Patagonia's Fair Trade Fleece

Stay warm this winter with Patagonia's Fair Trade Fleece! Supporting Patagonia's Fair Trade Fleece guarantees that the worker producing their garments are treated as people by providing rigorous safety standards, maternity leave, prohibiting child labor and being environmentally aware.
http://www.patagonia.com/shop/womens-fair-trade-fleece?start=0&sz=24#tile-1

Fair Trade Ice Cream for Halloween

Celebrate Fair Trade Month with Ben & Jerry's Halloween ice cream. The spookiest month of the year is also the month for getting to know the fair trade offerings at your local grocery store and learning all about how they help farmers all over the world get a fair price for their goods.

http://www.benjerry.com/whats-new/2016/fairtrade-halloween?__prclt=BP5tLABP

Share the Journey with new socks

Pope Francis' Share the Journey campaign continues during this week. With every step you take in these fair trade organic cotton socks Maggie's Organics, you show love to your neighbor!
http://tinyurl.com/y7ubf439

West Elm increases Fair Trade initiatives

West Elm is celebrating Fair Trade month by increasing its social premiums of $3 million towards community development by 2020. They have also partnered with Vietnam’s first Fair Trade furniture factory, bringing its total operating Fair Trade factory count to 11 in countries including Nepal, India and Pakistan. You can visit their Palo Alto store for fair trade rugs and bedding products.
http://tinyurl.com/y79d7x56

Del Cabo produce at Whole Foods

Found Del Cabo Fair Trade produce at Whole Foods market. Their company, Jacobs Farm / Del Cabo, founded its first growers’ association in 1985 at the tip of the Baja peninsula. They taught sound organic farming practices, merged hundreds of small-scale farms, grower associations create economic opportunities in rural communities and significantly increase family incomes.

Fair Trade Fleece

October is Fair Trade Month!! 
Patagonia celebrates Fair Trade Fleece where every purchase sends more money back to the workers who made them. Employees at Hirdaramani-CKT Apparel in Sri Lanka voted to use their Fair Trade premium to open a free day-care center and implement a health and hygiene program.
http://tinyurl.com/yd2v589b

Santa Teresa Festival Fair Trade Sale

October is Fair Trade Month! Celebrate with a festival! Santa Teresa Church of San Jose is celebrating its 50th anniversary with its annual festival including a Catholic Relief Services Fair Trade sale! You can make an impact in the lives of artisans and farmers around the world by purchasing fair and ethically produced products from around the world. By supporting this work, you bring dignity to their workplace, environmental sustainability, opportunities for children to attend school and make their communities stronger.

National Coffee Day

Celebrate National Coffee Day with O Organics® Fair Trade Certified coffee,
empowering communities in Central and South America.
http://www.albertsons.com/national-coffee-day

Producio Eticamente

Give light to those in darkness at the Cathedral Shop at Cathedral of Christ The Light church in downtown Oakland.The ethically produced items sold here make an impact in the lives of the farmers and artisans around the world.

Rain forest destroyed for chocolate

Where there was once trees, the national forests in the heart of the Ivory Coast are being ripped up the growing global demand for chocolate. The supply chains of Mars and Nestle must discontinue this practice of destroying our world's natural resources. See article.
http://tinyurl.com/y7ml8vpt

International Gift Faire 2017

Celebrate the upcoming Fair Trade Month with the International Gift Faire!

Coffee, Bees and Climate Change, Oh My!

Did you know that Pollinators such as bees play a key part of producing the beans that go into your morning cup of coffee? In fact, they are responsible for about 20 to 25 percent of coffee production by increasing the plants' yield. But climate change is threatening both pollinators and the areas where coffee can grow. See this interesting article. http://tinyurl.com/y97y7sj8

Chuao Chocolate

Celebrate International Chocolate Day with a Chuao (pronounced chew-WOW) chocolate bar. It is the first Venezuelan Chocolatier based in the United States. Its chocolate is Fair Trade and organic. Available in the San Jose area at New Seasons market.

Stubborn Soda

While recently vacationing in the Pacific Northwest, we found a delicious soda called Stubborn Lemon Berry Acai with Fair Trade Certified sugar. It was in a small restaurant called Turkish Delight just down the street from the Public Market where we noshed on a Chicken Borek, a spiced chicken breast with mushrooms in filo pastry. What a treat!

Light in the Darkness

When children have to work, either to supplement family income or because they have no family, they are vulnerable to human trafficking.

In India Catholic Relief Services is working to keep kids, like Triveni and Premshila, in school and educating them about the dangers of migration and trafficking. Read their story and learn why they say they have "hope for their future."

http://bit.ly/2x20VIo

Are the workers abused while making the products you buy?

"Genuine commitment to sustainability — rather than merely the show of it — requires monitoring of the entire supply chain and a willingness to meet internationally-recognized standards. For most brands, this is still more than they’re ready to do. Pressure from the public and from companies that do meet the standards could change that." 

Phil Knight of Nike said about his decision to bringing Nike factories into line,  “The American consumer doesn’t want to buy products made under abusive conditions.” Let us see if he acts on this sentiment. Consumers need to know definitively whether the company whose products that they purchase actually take care of their workers or just talk about it. 

http://tinyurl.com/y8z3pkv6

Choose Option B

We Choose Option B. You can't go wrong with a billion economically independent women.

