Make your Black Friday Green

For many of us on Black Friday, we will be searching the web or even rushing to the shops in hopes of finding the best bargains.

Nevertheless, a side of Black Friday we rarely consider is the environmental impact of our purchases. Black Friday 2020 is estimated to have produced nearly 430,000 tonnes of emissions in the UK alone. A recent study found that around 80% of these purchases were used no more than two times before being discarded.

As a result, many of us at Treepoints have taken note and decided to take these easy steps to ensure we minimalise our environmental impact this Black Friday.

Do I need it?

On Black Friday, we Brits normally waste around £4 billion on unnecessary purchases, a large proportion of which is quickly thrown away. This unnecessary pollution is not only emitted through the production and transportation of these products but also their disposal, causing toxic run offs and CO2 emissions.

For that reason, we should ask ourselves, do I need this product or am I only being drawn into the cheap price?

To stop yourself from falling into this unnecessary purchase trap (and even save some money), it’s worth making a list of what you need before Black Friday starts, and making sure you stick to it (with as little deviation as possible).

Will this purchase harm the environment?

It shouldn’t be surprising that certain products have a greater environmental and climate impact than others.

As we expect our products to be cheaper, their quality often falls, resulting in cheaper and less sustainable materials being used. Whilst also causing cheaper disposal methods, resulting in unwanted material to end up in a convenient landfill rather than being recycled. Whilst cheap and freely disposed waste, such as dyes used in fast fashion, directly damages the environment and biodiversity, polluting our air, soil, rivers, and oceans.

A leading culprit of unsustainable production is the fast fashion industry. A recent study found that 43% of shoppers aimed to buy clothes this coming Black Friday and without adequate consideration of sustainability, these purchases could have a significant climate impact. 

Additionally, social sustainability and the impact of our products on communities this Black Friday is one point often overlooked. Our expectation to obtain quick and cheap products that fit current fashion trends can have a negative impact on those involved in the creation of our products. This can include individuals making these products being subject to low wages and poor working conditions to save money and meet the low-cost target. 

As a result, there are some key ways we can help reduce this impact. Firstly, by sourcing our products from genuine sustainable producers and suppliers, we can ensure that the material and transportation used within the creation of the product has the lowest environmental and the highest positive social impact.

A great database of sustainable products and producers can be found on ecollecty, providing a list of approved companies to buy from this Black Friday. Also, some members of the Treepoints community, including Cavalier, are having a net-zero Black Friday, with all products being sustainably made. They also ensure all Black Friday purchases will see trees planted to ensure your purchase is carbon neutral.

Surely all my purchases will still have some environmental impact?

They will, and that’s how Treepoints can help. Through a one-off payment or even a monthly subscription, you can offset your climate impact, including your Black Friday purchases, through planting trees, removing ocean-bound plastic, and investing in green projects. Helping you to improve your climate impact.

This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t consider what you’re buying this Black Friday and just plant trees instead. But by doing both, you can ensure that your purchases have the lowest possible climate impact, whilst also going the extra mile in making them carbon neutral.