There are green gifts galore out there for ethically minded travellers. From mags to bags here are a few of the things that I would be over the moon to find under my sustainable Christmas tree.
Top of my list is the solar powered backpack, which sounds more like something Buzz Lightyear would wear on his travels. Unfortunately it won’t zap you across the planet using solar power, but it will power all the gadgets you want to take with you on your travels. It comes in three different sizes, all with mini solar panels on the front. One hour in direct sun will power your iPod for 3 hours, and your mobile for an over an hour. You can leave it by a sunny window to this, but this is really a bag for the beach or going on a hike, charging your MP3 as you doze or dander. There is a backup system to plug into a cigarette lighter socket in case of no sun, although you can leave it by a sunny window to charge it. This is not an eco-gimmick. It does what it says on the panel and has been brilliantly reviewed by all the gadget experts (from $199, www.voltaicsystems.com).
Ecoshop in Greystones, County Wicklow (shop online at www.ecoshop.ie), stocks most of Terence Baylis’ s fantastic eco-inventions. Famous for his wind-up radio, he now has a range of wind-up gadgets, from a wind-up light (€44.95) to a wind-up media player (on offer at €245). The latter does too many things for me to get my head around, bar makng me a cup of tea. One Irish invention which does make cup of tea, however, is the Kelly Kettle, and my favourite purchase of the year. Invented by Mayo fishing enthusiasts, this inspired lightweight water boiler has your cup of tea ready in minutes by just burning a few sticks. You can even put a mini-frying pan on top and fry an egg at the same time. Campers’ heaven. From €42, www.kellykettle.com
For outdoor travel gear, Patagonia is hard to beat. With an exemplary environmental policy, they measure the carbon footprint of their products, use organic cottons, make fleeces out of recycled plastic bottles, use hemp and chlorine-free wool, and are generally my ‘top’ shop. You can shop online at www.patagonia.com or visit their shop in Exchequer St., Dublin.
If I could pack any scarf into my backpack, it would be Ali Hewson’s ethical clothing company Edun’s double layer white cotton one, with their trademark Rilke poem design (€70, www.edunonline.com). Her collection of jeans and t-shirts, and easy-to-throw-in-a-bag dresses are pretty much top of my wish list too.
Shoes are always hard when packing. For New Year’s Day head-clearing beach walks check out the natural felt lace-up boots at Natural Collection’s website. Easier to pack than wellies, and more on trend, for sure. The same company has the best eco-beach sandals around too, made out of cars’ bits and pieces like seat belts, tyres and reused canvas (www.naturalcollection.com). You’ll also find the best range of Fairtrade organic canvas Converse-style sneakers at one of my top ecogift websites www.nigelsecostore.com.
One of my other indispensable travel items is a pashmina, for cosy naps, wrapping up on a beach, or dressing up in the evening. You can buy a Fairtrade mohair one, handloomed and hand-dyed in South Africa, from www.ecochicfairtrade.co.uk for £45. Or Oxfam also sells a black wool mix chunky shawl for keeping out the chills on the hills (currently reduced from €29.99 to €9.99, www.oxfamirelandshop.com)
For reading material, I have to push ecoescape:Ireland, because I wrote it, and people seem to like it. Available from most good bookshops I hope, or you can order it, and the UK version, from www.ecoescape.org. Alastair Sawday’s Green Places to Stay is also excellent, (www.sawdays.co.uk). Another idea is to buy a subscription to a magazine. I love Wanderlust for detailed and brilliantly written travel articles, and an editorial team which is wholly committed to ecotourism principles (£22.80 for NI or £30 or Euro equivalent for European countries, www.wanderlust.co.uk). For younger travellers getting a subscription to National Geographic Kids magazine is a great Grandparent sort of present, and is available from their UK website, at £35.88 for twelve monthly issues (www.ngkids.co.uk).
My favourite smellies on the market at the moment have to be those made by Voya, the famous seaweed bathhouse in Strandhill Sligo. They have developed an organic seaweed product range, using sustainable and organic seaweed from across the road, and they are simply gorgeous. They have a travel pack of the softest shampoo, shower gel, moisturiser, packed in an organic cotton travel bag (www.voya.ie, €40). Mind you, nothing beats the real thing, so a train ticket to Sligo, and a voucher for one of their heavenly organic seaweed baths would make my Christmas anytime. If you haven’t tried one yet, you are missing out.
(This article was first published in The Irish Times, 27 November 2008)