An Ethical Gift can be described as a gift that keeps on giving. This means you are not only giving to the person the gift was intended for but also to the people involved in all the parts of production of it. Take the example you want to but your friend some nice coffee for Christmas. You decide to buy a brand of fair trade coffee and the giving begins. By making the gift you purchase an ethical decision you are giving to the growers, pickers, roasters, packers and retailers. This ensures all these people receive a fair price for the goods and services they contribute. It promotes sustainability by encouraging the company to be able to keep giving fair prices to the people involved in making the product.

What could be better? Here you are in New Zealand and by making one tiny decision you are practically becoming Santa himself, giving to strangers on the other side of the world! I think this is the greatest gift of all.

When it comes to defining an Ethical Gift it gets a bit tricky. I will try and offer you an explanation as best I can, with a little help from some of the experts.

Josie Eccersall, Manager of Trade Aid Bishopdale, Christchurch describes an ethical gift as "one that has been sustainably produced, the producer has been fairly paid, and that is useful. It is a gift that gives twice, once to the producer and once to the recipient."

Nina Gresslehner (from the Marketing Department of Trade Aid in New Zealand), describes the physical, environmental and moral components of ethical gift giving by saying, "The gift is ethical, because by purchasing it, you are helping improve the livelihoods and wellbeing of disadvantaged producers around the world in a physical sense, because it's a quality, skilfully made, handcrafted product. It is a gift fit to show a loved one how much you care in an environmental sense, because Trade Aid products are fair trade. Fair Trade actively encourages better environmental practices and the application of responsible methods of production for the conscience of the person who buys it. People who purchase a Trade Aid gift this Christmas can rest easy in the knowledge that they're helping make a positive change in the world. It's a gift that gives twice - to your loved ones and to the people who produced it."

She further promotes these values by explaining how the choice will impact on yourself, others and the world in which we live today,

"Purchasing a gift through Trade Aid will help provide people with the means to work themselves out of poverty. Trade Aid strongly believes that people living in developing communities are best placed to decide their own aims and objectives and what they most need to achieve these. Trade Aid treats their producers with the dignity and equality they deserve, empowering them to help themselves through fair trade. The Trade Aid way avoids creating a dependency on aid and aims to break the cycle of poverty," she says.

So where can you buy ethical gifts and how do you know which ones are? Start by asking yourself a few basic questions. First of all ask yourself: is it fair trade, meaning; are all people involved in the making of this product being treated fairly? This includes everyone that has a role in contributing to the overall final product.

Next you can ask whether it is recycled, recyclable or biodegradable? This is especially important when it comes to the packaging. I find with when it comes to packaging, to keep it ethical just remember, less is more.

Is it organic? Organic goods are not only better for the environment but also better for us too. The production of a single cotton t-shirt uses 3kg of pesticides in its production, placing harmful chemicals not only in the environment but also close to your body.

Lastly ask yourself what was the life of this product? What was its journey from the first stages of its creation to under being placed on the shaded patch of carpet underneath your friend's or family's Christmas tree?

Buying locally supports small businesses in your community as well as New Zealand as a whole. Buying New Zealand made provide more jobs for the people in our communities. This of course directly encourages economic growth. There is a spectacular range of New Zealand made products that can be given as gifts. When you look at the variety of products you can buy that are New Zealand made you can't deny that us Kiwis definitely have a natural disposition towards 'that no.8 wire' ingenuity we are world famous for.

I hope this has managed to cover the basic information surrounding the issue of ethical gift giving this Christmas. I would like to add a huge thank you to Josie and Nina for the roles they played in this article. No one can deny the credibility of information about ethical gifts by such experts, so thank you. By making one small decision about one single present you buy this year, you are changing the world!