(StatePoint) One of the best parts of the holiday season is watching loved ones open thoughtful gifts you’ve selected just for them. Now suppose your holiday gifts went even further than just bringing cheer to friends and family.
For long-lasting global impact, consider these cool gift ideas:
Water Filter Bottles with Impact
Whether for the adventurer, eco-conscious hiker, or to keep your friends and family safe in a disaster, LifeStraw’s innovative line of water filter straws, bottles and household filter pitchers provides access to safe, clean drinking water and ensures every purchase has positive social impact.
LifeStraw products protect against bacteria, parasites and microplastics, while reducing chlorine, organic chemical matter, bad taste and odor. Built for longevity and portability, the brand’s bottles are ideal for hiking, camping, international travel and emergencies. In addition, the LifeStraw Home household water filter pitcher removes lead, mercury, PFAS and other contaminants found in tap water.
The best part? Whether you select a kid-friendly or limited-edition bottle, water filter pitcher or replacement accessories, your purchase has global impact because for every product purchased, a school child in need receives safe water for an entire school year. LifeStraw’s Give Back program involves more than just dropping off water filters and extends beyond a one-for-one donation. With dedicated local teams residing in Kenya, Mexico and other locations around the world, the program ensures sustainability through comprehensive planning, training, education and quarterly follow-up visits. To-date, the program has reached 1,870 schools worldwide, providing over 3.3 million students with one year of safe water.
“Clean drinking water is absolutely fundamental to human health,” says Tara Lundy, head of brand, LifeStraw. “We are therefore deeply committed to expanding our reach and making water safe to drink in communities not only here in the U.S. but around the world.”
To shop or learn more, visit lifestraw.com.
Sustainable Writing Tools
Some of the best gifts are those that last. Enter Sprout pencils. Not just ordinary writing and coloring tools, when the pencils become too short to use, your gift recipient can plant them, and over time, watch flowers, herbs or vegetables grow. The process gives the gift a whole new life. This is a great option for doodlers, writers, artists and anyone who cares about the planet — as well as beauty enthusiasts — as the brand now makes plant-able makeup pencils too. Learn more at sproutworld.com.
Soaps Supporting Women
Unique soaps and votive candles are always a thoughtful gesture. Now, these gifts can do more than just pamper. When shopping with the Adventure Project, purchases of delightful-smelling candles and soaps support efforts to provide women in Kenya and Tanzania with entrepreneurial skills, teaching them to make and sell clean cookstoves and solar lights. The program helps its beneficiaries earn a living and improves the health of their communities. To learn more, visit shop.theadventureproject.org.
Spread cheer at home and beyond with thoughtful holiday gifts that not only deliver delight to recipients, but at the same time, make the world a better place.
