Fair Trade Blog

Gifts are more precious when they are rare.

When we first opened the shop, I was looking for products as well as ways to make it a beautiful and attractive spot. One of our neighbors was selling a collection of plants he had grown, so we struck a deal and I offered some for sale while they greened up our store.

A few didn’t sell, including a little cactus which got moved time and again but never found a new home.  For the last year a half, it sat, inscrutable and barely noticed, in a side window of the shop.  Cacti like to be ignored, so it seemed happy enough to have water trickled on it once in a while.

When spring came this year, it developed a little bud on top.  Not knowing much about cacti, I thought perhaps it was finally deciding to grow.  Imagine my surprise when I came back from a long weekend and discovered a large pink bloom crowning my little cactus.

Surprise Bloom

It reminds me of the best attributes of Fair Trade.  Fair Trade is most beneficial when it takes root and blooms in economic deserts where opportunity is scarce — in places where Fair Trade becomes a rare gift.

Last fall, things were looking dark for the Arghand Cooperative. The corrupt Afghan election and deteriorating security destroyed moral. Several members announced they wanted to leave. I worried that we would lose a wonderful product and beautiful connection to something that was going right in Aghanistan.

More importantly than that, I feared the members would loose the livelyhood they had built over the last several years.  You and I have played a small part in helping them build better lives. 

Miraculously, just the opposite has happened.  The latest information describes a cooperative that continues to grow and thrive.

• The solar electic system is providing power 24/7, allowing members to press seed for oil up to 4-5 hours per day.
• Two more men and two new women have joined the coop.
• A new business plan has been created.
• New products are coming soon including lip balm, body lotion, and face cream.

Finally, let me share this quote from a recent e-mail.  “so we have decided as a group to leave politics aside and thrust ourselves back into the work of tranforming the agricultural bounty of southern Afghanistan into luxurious soaps and skin care products.”

Keep shopping your good values!

If you want to hear a great story, go to a Fair Trade shop. I have never walked into one where the owner couldn’t pick up half a dozen products and tell you an incredible story about it.

When I was in Ecuador, there were countless stories. I remember Washington, the tagua carver. We saw his shop and the new house he had built for his family, all possible through Fair Trade. He started simply, but now he employs several workers in his shop. 

And I love to tell everyone that comes in about Arghand Soap.  It’s one of our most impressive and popular products.  Their cooperative employs a handful of people and gives them an alternative to the drug trade. 

Great stories aren’t limited to our Fair Trade Shop.  Our other shop, Rhubarb, attracts some great stories as well.  Just a couple of days ago, one of the local artists that provides us with cards came in with exciting news.  One of her paintings is now on a prayer card that is distributed worldwide by the Catholic Church. You can read the story here, and see the print of the painting that was presented to the Pope.  The cards are available in our shop. 

If you are hungry for more, stop by and I’ll tell you other inspiring stories about Fair Trade and local entreprenuers!

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What is the status of fair trade in Haiti? I’ve been wondering that for the last couple of weeks after the shock of the initial earthquake crisis subsided.

Since then, reports have been trickling in from organizations that work with artisans there. They report no deaths, but some injuries among those that work in fair trade. However, development has been dramatically set back.  Homes and workshops have been destroyed along with tools and materials. 

SERRV’s partner in Haiti, Comite Artisanal Haitien, reports that they do not know when rebuilding will begin.  Most Haitiens are still trying to build some stability back into their daily lives.   Last week, SERRV sent it’s first shipment of material relief including tents, blankets, and toiletries to meet immediate needs. 

We have some beautitul items from Haiti — painted metal geckos and fascinating wall hangings cut from oil drum metal.  Stone carvings, clay nativities, and other items are also made there.  Don’t forget Haitian Mangos which you can sometimes find at the grocery. 

Don’t be offended or angry if you see these items on sale on our site or other fair trade sites.  These items had already been purchased from the artisans for a fair price.  Your purchases will sustain demand and interest, so that the artisans can produce more for the market.

With your purchase of Haitian crafts, we can help support long-term relief for Haiti.

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The news that Haiti had been hit by a devastating earthquake wrenched my heart. If ever there was a less prepared or deserving country for that kind of trauma, it is Haiti.

As far back as I can remember, Haiti has never gotten a break. I remember clearly when President Clinton sent in troops because the country was literally falling apart and military intervention was the only way to try to pull it back together.  Since then it has been hit by four hurricanes in a row in 2006 and recently suffered political turmoil when Parliment threw out it’s corrupt president. 

About 200 years ago, Haiti liberated itself from the French through a slave uprising, but has been an impoverished nation ever since.   Despite numerous, generous aid efforts, Haiti has never been able to pull itself up.  In the past decade, economic growth has fallen into negative territory, though it had been more stable recently. 

Even those in the Fair Trade community have looked at Haiti and shaken their heads with a helpless feeling.  Late last year I talked to a woman doing mission work there.  She wanted to start a woman’s knitting cooperative.  On the day she had set for a meeting, dozens of women trekked up a hill to a small house looking for work, but they had so few resources, she did not know if they would be able to get a cooperative off the ground.  Many of them had needs much more basic than getting work.  Some had not eaten in days. 

A wholesaler I work with also told me that he had been considering a visit to Haiti to investigate starting businesses there.  But he said he was hestitant because he has been told by others there are simply no resources to make hand crafts.  The once lush, green countryside has been more than 90 percent deforested.  

Now a quake has left the country without infrustructure even to support the distubution of aid. 

