It's time to start thinking about where your clothes REALLY come from

Fashion is always one of the last things to change when a consumer 'greens' or improves personal shopping habits.

Think about “fair trade” for a moment.

What’s the first thing that comes to mind? Most likely, you’re thinking about coffee or chocolate, or perhaps sugar, too, if you’re better informed than the average consumer. But have you ever stopped to think about fair fashion, and what it takes for clothes to be made ethically and sustainably by workers who are fairly compensated for their labour? If the answer is no, you’re not alone.

The sad reality is that ethical fashion has yet to become mainstream. It exists, but only within small, specialized circles of designers, retailers, and consumers who are aware of the importance of sourcing ethically made clothes. The rest of us are “stuck on coffee,” as they say, when it comes to fair trade.

While it’s excellent that so many people now seek out ethical coffee – it is the second most widely traded commodity in the world – it’s also a source of concern to those in the fashion world that consumers are content to get their ethical consumer fix from those easy commodities and take it no further.

Read more: http://www.treehugger.com/sustainable-fashion/its-time-start-thinking-about-where-your-clothes-really-come.html

Even It Up: Time to End Extreme Economic Inequality

Around the world, the gap between the rich and poor is spiralling out of control. Extreme inequality is not accidental or inevitable - it's the result of deliberate policy choices by people in power. Together we must even it up and stop inequality from undermining our fight against poverty.

Source: Films for Action & Oxfam

A new, better world is possible ... but we have to create it

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

A new, better and fairer society and world is possible but we have to create it and give it life. No one can do it for us, and capitalism and the power-that-be certainly have no interest in doing such a thing. In fact they will do their darnedest to prevent us from doing so.

Only we, ourselves, together, in small steps, can create and make this new, better and fairer world and society by getting, to start with, off the perpetual growth economy bandwagon and the pursuit of more, and ever more; more money, more possessions, the latter which often means more debt, which means more work and less time for ourselves, our families and our friends.

The perpetual growth economy and the race for more, more, and then still more, never being satisfied with what we have, is not sustainable and does not make for happiness either.

People who are lucky enough to have employment work more and more and ever longer hours – or two jobs – to satisfy the constant cravings for ever more and “keeping up with the Joneses”; in fact has become a race to always be one better than the Joneses. This must change for the sake of our sanity and for the sake of the Planet.

Capitalism is geared to the exploitation of man by man and of Nature by man and it cannot be reformed. Therefore it must be consigned to the dustbin of history, and the sooner the better, and a new system applied. The so-called communism that we have seen under Stalin, et al, also was but a different form of capitalism where the state was the owner and slave master. Thus something different still is needed; true communism.

This brings me to the point of the state (we will come back to the replacement for capitalism later).

The very state itself must be abolished and replaced, though not with another kind of state. The people must govern themselves; true democracy, out of the village, the demos.

The state is not of benefit and neither it is needed. If fact, the state is one of the problems, if not indeed the problem, for the new society and world that we must create to be created.

People often like to say that the state is a necessary evil. But that would also mean that evil is necessary and that really is an oxymoron. The fact is that the state is evil and thus must be abolished.

The replacement for this is the village. Yes, we have had that one once before, the village, I mean, and to the village we must return and so must democracy for from the village it came.

We have to imagine it to make it happen.

Imagine that there truly was equality for all? It can be made to happen but it is up to us to make it so.

Imagine that the corrupt minority did not exist and were actually genuinely interested seeing true equality for all! Well, the problem is, presently, that they still do exist but we can make a change and we must imagine a new way.

Imagine a world not based on money and the exchange of money? It is possible and it is being done already. While, presently, it may not be global and maybe global is something we also must get away from and look entirely at the local, the village, level. However, new ways, and some are actually old ways, of exchange are already in existence and local currencies have been in use in many places for years already and they are, by no means, new. Thus, it can be done.

Imagine a life where everyone is taught to work together and in return receive a life where they are always well fed, cared for, free to study and learn and develop right through their life from cradle to grave! This was the way it was intended in true socialism though, alas, that system got corrupted by power crazy individuals. The idea was for work to be a duty as well as an honor and that all work was equal in value. Can it become reality? Yes, it can, if we can but imagine it and create it.

Imagine there was no such thing as the elite? All we have to do is take away their pedestal upon which they have placed themselves. They are no better than us. There are no “betters” despite the fact that still some people – a great many of them – seem to believe that because they have been indoctrinated almost from birth that this is so. That there are some that are better than the majority of the people.

