Don?t panic, Christmas is nearly here! If you have having a dilemma about what to get for that person who has everything, and you are lacking imagination, you could get them an over priced piece of plastic consumer rubbish that was probably manufactured by exploited workers, caused untold pollution, and will end-up in the bin by boxing-day!

Alternatively, you could do the ultimate in ethical shopping and buy something in their name that makes a real impact on poverty and change lives for the better around the world.  There are now loads of fantastic virtual charity gifts available so why not get them something completely different; like a beehive, a pair of oxen and a plough, tree planting to prevent erosion, a share in a mango plantation, school dinners or even a toilet ? there really is something for everyone!

Here?s our pick of the best development charity gifts so you have no excuse ? there really is something for every member of you family and all of your friends:

Oxfam Unwrapped

Since September 2004, you've bought over 700,000 funusual gifts benefiting people living in 46 countries around the world. Thanks to your help Oxfam Unwrapped is already making a huge difference to people's lives.  For the US take a look at Oxfam Unwrapped USA.

Present Aid

Present Aid is an online shop produced by Christian Aid. But unlike most e-commerce websites, it sells 'virtual' gifts. They're unusual gifts, because they'll not only make someone you love happy, but could change the lives of poor people around the world.

Send a Cow

Send a Cow is a charity that enables poor farmers in Africa to become self-reliant by providing them with livestock, training and advice. We work with some of the most vulnerable groups in Africa, including children orphaned by war, families affected by AIDS, and disabled people.

Good Gifts Catalogue

Over 100,000 Good Gifts have given rise to laughter, tears, delight and deep satisfaction, with recipients telling us that a Good Gift stays far longer in the memory than a conventional gift. As for the ultimate beneficiaries of the gifts, there's the reassuring warmth of knowing that someone cares enough to want to invest in their future.

Gifts in Action 

Give ActionAid Gifts in Action, which help make the world a better place for its poorest people.  Gifts in Action offer you the chance to buy unusual and thoughtful gifts for your family and friends - whilst also helping poor communities gain the skills and knowledge to claim their rights for themselves.

UNICEF Inspired Gifts

An exciting range of UNICEF inspired gifts that directly help to save, improve and protect the lives of children, and bring hope to communities all around the world.  Avoid giving unwanted gifts and mark the special occasion in this simple and practical way.

Gifts include: Education, Healthcare, Shelter, Nutrition and much more!

The Alternative Gift Catalogue

Part of World Vision's carefully planned initiatives to help some of the world's poorest communities make their way out of poverty. This is because most of the gifts arrive in the context of our long-term development programmes, with the remaining gifts going to reduce the impact of humanitarian emergencies by providing the basics needed to provide relief in an emergency.

From preventing the spread of deadly malaria with a mosquito net, to buying a complete maze grinding mill there is something in The Alternative Gift Catalogue to suite everyone's pocket.

Cows 'n' Things

There are plenty of older people overseas who would think all their Christmases had come at once if you gave them a cow, or a goat, or even a water storage tank.

That's what Cows 'n' Things is all about. It's a gift scheme designed to help the most disadvantaged older people in developing countries get the things they really need.

What can you buy? Livestock and seeds so they can produce their own food; training and tools to help them earn a living; water storage facilities for access to clean water; or home-based care kits and cataract operations.

Did we miss any virtual gift providers?  Please let us know by adding a comment. 

More and more UK consumers are making the switch to products carrying the Fairtrade label when they do their weekly grocery shop.   Fairtrade coffee, tea, biscuits, fresh fruit and juices are now also widely available to buy in bulk from catering suppliers, wholesalers meaning that it?s even easier for your place of work to join the Fairtrade revolution.

To support the push of fairtrade certified products at work, the UK?s Fairtrade Foundation has produced a range of posters, leaflets and booklets that will provide a quick introduction to Fairtrade to your colleagues.  These free resources, along with a quirky viral video and game, are available to download or to order from the new Fairtrade at Work website. 

So just how do you get Fairtrade products into your workplace?

Many of us in the Western world are obsessed with wealth ? well, come-on, its true isn?t it!  Each time a rich list gets published, we gaze down enviously at those people listed, wishing that we were that rich too.

The Global Rich List website challenges your personal perception of your own wealth, causing two reactions - makes you feel good about your-self but bad for others.  By comparing your annual income against the rest of the world it will show you that we in the West ? yes, even you with your modest wage - are actually up there at the top when it comes to the global rich list. 

So, what is the point of the Global Rich List website?  It makes you understand that you are in a very privileged minority. And by making you feel rich might just make you want to give some of your riches to charities that are trying to make the poor and less-privileged people of the world.

Once you have discovered your new-found wealth Global Rich List encourage you to give a small amount of your riches to a charity that can help address the balance.  The charity that they are supporting is CARE International - a global humanitarian organisation working with over 45 million disadvantaged people in 70 of the world's poorest countries. Whether supporting primary health care, promoting sustainable agriculture or developing savings and loan schemes, its programmes promote positive and lasting change and reduce long-term dependency. CARE also provides emergency food and shelter to survivors of natural disasters, wars and conflicts.

Just about every one knows that bamboo is one of the fastest growing plants in the world ? making it potentially one of the most sustainable sources of wood.  It?s abundance and therefore its cheapness makes it the ideal candidate to replace cheap plastics currently used to manufacture every-day electronic consumables.  It?s stronger than most wood and stronger than steel.  Pandas prefer the softer variety, so harvesting isn?t causing a panda famine!

Perhaps the best examples of the use of bamboo as an alternative to plastic comes in the form of the new bamboo mouse and computer monitors that have recently hit the market place.  Although it?s only the outer casing that is made from bamboo, it means that these components are now at least partially biodegradable which is a real step in the right direction.  If you want to make an eco-statement in the workplace, a bamboo mouse is the ideal desk accessory.

You can get your bamboo mouse from:

Nigel's Eco Store

Ecotopia