Best Valentine's Day 2023 gifts that are eco-friendly

Best Valentine's Day 2023 gifts that are eco-friendly

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner! Show love to your favorite people and to the planet too. 

I’ve gone through the coolest, most innovative gifts that you can give to your loved ones. These gifts mean reducing food waste or giving the music-lover in your life a self-charging, solar-powered solution. There’s something unique for everyone — and every budget. 

Also: 12 smart home devices that make great Valentine’s Day gifts

Here are the best eco-friendly gifts to give this Valentine’s Day season, ordered from first best to fifth best, from most expensive to least expensive. If you’re looking for eco-friendly apparel, scroll down to the alternatives section for a few top picks.

  • Price: Holiday Special (save over $100): Get the Lomi, Filter Subscription (delivered quarterly), Starter pack of filters & pods for $427 (usually $529)
  • Price: Holiday Sale – VIP Bundle (save over $200): Get the Lomi, Lomi Filter Refills – 180 Cycles, LomiPods – 90 Cycles, LomiCare – 3yr Extended Warranty, Setup consultation, and priority support for $580 (usually $784)
  • Features: Reduces food waste from households

The Lomi indoor composter uses an intensive process to turn your food waste into dirt with a press of a button. This is hugely impactful for the environment. The USDA estimates that 30-40% of the food supply is wasted every year, and Feeding America clarifies that food waste in our homes makes up about 39% of the overall amount or 42 billion pounds of waste a year. 

Read: Lomi indoor composter review: Is this thing magic?

Enter the Lomi, which tackles that problem with a solution you can place on your countertop. This gadget has fascinated me for a while. You fill the Lomi about 75% full with food waste and it not only processes that waste in a usable way with the right setting and keeps it out of landfills, but it also reduces the mass of the waste.

Watch: Lomi indoor composter review: A great solution to food waste

  • Price: $230
  • Features: Self charging | Powered by natural and artificial light | On ear | Wireless | 80 hours of battery life

The Adidas RPT-02 SOLheadphones are incredibly innovative, using Exeger’s Powerfoyle™ light cell material to convert natural and artificial light into battery life. The on-ear, wireless headphones self-charge by taking in light and giving you up to 80 hours of stored playtime in exchange. The price point is similar to what you’d pay for a pair of good Beats or Sony headphones, but you don’t have to worry about charging and you get a lot more listening time. The RPT-02 SOL are partially built from recycled plastics, upping their environmentally-friendly footprint even more. According to Adidas, 87% of the plastic in the product is post-consumer recycled PC-ABS and recycled nylon (excluding plastics in electronic components) and only 51% of the overall product is made of plastic. The headphones are sweat-proof and splash-proof and, if you need to, you can remove and wash the inner headband and ear cushions.

More: The 5 best solar gifts for the holidays (including a piece of art)

  • Price: $58+ with discounts
  • Features: Plants grow faster than when grown in soil | Grow on your kitchen countertop | No pests | Automatic watering | Grow fruits, veggies, flowers, and herbs year-round

If you live in an apartment or a small space, it can be hard to grow plants indoors. Soil is messy and hard to clean, and it attracts unwanted pests into your home. Even if you have a backyard, you too might not want to grow plants for fear of attracting pests. A hydroponic indoor garden allows you to circumvent seasonal and space limitations and grow fruits, veggies, herbs, and flowers year-round, albeit in small quantities, from the comfort of your own home. It’s 30-50% faster to grow plants hydroponically instead of in soil, and you don’t need to worry about the plants getting sunlight either: Hydroponic systems come equipped with LED lights that simulate natural sunlight, a water reservoir, and a circulation system. Even if you go out of town, you don’t need to worry about watering your plants or turning on the LED lights, as the lights come with automatic timers and the water reservoir simply has to be filled in order for water to automatically circulate. This is a cool system built with a purpose. The only downside is that the quantities of plants grown can be low, so you may be better off growing herbs instead of larger plants. You also have to keep purchasing pods to keep using the machine, which is similar to buying seeds again and again for an outdoor garden.

  • Price: $0 to $299 for experiences and $199 to $1,299 for getaways
  • Features: Versatile | Gives the recipient choices | Adjustable to your budget

Gift a sustainable getaway for you and your significant other.

When you gift a Tinggly gift box, you’re giving someone the freedom to choose from a wide range of experiences or getaways in more than 100 countries. Depending on your budget, you can go for a $0 free experience, or purchase an experience box ranging from $59 to $299. The Be my Valentine box offers more than 1,000 experiences in over 100 countries, including swimming with the manatees in Florida, taking surfing lessons in California, enjoying a sightseeing sail trip for two in Maine, experiencing a gourmet five-course dinner in Rio de Janeiro, visiting the Harry Potter studio in London, touring a Game of Thrones experience in Croatia, or visiting a Beijing opera night show. There’s no expiration date and each gift box plants trees.

