20 Gifts That Give Back

Welcome to this year’s Gifts that Give Back Guide! For the last six years, I have gathered up my favorite gift ideas from small businesses who give back to communities around the world.

Each year I am overwhelmed by the creative, beautiful, and innovative products I find. When you shop from these businesses you get more than a unique gift for a loved one. Your dollars also support people around the world–survivors of human trafficking, women refugees, transitioning homeless, and children in underprivileged neighborhoods.

As always, I’ve tried to spotlight some new organizations this year, but I’m also never able to include all of the incredible organization and social enterprises I find. If you’re looking for even more ideas, scroll through my Gifts That Give Back Pinterest Board for inspiration!

I’ve picked a few of my favorite products from each business, but I hope you’ll take the time to explore each of their websites. Be inspired, be encouraged, and gift with purpose this season! I hope you enjoy picking out gifts for every special person on your list this year!

Ten Thousand Villages partners with artisans around the world, providing faith trade wages with every purchase of their variety of jewelry, accessories, clothing, and home goods.

Hand in Hand– Every purchase of Hand in Hand’s sustainable soaps, lotions, scrubs, and sanitizers help provide soap and clean water to communities in Haiti.

Treetops Collective is a Michigan based organization committed to welcoming women refugees. They use creativity and asset based community development to help women heal, develop their skills, and establish a strong social fabric. They’re fostering cross-cultural relationships and helping change the narrative around refugees in our communities. This is good-neighbor work at its core, and I am 100% here for it.

Handmade Palestine supports Palestinian artisans, cooperatives, and designers struggling to make ends meet under military occupation. Every purchase helps local artists make a fair trade wage and support their families. They have lovely home goods, foodie gift boxes, and art work.

Hands Producing Hope‘s line of jewelry, apparel, wall hangings, and baskets are all ethically made, and provide dignified work, education, and hope for women and families in Costa Rica and Rwanda. They’re one of my favorite stops for unique, playful jewelry with lots of pops of color!

Justea offers artisanal teas from Kenya, including oolong, black, green, and even purple! They’re committed to building relationships with every tea farmer, providing living wages, and keeping profits within local communities.

Humble Hilo has a gorgeous collection of Guatemalan textiles, including bags, dresses, sandals, pillows, and more. With each purchase, you can choose to support one of their three missions: child nutrition, education, and microfinance for women.

Bitty & Beau’s Coffee is a radically inclusive coffee shop that employs 120 people with disabilities. I cry every time I read about Bitty & Beau’s story. They are doing beautiful, meaningful work–changing the way people see, value, respect, include, and love other people.

Cheekbone Beauty is an indigenous owned beauty company known for their high quality, cruelty free beauty products. They are committed to creating less waste, supporting indigenous use, and limiting their profitability by donating to a variety of organizations and causes.

Yoobi– If you love to stuff stockings with school supplies, Yoobi is the place to go! Every purchase of their fun collection of pencils, pens, notebooks, and folders helps support a donation of school supplies to a classroom in an under-served community.

Amana ya Juu is a social enterprise with locations in Liberia, Kenya, Uganda, and the U.S., each of which empower women refugees by giving them marketable skills, a living wage, and a healing community. They also offer products for the home, jewelry, accessories, and children’s items.

Noonday Collection– This female founded and female run company collaborates with local artisans to create gorgeous jewelry, hand bags, apparel, and home goods.

Hon’s Honey– Based in Baltimore, MD, Hon’s Honey provides dignified work to women at risk of addiction, poverty, human trafficking, and abuse. Their products include raw honey, candles, soap, body scrubs, and beard salves.

Tegu makes simple, beautiful magnetic blocks for kids. Every purchase helps create stable jobs in Honduras, improving the livelihoods of not only the 200 employees that work at their factory but also the 361 family members that rely on them.

My Pick: Tegu’s Classic Set ($68) of blocks really can’t be beat for hours of open ended fun. We keep this pocket pouch ($30) in the diaper bag. It’s perfect for long car rides or restaurants!

Thistle Farms is a social enterprise providing safe housing, employment opportunities, and a supportive community to women in recovery from prostitution, trafficking, and addiction. Their website says it best: “Together, we rise up against systems that commoditize, criminalize, and abuse women.” They have a large collection of essential oils, beauty products, candles, home goods, scarves, and accessories. Great for stocking stuffers!

Note: All pictures are courtesy of the individual website. They retain all rights.