Over the past couple of years, many of us have shifted our focus to a greener, more eco-friendly lifestyle. It starts with small changes, like recycling more, using reusable shopping bags, and switching to LED light bulbs. A lot of us also began making more environmentally friendly choices when buying technology or home appliances by choosing Energy STAR certified options or sustainably made products that help save energy, money, and the earth.
While the holidays tend to generate more waste, you can keep your sustainability trend on track during the festive season by choosing eco-friendly gifts everyone will love. Read about a few green gift choices for yourself or anyone on your list who wants to go greener this year, then enter the contest and you might win some of these items.
Climate-friendlier holiday gift ideas
Whether you’re almost finished holiday shopping or you’re just getting started, take a look at these five categories with products that are either sustainably made or will help you in your quest to live a more sustainable lifestyle.
Smarter, more sustainable gifts for everyoneÂ
From gifts that help save on electricity to growing their own fruit and vegetables, there are quite a few smart home devices for everyone on your gift list.
Smart gardening with Click and Grow
Living small is one way to make less of an impact on the globe. The only downside to living withs a smaller footprint is the lack of space for things like gardens and plants. With a Click and Grow Smart Indoor Garden, your gift recipient won’t need an outdoor garden. They can grow strawberries, basil, red kale or fruit and veggie mix right on a bookshelf.
Click and Grow has built-in sensors and Smart Soil to monitor every part of the life cycle of your plant. From seed to seedling to your plate, this smart garden lets you set it up and simply enjoy watching your plants grow.
Smart plugs help reduce electricity use
A smart plug is a plug that fits into any electric outlet and connects to your home’s Wi-Fi network. Once it’s plugged in you can add any of your small appliances, lights, or other devices to the plug and control them via an app. You can choose indoor smart plugs like the TP-Link Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Plug Lite or outdoor smart plugs like the TP-Link KP400 Smart Outdoor Plug.
Smart plugs are a thoughtful sustainable gift for an eco-friendly friend or family member. They will be able to turn any appliance or device on and off on a schedule. It also gives them control of that device when they aren’t home, so if they are worried they forgot to unplug a flat iron or coffee maker, they can use the app to turn it off instead of driving home.
Smart devices save time, energy, and money
A smart display is a great gift if you’re looking for something that will improve the functionality of any home. They help individuals and families save money by controlling all of their smart home devices in one location. You can set your smart lights on a schedule and sync them with other devices like thermostats so they automatically turn off when you’re not home. The Google Nest Learning Thermostat (shown above) remembers what temperatures you like, learns your schedule, and programs itself to conserve energy use.
There are a few smart display options including Google Nest Hub and Amazon Echo Show 5. Google Nest Hub works with Google Assistant and will stream video, turn on your lights, lock your doors, and even monitor your outdoor cameras. Amazon Echo Show 5 connects to the Alexa voice assistant. You can ask her to stream music, put on your favourite TV show, or control your smart home devices. One of the best parts of having a smart display is how you can use it to keep in touch without needing to travel. Instead of adding to the carbon emissions created by flying, you can make video calls to anyone, even if they are halfway around the world.
Go greener in the kitchen
A great way to help the environment at home is to be eco-smarter in the kitchen. Here are a few sustainable gifts that help you do that.
Vitamix Powered Food Waste Recycler
Throwing food waste in your trash is very damaging to the environment. Not only will it not decompose properly, but it also creates methane, a greenhouse gas that’s very damaging to the environment. If you’re choosing a gift for someone who is already dedicated to composting or for someone who wouldlike to compost more, the Vitamix Powered Food Waste Recycler will be a nice addition to their kitchen. It has a 2-litre capacity and can convert your food waste and scraps into fertilizer that’s ready to use in your garden.
LARQ PureVis Self-cleaning Water Bottle
We can all keep our landfills and oceans free from excess plastics by making use of stainless steel water bottles. The LARQ PureVis makes it easy to stay green and hydrated, and it can clean itself too. It has a built-in UV-C LED light that purifies the water whenever you’d like it to, and there is a self-cleaning function that turns on every 2 hours to keep your bottle fresh and clean. You can choose a variety of colours and sizes for everyone on your gift list.
Eco-friendly electronic transportation
Electric scooters and electric bikes are so fun to ride you’ll forget you’re helping the environment when you use one. Here are two sustainable gift choices for someone who loves to blaze a trail outside.
Segway Ninebot G30P MAX Adult Electric Scooter
The Ninebot by Segway is a speedy scooter that runs on electricity. A single battery charge will last up to 65km, so you can use it to commute to work or grab a few groceries at the store. With 10″ pneumatic tires, you can cruise over all types of terrain. You’ll never have to slow your roll on this scooter because it can reach top speeds of up to 30 km/hr.
If you’d like to see a comparison of the Ninebot with a few other scooters, take a look at Andy’s article on all three. You can also check out the E-transportation page and the E-transportation buying guide on the Best Buy blog.
SWFT Zip Fat Tire Electric City Bike
Just because you choose eco-friendly transportation doesn’t mean you can’t have a blast while getting from point A to point B. The SWFT ZIP Electric Bike has rugged fat tires to take you everywhere in style. You’ll have battery life to spare because a single charge gives you up to 59.5km of time on the bike, and you can reach top speeds of up to 31.8km/hr.
