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Is Green Friday the solution to address nature’s balance sheet?
Green Friday isn’t necessarily about avoiding shopping or profits, its about making conscious choices that support sustainable growth and nature restoration.
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As we approach the festive season, the usual excitement of shopping is about to begin. But this shopping frenzy often leaves a big environmental footprint, with millions of tons of carbon emissions and a heavy toll on natural resources and biodiversity.
During the 2020 Black Friday in the UK, for instance, excess packaging and increased transportation emissions generated an
. This is equivalent to emissions from 430,000 round-trip flights between New York and London.
However, sustainable people and businesses have established a more meaningful approach: Green Friday.
This movement, born as a response to the high environmental costs of Black Friday, encourages us to support sustainability to make a positive impact.
What is Green Friday?
Green Friday falls on the same day as Black Friday,
November 29th,
each year.
It was first launched in 2015 by a coalition of eco-conscious organisations, but has quickly gained traction across Europe and beyond.
Interestingly, the roots of this idea trace back even further to Canada in 1992, when an event called “Buy Nothing Day” was launched as a direct challenge to consumer culture. The event invited people to avoid shopping on the day after Thanksgiving, to protest against rampant consumerism and encourage sustainable lifestyles.
Instead of promoting rapid consumption, Green Friday encourages consumers to reflect on the environmental and social impact of their purchases; and it encourages businesses to give back to nature and the environment. Since its inception, Green Friday has led to increased awareness about conscious shopping and sustainability.
Many brands that participate in Green Friday report a rise in customer engagement around ‘eco-friendly’ products during the holiday season, showing a strong consumer interest in sustainability. A
revealed that 40% of shoppers are willing to spend more on eco-friendly products during the holiday season, while 43% prefer to buy from brands that embrace sustainability, such as minimising waste and offering carbon-neutral shipping options.This growing movement offers a hopeful sign that more shoppers are choosing to support the planet with their purchasing power.
A closer look at the environmental impact of Black Friday
Every year, Black Friday contributes to a massive spike in carbon emissions, increased waste from packaging, and high energy use from product production and transportation. For example, in 2021,
due to deliveries linked to Black Friday sales in Europe, a
compared to typical weeks.
The environmental footprint extends throughout the entire lifecycle of the products, from manufacturing to disposal. A 2019 study found that
of Black Friday purchases are discarded
shortly after purchase. These items, often made from low-quality, unsustainable materials, contribute to growing landfill waste and can be burned in incinerators, releasing harmful emissions. In the U.S. alone,
during the period between Black Friday and New Year’s, driven by a combination of poor-quality purchases and excessive packaging.
Overconsumption also strains our planet’s resources, driving habitat destruction, pollution and carbon emissions that harm biodiversity.
This intense cycle of consumption and disposal accelerates resource depletion and environmental degradation, reinforcing the need for alternatives like Green Friday, which advocates for sustainable consumption practices and mindful purchasing decisions.
How Green Friday helps shift the focus
Green Friday isn’t about avoiding shopping or profits, it's about making intentional choices. It encourages shoppers to consider alternatives like supporting sustainable brands, choosing experiences over things, and finding ways to give back. And it encourages businesses to mitigate their impact on climate and nature, and prioritise sustainability. As a collective, these actions can have a profound effect on reducing waste and inspiring more conscious habits.
Some core Green Friday purchasing principles include:
Buying less, but better:
Prioritise quality, durable products over cheap, disposable items.
Supporting sustainable brands:
Look for companies that use sustainable materials, prioritise ethical labour, and have minimal impact on the environment.
Reducing waste:
Choose products with minimal or recyclable packaging and consider digital products as alternatives to physical ones.
How businesses can contribute to Green Friday
For businesses, Green Friday is an opportunity to align with customers who value sustainability. Here are some impactful ways businesses can make a difference:
1. Offer sustainable products and services
Consumers are increasingly mindful of the environmental impact of their purchases, with many opting for brands that reflect their own values of sustainability. Green Friday offers businesses an excellent opportunity to highlight products and services designed with the planet in mind.
Additionally, encouraging customers to repair products rather than replace them helps cut down on waste.
A
found that
67% of consumers
of the respondents find the use of sustainable materials to be an important purchasing factor, and 63 percent consider a brand's promotion of sustainability in the same way. By embracing these values, businesses can meet the expectations of eco-conscious shoppers and help shift consumption patterns toward a more sustainable future.
2. Reduce environmental impact with low-waste packaging
Packaging waste is a major contributor to global pollution, with 40% of plastic produced each year designated for packaging, most of which ends up in landfills and incinerators. In fact, Europe alone generates around
annually.
