Secular Charitable Gift Ideas for the Holidays

We are fast approaching the holiday season all around the world. One of my favorite gifts to give are charitable gifts, like adopting an animal in someone's name or donating to a reputable charity in someone's name.

I've put together a list of ideas for great gifts and family activities that truly embody the meaning of the season: to give to others.

Gift a Symbolically Adopted Animal

I started doing this in 2019. I secretly discovered some of my family members' favorite animals and/or their soul animals, and then I symbolically adopted that animal for them! Some packages are 100% virtual, and you receive a picture or a certificate of the adoption. Others are a little more physical and you can get a plushie or stuffed animal toy of the animal you adopted. There are several organizations you can do this through.

Oceana. Rated 4 out of 4 stars on Charity Navigator, you can adopt sea life animals such as sea otters, polar bears, sharks, manatees, octopus, and more! Adoptions start at $35 and physical gifts they send you along with your adoption include things like animal-shaped cookie cutters and plushies. (Does anyone have kids, nieces/nephews, or grandkids who love Finding Nemo? You can totally adopt a clownfish here that comes with its very own clownfish plushie to gift to your favorite kiddo! Or maybe you'd rather keep Plushie Nemo for yourself?)

World Wildlife Fund. Rated 3 out of 4 stars on Charity Navigator, WWF has a list of over 100 species you can symbolically adopt. Adoption kits range from $25, which includes a photo, a species card, and an adoption certificate up to $100, which includes a framed photo, a species card, a species plush, and a gift box or a gift bag. This particular Mouse Lemur adoption kit actually comes with two plushies!

National Wildlife Federation. This charity is rated 3 out of 4 stars by Charity Navigator. It features nearly 100 species available to adopt through sponsorship, including many bird species such as this sandhill crane. Like the others, some adoption kits include plush toys of the species you're adopting. Adoption donations range from $25 to $50.

Slow loris Pey, rescued from traders

Wildlife Alliance. Rated 3 out of 4 stars on Charity Navigator, this sponsorship program is cool because you're actually sponsoring individual animals that have names and are being rehabilitated. There are nine animals to choose from at the time of this writing. Many of these animals were rescued from poachers and traders, and your sponsorship helps them receive the care they need and live comfortably. Here's Pey, the slow loris who was rescued in Cambodia from traders.

Gift an Acre of Rainforest to a Loved One

Did you know you can save an acre of the rainforest? How cool would that be? "What did you get this year for presents?" "I got a sweater." "I got a new video game." "I got to save an acre of rainforest." That would seriously be the coolest gift. And now you can do that, through the UK organization World Land Trust. For only £100, you can save an acre of habitat and gift wildlife room to roam. If anyone is planning on purchasing a gift for me this year, I would like that one, please. 😊

Start a Tradition of Giving & Charitable Donations with Your Family

When my daughter was six, the night before Christmas and a few nights after Yule (we celebrate both in our home) was spent going through her toys, books, and clothes and setting aside that which she no longer used or had outgrown. We donated them to charity in a special way that helped her find intrinsic value and pleasure in giving.

As we carefully folded dresses that were too small or toys that weren't played with enough, we talked as a family about how another child out there would be able to give her stuffed animals a new home or find use in her clothes. The beaming look on her face as she knew she was helping another child was priceless, and she has since grown to be a very thoughtful and giving young lady.

A couple of years after that, she was initiated into the Santa tradition--meaning she was initiated into becoming a Santa herself, spreading joy and cheer to others during the winter season.

Purchase Fair Trade for Physical Gifts

If you really just want a physical gift for someone to be able to unwrap and use, consider purchasing from fair trade organizations. Many of these organizations partner with vulnerable communities of people to craft their goods and support their families.

Preemptive Love. This organization is rated 4 out of 4 stars on Charity Navigator and they have a ton of great gift ideas ranging from candles, soaps, kitchenware, apparel, and even their own Self Reflection Card Deck. They also have Refugee-Made Items to help restore communities and change the lives of refugees as well as a Give Back program where you can gift things like One Week of Food for Quarantined Refugees and Sheep for a Displaced Family.

Ten Thousand Villages. This is a fair trade marketplace of goods hand-made by artisans from villages in developing countries all over the world. Woven baskets, sustainable scarves, ethical kitchen goods, jewelry, etc. In supporting these local artisans, you're helping them sustain their communities and work for equitable wages. Out with brands that exploit workers from developing nations and in with entrepreneurial artisans supporting their families and communities through their art. One of my favorite gifts are the Christmas ornaments made in the Phillippines, Bangladesh, India, Peru, and more! And another cool part? You can have a piece of another country in your home, or gift to a friend or family member, without having accidentally appropriated their culture by purchasing from a big box store that pays workers starvation wages and forces them to work in dangerous conditions.

Support Socially Responsible Companies

SpiritHoods is a brand I've been personally following for ten years. 10% of their profits are donated to help protect endangered wildlife and their habitats.

Shared Planet is a beauty company that creates cruelty-free vegan makeup. Their Tiger Collection in particular donates 10% of your order value to global charities working with at-risk animals.

All in all, giving in itself is a wonderful thing and many of us enjoy doing it. But to be able to give a gift and say, "The money I spent on this went to... "...save the rainforest," or "...save the animals," or "...help refugees" just ties the seasonal joy in even more. 🎄

---

Charlie Nichols is the founder of WHE and a staff contributor. Charlie studied Journalism & Mass Communication, Marketing, and Psychology at Madison College in Madison, Wisconsin. She has practiced witchcraft for over two decades and is a certified spiritual empowerment coach, a certified ethical psychic, and a certified crystal healer. Charlie lives on the shores of Lake Michigan in Wisconsin, USA with her partner, daughter, and animal companions.