Imagine that not one single soul had to suffer or worry, ever! It is possible.

And while there may be some, quite a few, in fact, no doubt, who will dismiss this as utopian who says that utopia cannot be imagined and created. This utopia is, in fact, called true socialism and it is possible.

© 2014

Poverty Is Not Inevitable: What We Can Do Now to Turn Things Around

Having poor people in the richest country in the world is a choice. We have the money to solve this. But do we have the will?

Inequality and poverty are suddenly hot topics, not only in the United States but also across the globe. Since the early 1980s, there has been a growing underclass in America. At the same time a much smaller class, now called the superrich, built its wealth to levels of opulence not seen since France’s Louis XVI. Despite this, the resulting inequality went mostly unnoticed. When the Great Recession of 2008 hit, and the division between the very wealthy and the rest of us came starkly into focus, various people and groups, including the Occupy movement, began insisting more publicly that we tax wealth. But still, helping the poor has been mostly a discussion on the fringes. At last, the terms of public debate have changed, because inequality and poverty now are debated regularly in the mainstream media and across the political spectrum, not solely by labor, by the left, and by others imagining a new economy.

Inserting such a controversial topic into mainstream discourse is French economist Thomas Piketty. His 700-page tome, Capital in the Twenty-First Century, shocked everyone this year when it made The New York Timesbestseller list and bookstores found themselves backordering an economicsbook for legions of eager readers. Piketty did exhaustive searches of tax records from Great Britain, France, and the United States, going as far back as the late 18th century in France. Using sophisticated computer modeling and analyses, the professor from the Paris School of Economics debunks a long-held assumption—that income from wages will tend to grow at roughly the same rate as wealth—and instead makes a compelling case that, over time, the apparatus of capitalism grows wealth faster than wages. Result: Inequality between the wealthy and everyone else will widen faster and faster; and, without progressive taxation, his data show we’ll return to levels of inequality not seen since America’s Gilded Age.

Piketty, no Marxist, says a solution lies in a “confiscatory” tax on wealth: Tax salaries over $500,000 at 80 percent worldwide, and tax wealth at 15 percent worldwide. Every year.

Read more: http://www.yesmagazine.org/issues/the-end-of-poverty/why-poverty-is-not-inevitable

99-year-old Woman Sews a Dress for an African Child Every Single Day

In a senior living community in Davenport, Iowa, a group of residents meet weekly to sew dresses for a charitable organization. But for Lillian Weber the hobby has turned into a mission: In her Bettendorf farm house she makes a dress for a small girl in Africa every single day.

By next May 6, when she celebrates her 100th birthday, her tally will reach 1,000 handmade dresses donated. In the past two years she’s finished more than 840 of them.

She may use just a single pattern but adorns each one with special decoration, ribbon or ruffle that make the dress one-of-a-kind.

“When I get to that thousand, if I’m able to, I won’t quit,” she told WQAD-TV. “I’ll go at it again.”

She simply loves what she does. She also said she needs to stay busy.

Read more: http://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/99-year-old-lady-sews-dress-african-child-every-single-day/

How Cooperation Jackson is Transforming the Poorest State in the U.S.

With a median household income of just over $37,000, Mississippi is the poorest state in the United States. A powerhouse organization promoting economic justice, Cooperation Jackson was born of a need to transform the state, in particular its capital and largest city, Jackson. Cooperation Jackson is a network of interconnected yet independent institutions including an incubator and training center, a cooperative bank, and a federation of established cooperatives. Together, they're exploring the potential of cooperatives to transform local communities.

Cooperation Jackson is emerging as a leader in the global cooperative movement and the struggle for economic democracy. Among other things, the organization teaches people about the importance of worker cooperatives and how to create one. It recently hosted the Jackson Rising: New Economies Conference, to lay a foundation for the transformation of the city and establish it as a center for economic democracy. The event was a great success, attracting international attention and moving Cooperation Jackson further into the spotlight.

Shareable caught up with Kali Akuno, Coordinator of Cooperation Jackson, to talk about the impact that the organization has had on the community, the challenges that it faces from political opposition, and how they’re planting the seeds for wealth equity in an impoverished region.

Shareable: Cooperation Jackson consists of a federation of cooperatives, an incubator, a training center, and a cooperative bank. This pretty much covers the bases for the new economy. Can you talk about the plan for Cooperation Jackson and how it came about?