For Green Friday, businesses can minimise waste by choosing recyclable, compostable, or reusable packaging. Even shifting to materials like biodegradable paper, cornstarch-based polymers, or mushroom-based packaging can make a big difference. Another approach is offering digital products and services, which eliminate the need for physical packaging, effectively reducing waste.
3. Reduce carbon emissions from delivery and transportation
Delivery and transportation are among the biggest contributors to carbon emissions, especially during peak shopping seasons like Black Friday.
Businesses can reduce this impact on Green Friday by adopting sustainable delivery methods like electric vehicles (EVs) for last-mile deliveries, which produce fewer emissions than conventional vehicles. In urban areas, cycling-based delivery services are an eco-friendly option, covering short distances efficiently with zero emissions.
Additionally, businesses can offer carbon-neutral shipping by purchasing carbon offsets to counterbalance emissions, or by opting for bundled shipments to reduce the number of individual trips required. Encouraging slower, low-carbon delivery options allows businesses to consolidate orders, cutting down on fuel consumption and emissions.
4. Engage and educate customers
Consumers are more likely to
them on environmental issues. Green Friday is an ideal opportunity to
engage customers
by sharing information about sustainable choices and educating them on the environmental benefits of mindful consumption.
Businesses can use their platforms to inform customers about the eco-friendly steps they’re taking, from sustainable sourcing to packaging reductions.
5. Mitigate environmental impact by supporting nature-based solutions
Businesses can reduce their carbon footprint by
offsetting emissions
through initiatives like
; or making nature contributions through
.
Investing in carbon credits allows companies to offset their emissions through verified nature-based solutions (NbS), while biodiversity credits support efforts to protect local ecosystems.
Buying these credits helps support nature projects that counteract emissions from production and shipping, supporting ecosystem restoration or conservation efforts.
Nature-based solutions (NbS) have an impressive potential to address climate change, biodiversity loss, and social well-being. Projects like
reforestation, wetland restoration, and habitat preservation
can directly mitigate carbon emissions, restore biodiversity, and create sustainable livelihoods for local communities.
For businesses, investing in nature-based solutions not only benefits the planet but also enhances brand image by aligning with consumers’ values of sustainability and social responsibility.
Businesses can contribute to NbS initiatives on Green Friday in various ways:
Planting a tree for every purchase: Launching a “buy one, plant one” initiative supports reforestation, sequesters carbon, and creates wildlife habitats. It’s a straightforward and effective way to engage customers and promote sustainable consumerism.
Employee rewards: Encourage eco-friendly actions by creating employee incentives tied to nature-based initiatives. For example, businesses can plant a tree in an employee’s name or contribute to a conservation project as part of an internal Green Friday reward system. This cultivates a sense of responsibility and commitment to sustainability among staff.
Nature-based subscription: A subscription to support nature-based projects offers a long-term investment in sustainability. Businesses can invest in programs where a portion of the proceeds goes toward ongoing restoration projects, habitat preservation, or tree-planting initiatives.
Woodland regeneration - Montgreenan, Scotland. While primarily focused on ecological restoration, it also has significant social implications. One of the key actions of the project is the creation of a biodiverse habitat that not only benefits wildlife but also enhances the local community's connection with nature.
How to embrace Green Friday as an individual
Here are a few ways you can make Green Friday a meaningful part of your holiday season:
Choose sustainable brands:
When you need to buy something, look for brands that prioritise sustainability and transparency.
Reduce, reuse, recycle:
Instead of buying new, consider purchasing second-hand, upcycling items you already own, or repurposing materials. Look for items with minimal packaging, or shop in stores that use recyclable or compostable materials.
Support nature-based causes:
Some of the most impactful ways to celebrate Green Friday don’t involve purchasing at all. Many organisations allow you to donate toward reforestation, marine restoration or other environmental efforts. By choosing to give back, you’re contributing directly to the planet’s wellbeing.
Mangrove restoration, Ankilahila, Madagascar. Deforestation is often tied to extreme poverty, the project uses a unique methodology of ‘employ to plant’ in order to target both of these problem areas..
Make Black Friday green through nature-based solutions
Green Friday reminds us that the choices we make, both big and small, have an impact on our planet. By consciously making sustainable decisions, we can make this holiday season one that benefits the earth, and the people in it.
helps businesses invest in nature-based solutions that contribute to a healthier planet. We provide businesses with transparent, measurable ways to offset their environmental impact through
. This not only supports sustainability goals but also connects companies with eco-conscious consumers who prioritise mindful purchasing decisions.
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