You can select either an experience box or a getaway box — the latter includes a hotel stay of the recipient’s choosing. A getaway box can be more expensive, ranging from $199 to $1,299. You can purchase an additional $10 gift box, so that your gift recipient has a physical gift to open, or you can send the gift as an eVoucher via print or email. The latter option is more eco-friendly and it’s good to have as backup in case the person loses the gift box.

More: 12 gift ideas for travelers this holiday season

  • Price: 10 kg gift of CO₂ removal for $12, 20 kg gift of CO₂ removal for $24, 40 kg gift of CO₂ removal for $48, Can also do a custom gift amount
  • Features: 10 kg gift of CO₂ removal costs $12 | Can customize amount | Customizable gift design | Can be sent through email, scheduled, or printed and delivered personally

A Climeworks gift fits perfectly into any last-minute, virtual gifting needs. You can remove CO₂ from the air on behalf of your recipient, helping fight global warming. The Climeworks gift certificate addresses the need for CO₂ removal in conjunction with planting more trees and other efforts in reducing climate change. It’s better than a gift card, especially for conscious consumers, and you can send it through email to friends or family in other states or parts of the world. This gift is incredibly easy to purchase: I walked through it in less than five minutes in a test run. You choose a design and you can personalize your message — you can even schedule your gift in advance! It’s great for last-minute gifting too, because you can send your gift immediately through email.

What is the best eco-friendly gift?

The Lomi indoor composter is the best eco-friendly holiday gift, with its potential for reducing food waste and its high usability. It offers an innovative solution to the landfill problem. I could see it becoming a kitchen fixture in every household, and I hope it becomes affordable for every household. The other items on this list are perfect for any budget. 

Eco-friendly gift

Price

Standout features

Lomi indoor composter

$427

Reduces food waste from households, can be turned into usable soil with the right mode

Adidas RPT-02 SOL headphones

$230

Self-charging, powered by natural and artificial light

Hydroponic Indoor Garden

$58+ with discounts

Grow herbs, fruits, veggies, and flowers 30-50% faster indoors

Tinggly Gift Box

$0 to $299 for experiences and $199 to $1,299 for getaways

Versatile, adjustable to your budget

Climeworks CO₂ removal gift 

$12

Customizable amount, immediate delivery

Which is the right eco-friendly gift for you?

Depending on your budget, and the needs of your gift recipient, one of these options could be better than another.

Choose this eco-friendly gift…

If you want…

Lomi indoor composter

To help households reduce food waste

Adidas RPT-02 SOL headphones

Solar-powered headphones you never have to recharge

Hydroponic Indoor Garden

To inspire or enhance indoor gardening efforts

Tinggly Gift Box

To give an eco-friendly experience or travel getaway

Climeworks CO₂ removal gift 

An inexpensive, last-minute gift that can be delivered immediately

How did we choose these eco-friendly gifts?

These eco-friendly gifts meet the following criteria:

  • Value: What is offered for the price? Is that price justified?
  • Innovation: Was there a wow factor here that could wow a gift recipient too?
  • Mission: What need or interest did these gifts meet?

What are 3 things a traveler can do to be environmentally sensitive?

The three things that a traveler can do to be environmentally sensitive are:

  1. Choose your destination wisely. Some places are more sustainable than others, and some places are better to visit than others during certain times (e.g. Outside of peak summer months). There are other places that are rebuilding after natural disasters that need more volunteers to help with their efforts.
  2. Use a site like bookdifferent.com to check out your carbon footprint for your accommodations.
  3. Incorporate sustainable habits into your travels, like packing a reusable water bottle that has a built-in filter.

Also: 12 gift ideas for travelers this holiday season

How can we make our holidays more environmentally friendly?

Include a brief “FAQ” section at the bottom of your buyer’s guide. It’s where you answer at least three questions about your topic or the products. Each question should be formatted in its own listicle item shortcode.

Example FAQ: What is it? How does it work? What are the differences between _ and _?

You can use this handy tool to find questions that people are actually searching.

What do you get your environmentally conscious friend?

You can get them anything on this list! If they’re especially conscious about acquiring new items, a digital gift is the best way to go. If they’re passionate about a cause, like reducing food waste or gardening indoors or incorporating innovative wearables into their lives, there are options on the list for all of those needs.

What are the best gifts for 2023?

Are there alternative eco-friendly gifts worth considering?

Of course! These alternatives are more wearable than tech or digital gifts, but they still emphasize sustainability. 

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