I had a call this week from a reporter at the Daily Mail in London who wants to interview me about having an ethical, green Christmas. I laughed at the irony of calling the day after Thanksgiving, usually the last Friday in November, Black Friday. It’s the day Christmas shopping supposedly begins, and there are sales to attract people to the big box stores at 5am (in the UK, this kind of thing takes place during the January sales, I think). “US shoppers rush to Black Friday”

The simplest way to have a green Christmas is not to go shopping, but that’s hardly useful advice for most of us. We may loathe the commercialism and excess but still love the festivity, the scents and sounds of the season. Over the next week, as I travel, I’ll be blogging up some suggestions, and recipes, for having a joyous time without overwhelming expense or pressure–on yourself or on the planet.