Kali Akuno: Cooperation Jackson is the realization of a vision that is long in the making. The vision was produced by the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement and the New Afrikan People’s Organization and began to be operationalized in 2005, when these two entities started to develop a long-term strategy to transform the city of Jackson and the state of Mississippi. The vision is known as the Jackson-Kush Plan, and was made public in 2011 via a document with that same title. Cooperation Jackson is the manifestation of the solidarity economy aspect of that transformative vision.

Cooperation Jackson has many ambitious plans. It would probably take a book to deal with them all. But, one of our primary objectives is to have a minimum of 10 percent of the jobs in Jackson be drawn directly from the federation of worker cooperatives that we are producing. And we are looking to have an even greater percentage of the city’s GNP being produced by Cooperation Jackson.

Read more: http://www.shareable.net/blog/how-cooperation-jackson-is-transforming-the-poorest-state-in-the-us

CO-OP VOTED MOST ETHICAL COMPANY IN PAST 25 YEARS BY ETHICAL CONSUMER READERS

The Co-operative Group has been voted the UK's most ethical company over the past 25 years by readers of Ethical Consumer magazine in spite of the problems that have recently beset the company.

The Co-op topped the poll in a readers' survey to mark the 25th birthday of Ethical Consumer magazine.

Ethical Consumer co-director Tim Hunt said: "Over the past 25 years the Co-op has been at the forefront of the ethical consumer movement. From its supermarket, which was the first retailer to stock only Fairtrade bananas and ban products from the Occupied Palestinian Territories, to the pioneering ethical policy of its bank, the Co-operative Group has been a genuine ethical trailblazer.”

"Many commentators have had their knives out for the Co-op Group in recent months. Ethical Consumer's readers however are able to see through the spin and realise that despite the problems the Co-op remains an ethical business at heart – at least for the time being.”

In the same survey the controversial multi-national food giant Nestlé topped the poll as the least ethical company over the past 25 years.

The Swiss-based company is the subject of the world's longest-running boycott with activists campaigning against the marketing of its baby milk formula for over 30 years.

Ethical Consumer co-director Tim Hunt said: “Our poll shows that people still feel strongly about Nestlé even after so many years, despite the company's best efforts at greenwash by using Fairtrade chocolate in some of its products. From baby milk to Kit Kats and across all its product lines, Nestlé's brands score just 1 out of 14 on our ethical rankings tables.”

In the same survey Amazon, Tesco and Shell were named as the most boycotted companies.

The top 10 most ethical companies over the past 25 years as voted by Ethical Consumer readers are:

Co-op; Lush, Traidcraft; Triodos; People Tree; Ecotricity; Suma; Good Energy; Riverford; John Lewis.

The top ten least ethical companies over the past 25 years as voted by Ethical Consumer readers are:

Nestlé; Monsanto; Amazon; Shell; Tesco; Barclays; Exxon; Wal Mart; Coca Cola; Primark

The most boycotted companies as voted by Ethical Consumer readers are:

Amazon; Tesco; Shell; Primark; Coke.

Details on the reader survey can be seen here: http://www.ethicalconsumer.org/aboutus/ethicalconsumerat25/thebestandworstofthelast25years.aspx

Readers were asked what was the biggest action they had taken to reduce their environmental impact. The top five answers were:

Changed electricity suppliers; gone vegan, bought solar panels; started cycling for transport; stopped flying.

Readers were also asked what was their most difficult ethical shopping decision. The top five answers were:

Stop using Amazon; stop flying; boycotting unethical clothing retailers; not upgrading my mobile phone; stop eating meat.

In addition to that readers were asked what will be the most important developments for ethical shopping over the next 25 years. The top five answers were:

Better ethical labelling; more Fairtrade products; greater transparency from companies; clamping down on tax avoidance; greater use of social media to share ethical shopping choices.

And further readers were asked what product or brand they would like to be ethical that currently isn't.

The most popular response was Apple.

Launched in 1989 Ethical Consumer is the UK's leading ethical and environmental magazine. In each issue Ethical Consumer examines the ethical and environmental record of the companies behind everyday products and services from bread to banks. For more information visit the Ethical Consumer website: www.ethicalconsumer.org

CHOCOLATES FOR A CAUSE: COMPARTES CHOCOLATIER & RELIEF BEADS FOR DARFUR

Compartes Chocolatier has joined with Relief Beads for Darfur to raise money and awareness for Relief International’s philanthropic programs in Darfur.

