A reusable water bottle made from recycled single-use plastics, a seasonal candle that becomes a plant pot, and a school backpack made from rubbish – it can only be the shortlist of Ethical and Sustainable finalists in this year’s Gift of the Year Awards.

That’s right, the Giftware Association has finally lifted the lid on the finalists vying for the coveted Gift of the Year win this year and released the shortlist of contenders all to be celebrated for their innovation across the categories.

More than 100 judges, including Products of Change’s own Helena Mansell-Stopher, have been busy whittling down the longlist across no fewer than 19 categories in the Gift of the Year Awards this year to land on an exciting line-up for the 2023 competition.

And it’s encouraging to see the level of innovation and reflection that has gone into the products making up the Ethical and Sustainable Gift of the Year category this time around.

Those finalists include Letterbox Love and its Seeded pet loss sympathy gift featuring a heartfelt poem printed on a seeded card which can be planted to ‘bloom a living memory’ of a pet no longer with us; FYG and its Seasons Collection candle that not only lasts six months, burning from one season to another but is made from 100% vegetable wax and delivered in a pot to be used to plant an accompanying seed card once the candle is burnt; and Honest Bottle, the only reusable bottle made from locally-sourced recycled single-use bottles.

They are joined in competition for the Ethical and Sustainable Gift of the Year title by Trashy Bags Africa Limited and its Trashy School Bag – a school backpack made using more than 60 individual water sachets collected from Ghana. Since the company was founded, it has managed to reclaim and recycle over 30 million sachets, playing a leading role in sustainable development in Africa right now.

Also shortlisted is Love Coco and its Love Coco Coconut Bowls produced from upcycled, hand crafted coconut shells; Elite and its Emma Bridgewater – Rice Husk Picnicware; Auteur Limited’s Tru Earth range of ultra-concentrated, eco-friendly washing powder; Thinking Gifts Company Limited’s Flexilight Rechargeable Collection of booklights; and a new to the UK range of wooden, LEGO-compatible blocks called FabBrix, distributed by Inside Out Toys. The shortlisted range is a WWF officially-licensed collection of endangered animals.

And that’s still not all. The Silicone Straw Company sees its Reusable Silicone Straws in Handy Travel Tins make the shortlist this year, as does Just Trade’s Tagua Town collectable animals, all of which are individually hand carved by artisan makers in Ecuador from a single tagua seed, harvested from the tagua palm tree which grows wild in South American rainforests.

The line up of Ethical and Sustainable Gift of the Year finalists is made complete by Go La La’s Filthy Gorgeous bath and beauty collection and Wrapuccino’s Reusable fabric gift wrap – furoshiki, the reusable alternative to single-use wrapping.

Helena Mansell-Stopher, Leo of Products of Change and a judge in this year’s Ethical and Sustainable Gift of the Year category, said: “It’s wonderful to see companies advancing their sustainability requirements by embracing circular economy thinking and looking at ways to reduce waste. The level of ambition has definitely exceeded previous years.

“To me, all nominees are already winners as they are pushing boundaries of what is possible in business to create the new normal. Huge congratulations to you all.”

This shortlist will now go on to face the next round of judging to be held live at Spring Fair next month, where all the products will be on display in a dedicated judging zone at the Birmingham NEC.

Chris Workman, marketing and PR manager for the Giftware Association, said: “This year has been a fantastic year for us as we have grown the competition, attracted brand new companies to the awards, and refined our categories.

“Some of the products that have been entered are very exciting and we can’t wait to showcase this year’s shortlist to you and celebrate the incredible entries in this year’s awards competition.”