• Gently used sports activities gear, like skates, for teenagers. Their toes will develop out of them by subsequent 12 months, anyway.

• Board video games and puzzles. (Just examine that every one the items are there.)

Jackson’s recommendation to others is that you do not have to be good, or purchase completely nothing new. But taking a brand new method to gift-giving is a crucial step in decreasing the environmental influence of the vacations.

“Those small little actions, they add up,” she stated. “Just maybe retool your thinking a little bit about how you think about Christmas shopping.”

— Natalie Stechyson

Reader suggestions

Frances Scully:

“I read about the decision made by the Ivey Foundation [to accelerate its climate endowment]. This is so important — time is of the essence. Blessings on all who strive to be good ancestors.” 

Helen Fearman:

“If only the $100 million donated by the Ivey Foundation could be used to buy back Ontario’s Greenbelt from the developers. The immediate benefit would be priceless!”

Bill Stollery:

“I think the only way we can avoid the climate crisis is if our governments, starting with the Canadian government, take on the oil and gas industry directly…. Changing philanthropy will only give the Canadian government a new and continuing excuse for not tackling the oil and gas industry.”

Old problems with What on Earth? are proper right here.

24CA News has a devoted local weather web page, which might be discovered right here.

Also, take a look at our radio present and podcast. This week, we take you to a winter street within the Northwest Territories to listen to nature captured by audio recorders, and discover out why cataloguing that biodiversity is important for native Indigenous communities and Canada’s local weather future. What On Earth now airs on Sundays at 11 a.m. ET, 11:30 a.m. in Newfoundland and Labrador. Subscribe in your favorite podcast app or hear it on demand at CBC Listen.

The Big Picture: Agrivoltaics

Solar energy era has grown immensely lately, and the International Energy Agency forecasts that it’s more likely to triple in measurement within the interval 2022-27. This enlargement has resulted not solely in a heck of much more emissions-free vitality, but in addition in a reimagining of the idea of a “solar farm.”

One instance of that is agrivoltaics, which integrates solar energy era with meals manufacturing (just like the raspberry farm in Babberich, Netherlands, within the photograph under). The panels might be organized in such a method that there’s room for crops or livestock under them. This not solely maximizes the true property — key for space-challenged locations just like the U.Okay. — but in addition has knock-on advantages, comparable to offering a protect from extreme warmth, chilly and UV injury. 

A South Korean research discovered that rising broccoli below photo voltaic panels didn’t compromise the standard or style of the vegetable, whereas one other research discovered {that a} comparable association might triple the manufacturing of peppers. Solar panels additionally present shade for livestock, and analysis has proven that this will enhance animal welfare.

Hot and bothered: Provocative concepts from across the internet

COP15: Why it issues and what’s at stake

Thousands of delegates representing 192 nations are spending two weeks in Montreal, hammering out a once-in-a-decade settlement that may intention to construct a extra sustainable relationship between people and nature.

The UN biodiversity summit, often known as COP15, formally kicked off Dec. 7. The convention is meant to wrap up on Dec. 19, however negotiations could go into extra time.

What’s the distinction between COP15 and COP27? 

COP, in United Nations jargon, merely means Conference of Parties. It is a decision-making physique made up of nations which have signed a conference. 

COP27, which was not too long ago held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, was below the umbrella of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. COP15 is a gathering below the Convention on Biological Diversity. 

While biodiversity and local weather change are associated points, the 2 conventions are separate. 

This assembly marks the second a part of COP15, typically known as the Nature COP or the UN biodiversity summit. The first half was held final 12 months as a largely digital convention primarily based in Kunming, China. Although it is being hosted in Montreal, this summit is chaired below the presidency of China. 

Why is it a giant deal?

COP15 is more likely to end in a brand new framework or settlement, outlining objectives for a way the world ought to defend nature and use it extra sustainably and equitably. 

“The food we eat comes from biodiversity, the water we drink comes from biodiversity. The air we breathe [comes from biodiversity],” stated Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, government secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity.

The final purpose is to cease biodiversity loss and construct a sustainable relationship with nature in response to unprecedented charges of declining nature and species extinction.

Why do we’d like a brand new plan? 

The strain is on to create a brand new settlement after nations, together with Canada, failed to satisfy the 2020 objectives of the final biodiversity plan, often known as the Aichi targets.

“The lesson from the Aichi system is that, when you put [in] easy-to-understand numerical targets, they get attention,” stated Basile Van Havre, who helps to mediate negotiations as co-chair of the Convention on Biological Diversity’s Open-Ended Working Group for a Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework.

“We need to put in place a much more robust system that enables progress to be measured as we go.”

A key purpose of the previous Aichi plan was to preserve no less than 17 per cent of terrestrial and inland water and 10 per cent of coastal and marine areas by 2020. The new goal below the draft settlement is the much-talked-about 30 by 30 purpose: preserving 30 per cent of land, freshwater and oceans by 2030. 

Canada has already dedicated to that pledge. The newest figures present Canada has conserved 13.5 per cent of its land and freshwater and 13.9  per cent of marine territory. 

What are the important thing objectives and challenges? 

The draft settlement remains to be plagued by gadgets that have to be negotiated and finalized, however usually talking, the important thing factors embody halting nature loss, stopping human-caused species extinction, decreasing air pollution, sustainable administration of agriculture and forestry industries and sharing the advantages of genetic assets pretty and equitably. 

There have been many calls from varied environmental and Indigenous teams for the framework to additionally acknowledge the management of Indigenous communities as stewards of nature.

“The global community, in looking to protect 30 per cent of lands and waters, is in some ways catching up to Indigenous ambitions of conservation,” stated Valérie Courtois, director of the Indigenous Leadership Initiative and a member of the Innu group of Mashteuiatsh, Que. 

“Our very survival is dependent on the health of these landscapes … we know that if we take care of the land, it will take care of us.” 

Van Havre stated there are three key sticking factors in negotiations: how bold the plan needs to be, how it is going to be financed and the way to make sure progress is measured and reported transparently.

“The negotiation will be difficult, no doubt. There is a huge change at play,” he stated. “But I have not seen anybody saying they don’t want an agreement.”

Asked how possible he thinks it’s that there will likely be an settlement by Dec. 19, he stated it is potential talks will go late. 

“Will we be done by 6 p.m. on the 19th? Maybe not. Will I have granola bars in my pocket that day? A lot.”

— Jaela Bernstien

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Editor: Andre Mayer | Logo design: Sködt McNalty