Make snow lanterns, bake gingerbread cookies. Go for a walk outside and look at the Christmas lights in the neighbourhood. Make gift tags and Christmas decorations together. Activities that do not cost much and are easy to carry out. Which does not end up in rubbish, and which can be kinder to the climate. Alternative advent calendars are in the wind. ACTIVITIES: Each slot for Viola (3) and Jonar (1) contains an activity until Christmas Eve. Photo: Private – We hope and believe that it will be fun to open a note every day and know that when we come home from kindergarten we will do something nice together, says Iselin Løvhøiden to news. The physiotherapist lives with a roommate and children Viola (3) and Jonar (1). This year, the Advent calendar will be different. – Last year, Viola received a parcel calendar with used gifts. A dollhouse and contents for the house every day. This year there will be pleasant activities that we can do together in each slot. MAKE IT YOURSELF: On the note this day it says: Buy/make a Christmas present for someone who doesn’t have much. Photo: Privat Enormous sums in December Through the Instagram account klima_familien, the family shares tips for recycling and reducing food waste, among other things. There they have also made the activity calendar available to anyone who wants to use it. – I think the calendar can be useful for more people than us. Virke believes the average consumer will shop for more than NOK 12,000 this Christmas. At the same time, four out of ten want to use more of this type of calendar in the future. BAKING: Among the activities are baking, visitors’ garden and dressing up. Photo: Privat Løvhøiden, we believe that as a society we are on our way back to a time when doing things together with family was appreciated. And the fact that the alternative calendars are getting more focus is to the delight of the climate experts. I hope the trend is here to stay – I think it’s fantastic. We use far too many resources in advent calendars and I think it is important that we reduce consumption and rather think about things that do not require so many resources and that rather give us time together. Photo: Nordlandsforskning This is according to professor at Nord University, Grete Kaare Hovelsrud. – Does it have any real effect from a climate perspective? – Yes, if enough people stop buying many things. A lot of climate emissions come from consumption, so if enough people make a Christmas calendar like this, you will have a reduced consumption, which in turn has an impact on climate emissions. – In small ways, it is a signal that we think a little differently. And perhaps many people are looking for that. She believes there is a symbolic value in several people inspiring each other. – I hope it is a trend that can take hold. I think I see a signal that people are more interested in giving time away, because we don’t have enough time in the weekday. It is more accepted than it used to be, that time is something that can be given away. – We greatly appreciated having each other’s time. Children prefer to spend time with their parents Time and attention from their parents is actually what children want most, according to Linda Tofteng Eliassen. She is a consumer economist at Sparebank1 Nord-Norge. – It’s spot on and we should probably do it more often. When you ask children what they want most from their parents, it is actually the parents’ time and attention. Photo: Marius Fiskum Eliassen, like many others, is excited about how the latest interest rate increases will affect her finances. The economic situation is unpleasant, he says. – I have already started transferring more money to the fixed draft to the budget account, because I have increased expenses without my salary increasing this autumn. Then consumption must decrease. Sharing ideas can be a good solution for many, believes Eliassen. Although they may sound nice, they also require a change in behavior and habits. – And there is no “quick fix”. So if we now share ideas together and applaud those who have come up with good ideas, I am quite sure that it will help many of us to do the same. And that it becomes less stigmatizing to do things to reduce what we buy. – Are children today satisfied with getting a calendar in the form of activities and not objects and things? – I think so. Then it probably depends on how well watered they are, and whether we actually put some love into it. Because we know a lot about what people actually appreciate about Christmas. – But then we are a bit caught up in everything we do. And it’s fine if you have the finances for it, but if you’re going to take it easy, there are many fine signals that we’d rather take care of. In addition, there are several thousand Swedish kroner to save from the December salary to January. I think fewer gifts in December can make for a more special Christmas Eve. The Christmas trade increased during the pandemic. This year, Christmas shopping is expected to be more similar to 2019. This will mean a decline for most industries. The family in Lillestrøm is used to shopping second-hand and buys few products in plastic. The children are used to getting used clothes and toys. MUSIC: Listening to music or borrowing books from the library is both free and climate-friendly. Photo: Private They try to live climate-friendly. – A three-year-old doesn’t care if a gift is used or new. The important thing is that it is a gift that you think is fun to receive, says Iselin Løvhøiden. The activity calendar can also help make 24 December extra special for the little ones, she believes. – If you get a lot of presents during December, Christmas Eve might not be so special. One rejoices a little less in any case.
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