Last Saturday’s snow already feels like a sparkling dream, but Lund couldn’t have looked more festive this weekend for the Sustainable Christmas Market, organised by Lund’s Hållbart Universitet (Students for Sustainability) in collaboration with Folkuniversitetet and Domkyrkoforum.
Photo: Jens Hansen
A band was playing carols beside the glistening Christmas tree in Stortorget, a horse and carriage clip clopped across the cobbles and shoppers were out in force, bundled in bobble hats and mufflers. The whole view dappled with floating flakes of snow made it picture postcard perfect.
Inside the Domkyrkoforum, the Sustainable Christmas Market featured local traders selling organic, fair trade, second-hand and charity goods. A number of the stalls were renowned Lundian names, such as second-hand shop Humana and local development NGOs, ABC (Active Contributions for People and the Environment) and Svalorna. But there were also independent traders such as Lund-based Bute Lane Design selling bright fair trade jewellery from South Africa.
Photo: Jens Hansen
Second-hand as a resource
Market organiser and Lund University LUMES student Jan Di Basio explained the concept behind the event.
“The overarching theme of the market is of course Christmas consumerism, but we want to use the market as an opportunity to encourage people to rethink consumerism in terms of the kinds of products we buy and give each other – fair trade and organic instead of business as usual; second-hand as a resource rather than always buying new products; and charities supporting specific small-scale projects rather than the usual donations to the corporate NGOs.”, he says.
“We wanted people first of all to have an opportunity to buy products that held a different meaning than the usual consumerist rush, but we also wanted to offer vendors the opportunity to sell their products, raise funds for their initiatives and showcase their projects.”
But there is more to this market than just buying and selling, as Jan Di Basio points out.
“The music acts and workshops also drew people’s attention to a more communal and shared focus on Christmas cheer: the idea of sitting at a table and creating something together, or discovering local bands and promoting local talents.
Photo: Jens Hansen
A mixed audience
“Overall, the market was a real success. I spoke to all of the vendors individually and they were extremely pleased in terms of both sales and exposure and we feel that we created an opportunity for people to really rethink Christmas, especially as our audience was very varied, ranging from students to families and the elderly.”, says Jan Di Basio.
Emilia Sternberg and Miriam Follin, two Lund University students, interning at NGO Svalorna in communications and environment projects respectively, were selling sustainable Christmas cards and second-hand goods. Both agreed that the market had been a great opportunity for them to gain new supporters, raise money and promote Svalorna’s work with disadvantaged groups in India and Bangladesh, helping them achieve sustainable and equitable development.
By the time the market closed its doors, darkness had descended over Lund. But there was still one more treat in store – in snowy Stortoget Lund’s Lucia was being crowned. A fitting end to a festive day.
