14 Quick Actions to Give Back this Holiday Season

The holiday season is as much about giving to your loved ones as it is about giving back. There are a lot of people in need who would benefit from the time, money, or resources of those who are more fortunate. However, it’s also a very busy time for most– and finding opportunities to give back may be easier said than done. Luckily it’s possible to make a huge difference for others or your community from the comfort of your home, in your spare time. Here are 14 ways to help others from anywhere this holiday season.

1. For your holiday grocery shopping, consider sustainable agriculture from your local farmer's market or farm co-op, many of which deliver. Also try downloading food waste reduction apps like TooGoodToGo, Flashfood, and Olio that either allow you to get or give food donations or rescue unsold food at local stores.

2. Donate any unwanted food to your local food bank or soup kitchen or through the apps above. That could include shelf-stable pantry items, fresh produce, hot meals, baked goods, and more. Find a local pantry at FeedingAmerica.org.

3. Do last-minute holiday shopping (or year-round shopping) with a B-corp, a company with a social mission. Examples include Tom's Shoes, 4Ocean bracelets, and more.

4. Also consider buying holiday gifts whose proceeds go to leading charities. Some great charity online stores include the ACLU, the Red Cross, Black Lives Matter, and more.

5. Donate old clothing and household items to your community. You can post your items on Craigslist, Freecycle.org, Nextdoor, and Buy Nothing Facebook groups.

6. Are you into painting, knitting, crocheting, upcycling, or other crafts? Consider donating your creations this holiday season around your community too.

7. The holidays can be lonely for some, so consider starting an online community or meet-up group on Facebook or Meetup.com. You can also volunteer as an online “listener” on mental health chatroom sites like 7cups.com.

8. Offer to babysit, pet sit, house sit, or give out free rides for people on Craigslist or “for free” groups online. If not free, consider doing it for cheap on Care.com, Sittercity, Airbnb, and elsewhere.

9. Wanna be more civically engaged going into the 2024 election? Volunteer to phone bank or text bank for local or national politicians and organizations on Mobilize.us. 

10. You can also share petitions online from Change.org, MoveOn.org, and thepetitionsite.com on social media, as well as fundraisers, news articles, memes, and guides that’ll get your friends informed and passionate about different causes.

11. Support your favorite nonprofits, charities, and political organizations this season by donating to organizations online. Or give directly to other individuals in need at Gofundme.com.

12. You can also microlend money to people in need on sites like Kiva.org and SoLo.com, where in some instances you can make a small amount of profit on interest.

13. Conscious of staying fit or losing holiday pounds? Run, walk, or roll a 5k for a good cause. Some organizations offer “virtual” charity walks you can do from home. Check CharityMiles and Eventbrite for opportunities.

14. Use other creative apps like CharityMiles or 7cups to help people in need– like BeMyEyes where you can help the blind, FreeRice where a word game raises money for emergency food, TabforaCause where just opening any website earns money for charity, LibriVox where you can help record audiobooks so anyone can listen to classic books for free, and more.

Check out more opportunities to make a difference from anywhere with Remotely Good. We share a quick action you can take to make a social impact every day in our paid daily newsletter as well as in our free weekly newsletter. Subscribe today and check us out on Facebook, X, IG, and Threads @remotely_good.