As I read about the millions pouring into disaster relief, donating dollars feels like an empty gesture.  Haitians don’t need money right now.  They need food, water, stability, and hope — things I can not bring them just by opening my wallet.  Later, the survivors will need my donations to rebuild, but not now.

Perhaps, all I can do right now is pray and push my government to send the things that will make a difference – supplies, heavy equipment, and people power.

No year is without its challenges. In 2009, we challenged ourselves to open a new shop (Rhubarb), to expand our Fair Trade business, and to meet more of you, our customers. We did that and then some! I even went to Ecuador on an educational trip earlier in the year.

We consider ourselves blessed to have grown our business.  But, it’s not easy to appreciate our growth with so many hurting from the sick economy.  

I had the privilege of taking a customer’s order for gift cards over the phone a few days ago.  She said she appreciated our store and thought it was quite lovely.  I hear that sometimes and it warms my heart.  What she said next, though, made me really think.   ”Thanks for being part of the solution,” she said.    

Part of the solution…  It’s particullarly easy this time of year to focus on a day or a week or a holiday that’s literally around the corner.   But as the new year approaches it’s also time to reflect on who and what we are, and how we want to manifest the gifts we are given. 

So, although I don’t often sit around thinking about how we are changing the world, it’s nice when someone reminds me that I’m trying to be part of a solution and not part of a problem.

I am going to ponder that as we take our winter’s rest.  We’ll be closing the store for a few weeks starting December 24th.  It’s time to visit family and friends to make sure they know how special they are in our lives.  (Most of them live much further south than us, which is a nice little perk.)  

We’ll be back and open for business on January, 15th, 2010.  See you then, and in the meantime…

Keep shopping your good values!

Congratulations! You are making a difference!

Flying in the face of a global recession, you grew the Fair Trade business last year. In the U.S., sales of Fair Trade Certified products gew by 10 percent, according to the Fair Trade Foundation in the United Kingdom.

We weren’t even the strongest supporters of Fair Trade. Consumers in Australia and New Zealand spent 72 percent more on Fair Trade products, the highest of any group. Canada increased spending by 67 percent and seven countries increased spending by more than 50 percent. The Brits spent 43 percent more and exceeded the U.S. in spending for the first time.  

What were you buying with all that money? Tea sales rocketed up by 112 percent, cotton products rose by 94 percent, and coffee gained 14 percent in sales.  

Most importantly, how many were you helping by spending dollars to support sustainable production, living wages, and community building? At the end of last year, there were 746 Fair Trade Certified producer organizations representing over a million and a half farmers and workers.  

Good job!

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Spring.  Time for the new.  Time to clear out the not so new. 

Ten turns of beads and bangles!   These Kenyan bracelets wrap your wrist in color.

Bright and shiny.  Silver earrings made in Chile to add a little sparkle in just the right places!

Intriguing Haitian wall hangings.  Each time you look at the Voodoo art design, cut and shaped from reclaimed oil drums, you’ll see something slightly different. 

Clothing on sale.  All of our blouses are discounted!  Need something cool and breezy this season?  How about a colorful top from Ecuador? 

Keep shopping your good values!

Mother’s Day is upon us once again, so many of you are thinking about what to give your mother this weekend that will delight and honor her. Well, I ran across this from Maureen Mackey of the Portland Green Living Examiner.

Her list of ten ways to honor your mother and Mother Earth.

1. Give her that old standby, a bouquet of flowers, but look for the VeriFlora logo that indicates the flowers were sustainably grown. You can find VeriFlora blooms at flower shops and grocery stores, including New Seasons, Safeway, Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods.

2. Don’t forget that other time-tested Mom favorite, chocolate, but search for fair trade chocolate at your favorite chocolate shop or grocery store.

3. Give her house, or even one room, an eco-friendly Spring Cleaning with green cleaners.

4. Plant a tree in her honor.

5. Show Mother Earth you appreicate her beautiful nature by walking or bike riding.

6. Go see the movie Earth, which celebrates our planet and the creatures who live on it. Look for local theaters and showtimes here.

7.  Buy her fair-trade jewelry, so she knows her adornments were crafted sustainably and the artisans who created it were treated fairly.

8. Visit a Farmer’s Market to buy locally-produced food.

9. Buy your mother fruit or vegetable starts and offer to help her plant them.

10. Consider becoming a Zoo Patron to suppport wildlife conservation. 

Happy Mother’s Day!

Keep shopping your good values!

Working with artisans to create new designs for fresh products was one of the great opportunities I had while in Ecuador last January.

We met with many providers in their homes to work on new pieces. While in Otavalo, we treked up a hill on the edge of town to meet with a family that makes jewelry from tagua nut, seeds, and other natural materials.  Christopher, my host, calls their pieces Jungle Jewelry.   The pieces are bright and bold, and sometimes have sophisticated designs.

Both slight, with classic Otavalan features, the couple presented their latest samples for us to study.  After looking at the new designs, lively collaboration began to develop.  Mandy, a college student from Michigan, and Gabriele, one of our guides, graciously agreed to be our models and we began decorating them with piece after piece.

Sample pieces evolve into better designs for a variety of reasons.  Sometimes, slight changes can make a piece more comfortable or practical to wear.  Occasionally, a piece can be changed slightly to make it more exciting or attractive.  At that particular meeting, we began to play with the idea of using Tagua discs with varying cutout shapes as elements in necklaces and bracelets.  That discussion resulted in intriguing new designs for a whole matching set including earrings.

All this hard work benefits everyone involved.  As we were leaving the couple’s home, tired, but eager to see the new samples we had developed, Christopher, pointed out that they had added onto their modest home for their growing family.

Keep shopping your good values!