Buy Nothing Christmas Options

http://www.buynothingchristmas.org/

This Christmas we'll be swamped with offers, ads and invitations to buy more stuff. But now there's a way to say enough and join a movement dedicated to reviving the original meaning of Christmas giving.

Buy Nothing Christmas is a national initiative started by Canadian Mennonites but open to everyone with a thirst for change and a desire for action.

Buy Nothing Christmas is a stress-reliever, and more people need to hear about it. You can change your world by simply putting up one of the posters (or make your own) in your church, place of worship, home or work. Be sneaky about it if you have to. The point is to get people thinking. It's an idea whose time has come, so get out there and make a difference!

http://www.adbusters.org/metas/eco/bnd/bnd_xmas/

(IMG:http://www.adbusters.org/metas/eco/bnd/bnd_xmas/images/zentabanner.jpg)

I had already decided not to go through the usual round and giving and getting stuff I really don't need this year, and then stumbled upon these excellent sites. Good old Adbusters (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) Taking 'Buy Nothing Day' to the next level.

Good idea in Oxfam about buying trees; I used to belong to the Woodland Trust and when you joined, you were assigned a tree, not named though as I had hoped - I went to find mine and travelled out of London to where it was planted and found thousands of other baby trees there with no clues as to which one was 'mine' (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)

Following on from that, local zoos and the like often run 'adopt-a-monkey' or whatever schemes.

Excellent idea!