Holiday Gift Guide: 7 Meaningful Gifts to Support Small Business & the Travel Industry
Find the perfect sustainable gift to make a difference this holiday season!
The holidays are a great time to celebrate the ones you love and this year we have an opportunity to give back as well. When your gifts are sustainably sourced and support small business, you can have a positive impact on communities and small businesses locally and globally. As a small content marketing agency ourselves, GLP has curated this collection of products and experiences from select film partners we’ve worked with around the globe. Use this gift guide to spark inspiration for meaningful gifts that make a difference this holiday season!
1. The Good Supply: Locally Sourced Sustainable Gifts from Maine
With over 90 local artists and Maine small businesses represented, The Good Supply offers a curated collection of responsibly sourced and handmade goods from makers in Maine. Inspired by nature, artists are drawn to this unique aritisan shop that nourishes creativity.
Book a visit in person by appointment only, or shop the handmade gifts online. Gifts include cards, stationary, and paper goods, woodworking, soaps, teas, children’s toys, home decor, and more.
Shop The Good Supply
2. Yolélé: Fonio Superfood Supporting African Farmers
Yolélé was founded by New Yorker and Senegalese chef, Pierre Thiam in 2017 to create economic opportunity for small farming communities. Fonio is a gluten-free African grain that is good for you and the planet. Supporting biodiverse, regenerative, and resilient food systems, this super food is sourced from smallholder farms in Africa, providing economic opportunity while sharing Africa’s cuisine with the world.
“Sharing culture through food has always been my driving passion, and YolÉlÉ was created in that spirit.”
— Pierre Thiam
Visit the Yolélé shop for the fonio starter pack gift set, recipe books, fonio grains, fonio flour, and more!
Shop Yolélé
3. LifeStraw: water filters & reusable water bottles that give back
What if your everyday water bottle could reduce your exposure to water contaminants like bacteria and micro-plastics, while also empowering women around the globe through education and access to safe drinking water?
Lifestraw delivers just that. A portion of proceeds from LifeStraw’s retail sales of water bottles and additional water filtration products is used to provide clean water to school children around the world. The Follow the Liters program provides sustainable access to safe drinking water to more than 3 million school children.
Lifestraw provides a variety of safe drinking water solutions around the world - from communities in need to global travelers and backcountry expeditions. Explore their products, including personal reuasable water bottles, water filter pitchers, and filters for the outdoors and backcountry.
Shop LifeStraw
4. Finca Argovia: Organic Coffee from Chiapas, Mexico
Located in Chiapas, Mexico, Finca Argovia is a resort experience for coffee lovers. But if you can’t visit in person, don’t worry. Finca Argovia offers a taste of the experience through their online store. With organic coffee from Chiapas Mexico, and spices like cardamom and vanilla, and marmalade, there’s an assortment of organic goods to excite the palate. To add to the fun, you can also brush up on your Spanish as you browse their online shop (no shame in google translate!).
With resort closures due to COVID-19, supporting Finca Argovia through their organic coffee and goods is a great way to give back to this community that has given so much to travelers through their authentic coffee plantation and resort experiences.
Shop Finca Argovia
5.farm to feet:100% American-made socks
Made in America, Farm to Feet wool socks support Main Street American workers. Sourced 100% from American-made wool, Farm to Feet socks offer sustainability and style along with outstanding performance on the trail.
Learn more about the makers behind these products in GLP’s 3-part video series, “American Made: Stories from the Supply Trail,” and shop sustainable socks from Farm to Feet.
Shop Farm to Feet
6. Call a LLama: book a llama for your next zoom call!
Tired of virtual meetings and Zoom calls? Add some quirkiness and fun by inviting a Bolivian llama to your next video call!
Adding a llama to your video call with friends, family or coworkers helps take care of the llama’s home and supports the tourism industry and its workers in the beautiful country of Bolivia.
Llamas are a special part of Bolivian culture that you can now share through virtual experiences. In addition to booking a llama for your Zoom gathering, you can also book virtual tours to explore Bolivia. In a fun online trip, you’ll visit several unique destinations, taking in the spectacular views and ways of life as well as the llamas that live there.
Book a Llamma
7. support wildlife: donate to combat poaching and support animal welfare
Wildlife preserves were negatively impacted when tourism came to a sudden halt due to the pandemic. While communities that rely on wildlife tourism struggled to feed their families, a lack of rangers to protect wildlife sadly led to increased poaching.
Sustainable tourism is essential for wildlife conservation. It provides revenue to protect and maintain the wild spaces and jobs vital to support local communities. Additionally, “poachers don’t like people,” so the presence of tourists and workers suppresses poaching activity. Until we can travel again, what can we do?
Adventure Travel Conservation Fund: Fund a Ranger
You can make a donation to make a direct impact on anti-poaching through the Adventure Travel Conservation Fund’s Fund a Ranger campaign.
Rhino Fund Uganda
Rhino Fund Uganda and Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary, a not-for-profit in Uganda, was completely self-sustaining through wildlife tourism. But with the financial faucet turned off, the future of the sanctuary is uncertain. Help continue rhino conservation work with a donation to Rhino Fund Uganda.
Thailand Elephants: Thai Elephant Alliance
Elephant experiences are one of the most popular activities for tourists in Thailand. With the absence of travel, elephant camps have no money coming in, which is vital to provide food and care for the elephants, and income for the mahouts (elephant caretakers) and owners. Despite pay cuts or even without pay, mahouts have remained with their elephants to care for them.
The pandemic has shed a light on the need for innovation and change to improve elephant welfare and the sustainability of elephant tourism. Simply stated, “It’s something we’ve never needed to consider. Every elephant camp needs to adjust their thinking.” Consider donating to support elephants in Thailand through the Thai Elephant Alliance.