Trend-setting Compartes Chocolatier has created an African Collection with African-inspired flavors.

The five truffles, each imprinted with a different colored African continent are: Cardamom + Coconut, Grains of Paradise + African Mango, Caramelized Plantain, African Cacao Bean, and Organic Red Rooibus Tea.

Every purchase provides 2 months education for a child or feeds a malnourished child for over 1 week.

The African Collection, complimented with a Relief Beads bracelet, comes in a 5 piece ($20) and a ten piece ($30). Relief Beads are also available individually ($8). Funds raised from this collaboration will directly fund a women’s center and malnourished children in Darfur. Chocolates for a Cause: Compartes Chocolatier + Relief Beads for Darfur are available at www.compartes.com and Compartes Boutique in Los Angeles.

Relief Beads bracelets are handmade from sand in Africa. Each bracelet is made individually, so no two bracelets look alike. The funds raised are donated to Relief International, a leading agency providing assistance in Darfur. Relief International’s programs are extensive and critical: they operate the second largest refugee camp, administer medical care at their many clinics, provide life-saving therapeutic care to malnourished children, and fund educational costs for thousands of students. To learn more about Relief International visit www.ri.org.

Relief Beads began one year ago and quickly became fashionably popular. Thousands of people have ordered Relief Beads and tens of thousands of dollars have been raised. Many celebrities have also endorsed Relief Beads, including Marcia Cross, Jessica Biel, and Mandy Moore. For more info visit www.reliefbeads.org or www.compartes.com.

Source: Relief Beads & Relief International
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Love your planet, choose organic - choose Cafédirect

Cafédirect, the UK's leading 100% Fairtrade hot drinks company, is supporting the Soil Association's Organic Fortnight 2008 (6-21 September 2008).

The theme of this year's campaign is "love your planet, choose organic", aiming to raise awareness of the environmental, health, and social benefits of organic farming.

Cafédirect actively encourages and supports its growers to make the conversion from conventional to organic farming. It pays higher premiums for organic products, providing an incentive for farmers to make the switch. As Victorico Velasquez Morales, coffee grower, CESMACH Co-operative, Mexico explains, "Last year the extra premium we received from Cafédirect for our organic Palenque coffee was used to pay a better price to all our organic producers. This year the agreement is to do the same".

As well as paying an extra premium for organic and gourmet coffee beans, Cafédirect also reinvests, on average, 60% of its profits into its growers' businesses and communities. This support helps strengthen farmers' organisations, develop their knowledge and expertise and enables them to build a sustainable future for themselves and their families.

Don Toño is a founding member of the Juan Sabines Gutierrez co-operative in Mexico. He is part of a pioneering wave of farmers that produce organic coffee for Cafédirect. "I am convinced that organic production creates a future for us. We need to conserve the land otherwise we wont be able to produce any coffee in the long-term. The problem is that to produce coffee organically, it takes a lot more effort and time. Through support from Cafédirect, we have been able to develop practical methods for organic farming."

An example of one of these methods is organic composting. Here Don Toño shares his secret organic compost recipe, all the way from Mexico. Why not try it in your garden at home?

Mix 50kg of cows manure with 2 litres of cows milk, 2 kg of brown sugar, 100g of oxygenated water and (the secret ingredient!) 5kg of ground chilli. "Chilli not only stops diseases from developing, but our coffee plants give much more fruit with this special organic mix", explains Don Toño.

Organic Fortnight gives everyone the perfect excuse to enjoy organic products like Cafédirect's range of delicious organic Fairtrade hot drinks. Choose from:

Cafédirect Organic Mount Elgon gourmet coffee beans
Organically grown on the lush slopes of Mount Elgon in Uganda, these hand-picked beans have a fresh citrus-sweet flavour and a full, well-rounded taste. RRP: £3.19 for a 227g pack. Available from Morrisons
Three star Gold winner in the 2008 Great Taste Awards

Cafédirect Organic Machu Picchu gourmet coffee beans and gourmet fresh ground coffee
Hand-picked Arabica beans, grown on the lush foothills of the Andes are expertly roasted to create a really full-bodied taste with a nutty flavour and dark chocolate overtones. RRP: £3.19 for a 227g pack. Available from most major supermarkets
One star Gold winners in the 2007 and 2008 Great Taste Awards