An eco-conscious computer for the techie on your list
If you have someone on your gift list who would love a computer but you’re concerned about the plastics used to create it, you’re going to love the latest Acer laptop.
Acer Aspire Vero 15.6″ Laptop
The Acer Aspire Vero is an eco-friendly computer made from 30% PCR plastic to reduce the environmental impact of harmful CO2 emissions. It also has an OceanGlass touchpad made of ocean-bound plastics and uses VersoSense software for more energy saving.
While it’s designed to be friendlier to the environment, the Acer Aspire Vero is also a speedy laptop designed for work or play. It has a 10-core 12th gen Intel Core i5 processor, 16GB RAM, and 512GB solid-state drive for all of your storage needs. The large 15.6-inch screen with 1080p Full HD resolution is the perfect portable screen for watching your favourite videos.
Accessories to help you go greener
Looking for a new laptop bag or iPad case? There are quite a few different tech accessories you can choose as gifts that are sustainably made from bioplastics, biodegradable materials, or PVC-fabric.
Tucano Biodegradable iPad Case
Using an iPad or tablet for notes or as a portable computer is a great way to save on paper waste. To keep their iPad safe, why not give them the gift of a Tucano Biodegradable folio case? It keeps the iPad safe from bumps, drops, and scratches but has a sustainable style with 100% biodegradable construction, a bioplastic interior, and a wood pulp exterior.
Targus Balance EcoSmart Backpack
The Targus Balance EcoSmart Backpack is a stylish bag made from PVC-free fabric that’s woven from recycled water bottles. It’s weather-resistant, has recyclable zipper pulls, and will protect your laptop and other devices when you’re on the go. It also has an adjustable design that evenly distributes the load in your bag so you don’t have a sore back from heavy books and other gear.
PKG STUFF Recycled Laptop Sleeve
When they want a lightweight, eco-friendly way to take their laptop on the go, the PKG STUFF Recycled Laptop Sleeve is the perfect gift. It’s made from recycled water bottles, is water-resistant so it can stand up to all types of weather, and has a laptop compartment with padded walls to protect against drops or bumps.
Rechargeable batteries keep you charged without creating excess waste
Rechargeable batteries are a more environmentally friendly way to keep all of your devices, toys, and tech charged and ready to play.
Energizer Rechargeable Batteries and Battery Charger
Energizer rechargeable batteries are a great option for everything from remote control toys to handheld video games or battery-powered smart devices. You can choose AAA, AA, and NIMH AA-2 rechargeable batteries for every type of device. To keep them charged there’s the Energizer Recharge Value Charger or the Energizer Pro Charger. The Energizer Pro includes 4 AA batteries and charges in 3 hours. The Energizer Maxi also comes with 4 AA Ni-MH batteries and can charge two or four batteries at one time.
Recycle your old tech and batteries at Best Buy
Choosing sustainable gift options is a great way to reduce your carbon footprint and keep your focus on going green. There are also a few other ways you can reduce waste from the holidays this year. If you’re holding onto old electronics or empty batteries, consider recycling them at your local Best Buy store. You’re always welcome to bring your tech waste in for recycling, even if you didn’t purchase it at Best Buy.
There are also Best Buy trade-in promotions that happen throughout the year. You can visit BestBuy.ca for more details on what products qualify for trade-in and what types of old tech are accepted for electronic recycling at a store near you.
Creating a greener world, one step at a time
Best Buy has a great selection of sustainable gift choices for everyone on your gift list. For the holidays, birthdays, and beyond, you can shop in store or online to find the perfect gift for someone special. Some of the many sustainable choices are included in a prize bundle that you can enter to win in this contest. Here are the details:
How to enter
Entering this contest is easy and you can enter in two different ways:
- In a comment below, tell us what eco-friendly device or green tech program at Best Buy discussed in this article are you interested in the most and why.
- For up to two (2) additional entries, create a public post on a social media channel (one entry per channel!) sharing with your friends and followers that you are entering a Best Buy Blog contest for a chance to win a green lifestyle prize pack; include the hashtag #BestBuyGreenLifestylecontest, so we can find your post, and include one of the pictures showing on this article. Then return here and tell us in a comment below on which channel you posted it and the name of your channel (since many people use pseudonyms) so that we can check and verify your entry. You can use any social media channel (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, etc.), but the post must be public so we can verify it is there.
What you can win
At the end of this contest, we will randomly draw one winner from all eligible entries to receive a sustainability prize package that includes a Google Nest Wi-Fi Smart Learning Thermostat, a TP-Link Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Plug lite, and a LARQ PureVis 500 mL Stainless Steel Water Bottle with Self-Cleaning Mode.
This contest runs from Dec 15th to Dec 29th.
Remember you can enter in two different ways as mentioned above. Many of your friends and family are likely also interested in sustainable tech. Send them the link to this contest so they too can learn from this article and enter for a chance to win this great prize bundle.
Win a sustainability prize package Rules and Regulations
Good Luck.
