Choosing a birthday gift for a loved one is no easy task! You want your present to bring joy, but you also want to ensure your gifts aren’t wasteful or quickly forgotten. 

  With every gift we give, we have the opportunity to support meaningful businesses that make the world a better place. These days, there are so many innovative ways for gift-givers looking to show love while supporting a meaningful cause. So of all things, why not choose birthday gifts that spread kindness?

  We’ve done the legwork and come up with six birthday gift ideas that spread kindness in the world. From microfinance loans to animal sponsorships, you’re sure to find the perfect birthday gift for your loved one in this list so you can celebrate their special day and put a smile on more than one face.
 

1. Invest in a brighter future

Imagine a birthday gift that can create brighter futures for people in any part of the world. When you provide a microfinance loan in your loved one’s name, you’re giving a gift that reaches further afield.

  Microfinancing for developing countries is different from a charitable donation – these small loans empower entrepreneurs in economically challenged areas, especially in areas when traditional financing from banks is harder to access. These loans foster self-sufficiency, dignity, and inspiration. 

  Here’s how it works: you make a loan on behalf of the birthday celebrant, and the entrepreneur uses it to start or grow their business. When a greater profit is turned and the loan gets repaid, your loved one can keep the money themselves, or use it to invest in another entrepreneur. Through one birthday gift, you can start a cycle of growth and development.
 

2. Clothes with compassion

Whether you’re celebrating the birthday of a teenage boy with an empty wardrobe or a best friend with an expensive passion for designer threads, clothes are always an appreciated birthday gift. Luckily, there’s no shortage of fashion labels that look good, and feel good to give. 

  More and more clothing brands are rising with a purpose. From streetwear labels donating 100% of their profits to homeless youth to T-shirt brands fighting to end climate change, you’re spoilt for choice!

  This year, think about what truly matters to your fashion-forward friend and find a clothing brand that aligns with their most treasured values.
 

3. Sponsor a furry friend

Celebrate the animal lover in your life with a gift that’s sure to make a paw-sitive impact!

  Show your loved one you care about their furry (or scaly) friends by providing food, shelter, and medical care for their favourite animal in their name. Pet rescues, sanctuaries, and wildlife funds often allow you to symbolically “adopt” an animal with a monetary donation. 

  Adoptions usually involve a certificate and some goodies to acknowledge your donation, regular updates about the animal’s wellbeing, and sometimes even a chance to visit the animal in person. Your friend or family member will be delighted to watch their gift make a difference in a rescued or protected creature’s life. 
 

4. Find a fairtrade favourite

If your birthday gift recipient is a bonafide chocolate or coffee connoisseur, wake them to the delicious smell of some ethical brew on their birthday.

  Purchasing Fairtrade products like coffee beans or chocolates for your loved one brings more than birthday joy; it helps support ethical companies that treat their workers with kindness, provide fair wages, and do their bit to conserve the environment. These treats also tend to be healthier gifts, as they’re not laden with chemicals and preservatives.

  So, next time you want to satisfy your loved one’s taste buds, look for certified Fairtrade goods on the shelves. Give a birthday gift that tastes great and makes the world a better place.
 

5. Look for a book

As any librarian will tell you, reading is one of the best ways to broaden our horizons and deepen our understanding of others. Exploring new perspectives through books makes us more empathetic and understanding, and it helps us develop our creative skills and imaginations too.

  A book is the perfect birthday gift to encourage kindness. It helps your friend or family member learn about other cultures, beliefs and ways of life, which fosters a spirit of inclusion and acceptance. Children’s books are especially wonderful for teaching the little ones in your life that everyone is unique and deserving of kindness.
 

6. Spend the day doing good

Sometimes, life’s greatest gifts are those that money can’t buy.

  Simply spending time with your loved one can be one of the sweetest birthday presents you can give. Make the day memorable and meaningful by spending their birthday doing something good for each other and your community. 

  You might take the morning to pick up rubbish on the beach and the afternoon enjoying the immaculate landscape. Perhaps you’ll sip lattes and chat together as you walk dogs from your local animal shelter. Or, indulge in a delicious lunch before gathering food for your city’s food bank. 

  Whatever you choose, you’ll help them spend an unforgettable birthday while making their community a better place.

  *****

  Now that we’ve talked about six birthday gifts that spread kindness to your loved ones, your community, and even further afield,  it’s up to you to decide which gift will bring the most joy! 

  From microfinancing an agricultural entrepreneur in Vietnam to investing in your loved one’s personal development through reading, your birthday gift will spread joy while positively impacting the world we live in. What could be a better present than that?