Cafédirect Organic Palenque gourmet fresh ground coffee
Grown on the misty highlands surrounding the ancient Mayan city of Palenque, Mexico, the aroma of this coffee combines two of nature's most heavenly flavours - chocolate and honey. RRP: £3.19 / most major supermarkets
One star Gold winner in the 2008 Great Taste Awards

Cafédirect Organic Medium Roast fresh ground coffee
Sourced from Cafédirect's growers in Africa and Latin America, it is a coffee full of bright clean flavours with the slightest hint of spice. RRP: £3.09 for a 227g pack. Available from the Co-op
One star Gold winner in the 2008 Great Taste Awards

Organic Decaffeinated freeze dried instant coffee
Made from 100% organic Arabica beans, gently decaffeinated with a natural process, this coffee is roasted for a medium-bodied, slightly nutty flavour that you'll enjoy all day long. RRP: £3.25 for a 100g jar. Available from most major supermarkets
One star Gold winner in the 2008 Great Taste Awards

To find out more about Cafédirect's work with its growers and its products visit www.cafedirect.co.uk

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Cafédirect triumphs in Great Taste Awards – 8 awards in 08!

Cafédirect, the UK’s pioneering Fairtrade hot drinks company, is celebrating winning eight prestigious Gold Great Taste Awards - leading the hot beverages category this year.

This, undoubtedly, shows that Fairtrade coffee and tea and other drinks do not have to be low class and mediocre.

Since the early days of Fairtrade when there was often lowish quality a result of the way things were done thins is no longer the case. Today, as can be seen here, Fairtrade brands lead the field in taste.

Regarded as the food and drink industry’s Oscars, The Guild of Fine Food’s annual Great Taste Awards are the UK’s largest independent evaluation of gourmet and fine food and drink.

Leading the bumper crop of awards was Cafédirect’s Organic Mount Elgon gourmet coffee beans, which scooped the coveted three star Gold award. A three star gold award is a great achievement, and shows that the expert judges considered the single origin Ugandan beans from the Gumutindo co-operative on the slopes of Mount Elgon to be faultless. Just 72 out of the 4753 entries this year were awarded three stars.

“This prestigious award is a culmination of years of collaboration between Gumutindo and Cafédirect in farmer education, along with Fairtrade incentives.” Nimrod Wambette, Chairman of Gumutindo Cooperative, Mt Elgon, Uganda.

Cafédirect’s Cloud Forest gourmet coffee beans received an impressive two gold stars, single origin 100% Arabica beans grown in the mountains of the stunning cloud forests of Nicaragua.

Matthew Drennan, Editor of delicious. magazine says “Eight Great Taste Awards is a fantastic achievement, a true reflection of Cafédirect’s brand ethos and the superb quality of its fresh ground coffee and coffee beans. Re-investing a high proportion of its profits to educate the growers in how to improve their beans means there’s every chance the quality of next year’s harvest will be even better. I’m enjoying the fruits of their labours this year, but I’m already looking forward to next year’s!”

The following coffees and teas won one gold star award – noted for their general excellence in taste, texture and flavour. Teadirect Gold tea (bags), launched this year. An exquisite blend of leaves from Cafédirect’s grower partners in Kenya, Rwanda and Assam in India, expertly blended for depth of flavour and aroma. Three coffees from Cafédirect’s gourmet fresh ground coffee range won one gold star each: Organic Palenque made from 100% Arabica beans sourced purely from Mexico, Kilimanjaro fresh ground Arabica coffee grown on the steep slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, and Organic Machu Picchu sourced solely from Peruvian coffee beans grown on the lush mountains surrounding Machu Picchu. Organic Medium Roast fresh ground coffee also won one gold star, as did Cafédirect’s Organic decaffeinated premium freeze dried instant coffee.

Zachary Dominitz, Head of Corporate Affairs for Cafédirect says, “We are delighted, but not surprised, that our products have excelled on taste. Growers are the heart of Cafédirect, and our direct relationships with them – and their pride in their work – guarantee we get the best possible produce, and that’s reflected in the quality of our hot drinks. “In the last three years alone we have reinvested 60% of our profits directly into growers' organisations and communities, enabling them to build sustainable businesses and continually improve the quality of their crops. And it shows!"

For further information about Cafédirect’s award-winning products and the rest of the range, visit www.cafedirect.co.uk. The site is also full of information about Cafédirect’s grower partners, its pioneering work in Fairtrade and it’s Climate Change project.