I am most interested in the segway ninebot adult electric scooter. that is something my entire family would find fun and practical!
I’m most interested in the home gardening kit so I can grow my own herbs.
We already have the thermostat, but smart outlet plugs would be helpful. We’ve tried one brand and they were too frustrating to set up, which had to happen again every time the Internet went out.
I like the Vitamix Powered Food Waste Recycler – great idea
I’m interested in the Acer Aspire Vero 15.6 Laptop. I like that its energy saving.
Posted on twitter https://twitter.com/gangadog/status/1606342389890781195
I like the Vitamix Powered Food Waste Recycler, because i do a lot of mpost and i will use for my plants
Lots of cool products. We have a big container of old batteries, so will definitely drop at Best Buy the next time we are there. That’s a great program.
So many amazing products. I’m most interested in the Click and Grow Smart Indoor Garden because it is good for the environment and good for me.
I am interested in the home gardening kit so I can grow my own herbs GLA
I’d love the Nest thermostat because my current one looks like it’s from the 1970’s and I could really use an upgrade 🙂
I love the Segway Ninebot G30P MAX Adult Electric Scooter! It would be a great eco-friendly way to get around. Thank you!
Google Nest Hub the ability to give voice commands as someone that lives with a physical disability is a huge asset
i also entered by posting on instagram @cat_maru3
i am most interested in the segway ninebot adult electric scooter. that is something my entire family would find useful!
I’m most interested in the home gardening kit so I can grow my own herbs
Smart plug is my most interesting one, so I have hands free
The best or iPad is great
My wife would love a Vitamix Powered Food Waste Recycler, chop down food for compost
Well all the gifts that are included in this contest are spectacular and great for teaching our younger generation on conservation and helping the planet by reducing our pollution. That e-bike would be so awesome for my grandson to use for high school instead of walking.
The Vitamix Powered Food Waste Recycler is such an intersting device. I’m really struggling in my household to compost right now and i think have an actual waste recycler would allow my household to see the real benefits of recycling your waste . Plus i have a really long backyard where i can easily dispose of the waste, to add fertilizer to my new garden.
I love the SWFT Zip Fat Tire Electric City Bike so I can get around the city without relying on a car at least until I can afford an electric car. Go green!
I love the fact we make it EASY for customers to be responsible for recycling things that just sit in our drawers like batteries!!! They can have such a negative impact on our environment. In addition, I love the smart plugs like the TP Link products that prevent products that are plugged in from wasting energy. (Also a great way of keeping my sanity of did I or didn’t I unplug my curling rod )
The in home garden sounds really cool being able to just have your herbs on hand and the bike just sounds a little cooler. Sounds like it goes fast and could be useful for making a few stops around town.
Posted on Twitter
https://twitter.com/Nadeem312/status/1606057873754058753
I like the Smart gardening with Click and Grow. The sensors and the smart soil would be a great way for those plants that need extra care and precision to grow well.
The Acer Aspire Vero is most interesting as everyone has a computer device or will probably need one. So starting with this item and expanding it to others will have great environmental impact.
I like the Recycle your old tech and batteries at Best Buy program. we have many old batteries which seem to collect a collect and dont know where to dispose them. it makes in convenient for us.
I’m most interested in the SWFT Zip Fat Tire Electric City Bike because I would love to make my commute to work a little greener.
Click and Grow.
Its -20c out and I’d love to grow some greens at home instead of paying huge $ for lettuce at the store
I would love the smart gardening
Saving money and energy effectively would be a highlight
Great Giveaway. Thank You Best Buy. I’d love a Google Nest Wi-Fi Smart Learning Thermostat.
Electric bike! We live in a small city that does not have public transportation – this would really help us get around and use our car less.
I’m most interested in the Google Nest Thermostat to save money on heating my house.
I would love to win the Segway Ninebot G30P MAX Adult Electric Scooter to get around town fun and easily!
I like the Smart Gardening with Click and Grow
I posted on Twitter: https://twitter.com/kcrmb/status/1605893920432558087
I am most interested in Energizer rechargeable batteries Energizer rechargeable batteries so I don’t have to buy new batteries all the time.
I would be most interested in the SWFT Zip Fat Tire Electric City Bike so I can get around the city without relying on my car.
I’m very much interested in the Acer Aspiro Zero! I love that tech companies are now starting to think about minimizing the impact to the environment.
I’m interested in the iPad case because I need an iPad – those 2 things have nothing to do with each other, really
Interested in the Grow Smart Indoor Garden as I can grow herbs inside!
The Smart Garden sounds amazing and would definitely help with keeping some spending down around my home!!
I am interested in the Google nest thermostat because I love how it learns your routines and adjusts the temperature accordingly. Would be great for saving on electricity bills
Love the smart gardening I would love to start herbs and some small plants. This is awesome!
I love to have Vitamix Powered Food Waste Recycler in my kitchen. Thanks for a chance.
I.m interested in Vitamix Powered Food Waste Recycler
I like the Smart gardening with Click and Grow so I could grow my own herbs 🙂 Thanks!
I’m interested in the Segway Ninebot G30P MAX Adult Electric Scooter the most – I like to go longer distances but tire out
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