“Through their Producer Partnership Programme, Cafédirect has gone out of the box to show there is a lot more that can be done than just Fairtrade. The extra effort made in building farmer and management capacity in a bid to sustain supplies of tea has been received by us farmers and factory staff with appreciation. It has placed Cafédirect in a class of its own which is worthy of my respect.”Julius Ethang'atha, Tea Grower, Michimikuru, Kenya.

“When our cooperative first began working with Cafédirectover five years ago I didn’t believe there would be anychange in our lives. Now I am sitting here today feeling veryhappy. The growers are paid better prices and receivetraining. Cafédirect is not like the others. I did not believeanything would change but now it is changing.” Emiliana Aligaesha, Coffee Grower, KDCU, Tanzania.

Awards

Teadirect, Cafédirect’s tea brand, was a finalist in the Hot Beverage category in the 2008 Branded Excellence Awards.

In a survey of 2,000 global brands Cafédirect ranks No. 1 as the most recommended brand (Source: Millward Brown, March 2007).

Combining taste, price, ethics, and availability, Teadirect tops the Fairtrade Tea category: New Consumer Magazine, February 2008.

About Cafédirect

Growers play a key role in every aspect of Cafédirect, from governance to product design. They own shares in the company and have 2 directors on the Board.

Together with their grower partners, Cafédirect shares a passion for producing the best quality teas, coffees and drinking chocolate. The company's latest is the premium Teadirect Gold, is now available at Waitrose.

Cafédirect was founded in 1991, predating Fairtrade in the UK by three years and was the first coffee brand to carry the mark. With a turnover of £22.3 million (2006/07), Cafédirect are the UK’s largest 100% Fairtrade hot drinks company, the 5th largest coffee brand and 7th largest tea brand.

Cafédirect’s work has directly improved the lives of 1.4 million people in developing countries by partnering with nearly 300,000 smallholder growers through 39 grower organisations across 13 developing countries.

Over the last 3 years the company has invested on average 60% of profits in the businesses and communities of its grower partners.

Supporting sustainable development, Cafédirect pioneered a minimum price for tea growers, and reward growers for quality and organic produce.

Cafédirect's range of delicious 100% Fairtrade coffees, teas, and hot chocolate is available in major supermarkets, independent retailers, Oxfam shops, Traidcraft mail order, and the Cafédirect online store, as well as thousands of food service venues, such as hospitals, universities, schools and hotels. They are also available in Ireland, Hong Kong, and Singapore.

To learn more about Cafédirect visit www.cafedirect.co.uk.

Michael Smith (Veshengro), August 2008
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Is Ethical Shopping Becoming the Victim of the “Credit Crunch”?

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

There appear to be signs on the horizon that indicate that shoppers may abandon ethical shopping in the fact of rising prices, especially cost of food and fuel.

Organic foods and fair trade goods are being bought less, already, it would appear, than it was only a few weeks back.

Concern for others less well off and especially for growers and producers of coffee, tea, cotton and such, and concern for the environment are the first to suffer and go out of the window when it comes to prices, in general and especially for food, going up. Then even BOGOF offers not longer cut it and it is straight forward price reductions that shoppers look for.

Where does this leave Fair Trade and organics and green produce and products, as well as services and suppliers?

Considering that, more often than not, fair trade and other ethical products, goods and services are somewhat more expensive – in some case a lot more expensive – than “ordinary” ones people vote, in times of economic “hardship” and recession, even if it is only perceived “hardship” and recession, with the pocketbooks and their feet. That is to say they buy other goods that are not fair trade or organic or green or ethically produced. They will then go, mostly, for non-fair trade products which are significantly cheaper that any ethical goods and products. This is with the exception of some produce such as tea and bananas at Sainsbury's in the UK, for instance, where all of their own brand tea and all of their bananas are fair trade and the price remained the same as before.

While I am well aware, as I am sure other people are too, that a fixed price and premium is paid to the producers under the fair trade agreements, ate times, I am more than certain, retailers do put a nice little profit margin onto fair trade and other ethical goods, knowing that the ethical shopper is prepared to pay extra to have the money go to the producers. Most are not aware of how high that profit margin is, at times.

Not surprising at a time when such products are demanded by the buying public and the same is true for anything recycled and “green” and for any environmentally friendly goods. Here too, in the recycled and environmental friendly product sector, because of demand, many makers, manufacturers and sellers have added a rather big margin to rake it in. Is that ethical? No!

It is therefore not surprising that at times like these when fuel and food costs are going up and up shoppers are not prepared to pay through the nose often and therefore go for the non-fair trade and other products.

While the fair trade premium paid to the producers is one thing, in many of the other cases the costs are that high because the sellers know full well that people want to be and be seen to be green and to have a conscience. People who want to be seen to be thus are therefore also quite willing to pay such premium while the economy is more or less booming but, as it seems to ease their consciences to do so and to do “their bit” for the poor or for the environment. However, when there is a downturn and the economy throws a wobbly such ethical principles soon are abandoned and no such goods and produce are being bought, or at least they are bought less.

I must say that, with some of the prices charged for “green goods” I am not surprised that under conditions of perceived hardship people will not buy them. Some are a rip off as far as costs are concerned. There was a saying that one cannot get money for old robe. Today this, however, no longer holds true. I am not sure about getting money for old rope but some green “designers” and crafts people sure ask money for old rope (see my article elsewhere).

Sainsbury's has recently fought, it would seem, a price war with the likes of Tesco and ASDA as regards to “Delight” chocolate and, as far as can be seen from the restocked shelves, has now deselected the Divine fair trade brand and has gone for a much more expensive brand that is not all fair trade and I am sure we can see here, yet again, that money begins to speak against the principles that that company was claiming it had.

The truth is, and that applies to supermarkets and retailers as much as to the shopper, that the bottom line is all that the majority are concerned with and only when it suits them will they, the majority that is, be interested to be seen to be green or ethical. There will remain some that will stay true to their principles but I doubt that many retailers will. The same will also be true for many shoppers. To the seller any fair trade that does not sell is a loss-leader and something to be replaced, period. To the shopper who has to watch his pocketbook it is the price that counts for the food or what-have-you in times of economic wobble and not whether or not he is green or does good. That is the bottom line. Now where does that leave fair trade and the green sector?

© M Smith (Veshengro), May 2008

Ethical Gift Giving

This holiday season shed your consumerism and put your money towards building a more sustainable world with an economy based on quality of life. Here are some alternative ideas those who love to give.

Buy locally. Not only will in this way this support local artists, businesses and farmers, but you will lower your carbon footprint by not having to ship gifts around the country or world.

Buy used items. Yes, even for gift giving. Take the challenge to buy nothing new. Look for used bookstores, record stores, clothing stores, odds & end stores. Check out items on craigslist.org. Recycle items through freecycle.org.

Here in the UK there are many so-called Charity Shops who are but Thrift Stores by another name and who are operated by one or the other charity, at times even rather local charities. Not only do you, when shopping for your gifts there, reduce your own carbon footprint, you also give to a good and worthy cause at the same time.

Give “I owe you” coupons. This can be a fun way to do nice things for others, when they want them, without consuming anything. Think cleaning the bathroom (anyone offering?), cleaning the car or bike, babysitting, taking days off work or making dinners.

Give love, not presents. Thank significant people in your life for their love, support, friendship and partnership. Take time to write a nice letter or card.

Bake. Spend money buying organic ingredients and take time to bake a treat or dinner for your loved ones.

Make your own gifts! Don’t run to the craft store just yet. Think about how you can use items around the house or even scraps of items you find around town or would otherwise throw away. Create beauty from waste. If you have ever thought “practical recycling” then I am sure you will find ways to do this. I could write a lot about this here in this piece but there are some ideas to be found elsewhere in this publication and definitely in many places on the Internet.

Give plants. Buy plants from local businesses or at farmers markets to give to others. Pot them in old containers or in used plastic coffee cups. Make sure you drill holes in the bottom for drainage. Instead of ornamental plants, give herbs that people can grow and eat themselves!

And as a thought for “plant giving” for next year; start your own from seeds. So next year come Hanukkah and Christmas, birthdays, etc. you can give such plant gifts without having to even go and buy them.

Give your time. Most people are always busy, right? Perhaps what would mean the most to someone is to spend time with them over the holidays, or make a larger commitment for the next year. Volunteer for local organizations. Care for family. Make a date.

Make a donation as a gift. Donate money on behalf of Iraqi refugees, environmental protection or to help out less fortunate people in our own community. Search for “ethical,” “meaningful,” or “charitable” gifts online to get some ideas.

© Michael Smith (Veshengro), December 2007