Perfect Fuel

Fuel up your Monday with Perfect Fuel! A Fair Trade and organic energy bar with plenty of nutrition giving you a natural boost to you and the cacao farmers of Ecuador.

Back at LifeMoves Shelter

Back at the LifeMoves Shelter in San Jose last Saturday serving the gentlemen Newman's Own Fair Trade coffee.

Spotted Onesie from Colored Organics

I spotted this onesie from Colored Organics who want children to play in their clothes, not make them. https://www.coloredorganics.com/

Paromi Tea

Looking for a tea that tastes great and is Fair Trade Certified as well as organic? Look no further than Paromi. 

Consider your Conscience

Reader's Digest recommends you consider your conscience when drinking your coffee. 
"If you consider the "health" of your coffee as more than just what you're putting in your body, but also how your coffee beans are grown, picked, and get to you, Swinney suggests you're taking your coffee habit to a more beneficial level—not only for yourself, but for the world. "Drink clean and with a conscience. Choose fair trade or coffee with other certifications that help third-world farmers improve their living conditions. Give some thought to the packaging involved in single-serve coffee—it requires much more packaging and contains a larger carbon footprint for getting to the store."

Prosperity Candle

Prosperity Candle supports Catholic Relief Services and its work to shine a light on and put end to human trafficking and modern slavery. The candles are hand-poured by women refugees creating new lives for themselves and their families in the United States after loss of their home.
Prosperity Candle is an associate member of the World Fair Trade Organization, and a certified B-Corp recognized 2 years in a row for its commitment to social and environmental sustainability. It believes that equal opportunity for women around the world helps create a brighter future for all.
https://www.prosperitycandle.com/products/crs-human-trafficking-candle

Ethical clothes shopping at Whole Foods

I didn't think that my ethical clothes shopping would include Whole Foods. But I found just what I was looking for. Fair Trade and all.

Join the revolution!

Fair Trade is revolutionizing the fashion industry. They are taking a stand for the people who make our clothes. Improving their lives through safe, dignified working conditions, getting rid of harmful chemicals, and empowering workers. Join the revolution!
http://fairtradeusa.org/wewearfairtrade

Is everything we knew about sweatshops wrong?

Is everything we knew about sweatshops wrong? One economist says, "The misery of being exploited by capitalists is nothing compared to the misery of not being exploited at all."

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/27/opinion/do-sweatshops-lift-workers-out-of-poverty.html?_r=0

It's Fair Trade, mon!

The latest in the long line of Ben & Jerry's Fair Trade ice cream. Check it out, mon!

Ethical Trade Workshop in San Jose

On April 29th, the Diocese of Oakland and San Jose conducted an Ethical Trade Workshop in San Jose. Larry Lauro gave the Keynote address on Spiritualized Thinking.
Ethical Trade Ambassadors Anne Maloney, Brendan Cunning and Bill Perry educated the group about ethical trade and give them the resources and information they will need to educate others and integrate ethical trade into their community. A great time was had by all. Yes, fair trade coffee and tea were served!

Trader Joe's

Just received Trader Joe's flyer and found 2 Fair Trade products, coffee and honey.

Ethical Trade Workshop in San Jose

Please join us for an interactive workshop about how Ethical Trade can help you and your community take your faith beyond the pew through education, reflection and action. All are invited to the Diocese of San Jose Chancery on April 29 from 9-12. Please RSVP at following link.

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ethical-trade-and-right-relationships-an-interactive-launch-of-ethical-trade-in-the-san-jose-and-tickets-33414717319

Fair Trade Dayenu

A few weeks I attended a Unity Seder, an interfaith passover meal. We sang a song called Dayenu which acknowledges that even a single blessing would have been sufficient; "It would have been enough for us". Talia Cooper imagined people singing Dayenu in the future when child labor and all forms of slavery have been abolished. She now sings Fair Trade Dayenu " to remember the end of the Jews' slavery in Eygpt." Thank you Fair Trade Judaica for sharing this.
https://youtu.be/5aK5EovR4MA

Fair Trade at LifeMoves

Sorry I missed the serving of Fair Trade coffee at the LifeMoves shelter last Saturday.
The small farmers thank you.

Si, se puede!

Today we honor #CeasarChavez for his dedication to the dignity and equality of all people.
Sí, se puede!

First Fair Trade Certified Farm in USA

A new sun is rising over the Wholesum Amado tomato farm in Amado, Arizona. Congratulations for being the first Fair Trade Certified farm in United States!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/america-just-got-its-first-fair-trade-certified-farm_us_58d40dbbe4b062043ad4b0e3

Santa Cruz Roasting Company

It's not everyday you find the Fair Trade seal on the front
of an establishment selling Fair Trade coffee. Such is the case with Santa Cruz Coffee Roasting Company, a local fixture for over 30 years. Their coffee can also be found in stores locally. Thank you for supporting small farmers around the world. 
http://www.santacruzcoffee.com/

Coffee farmer brought to mind

Tasted Fair Trade coffee from Sumatra at Trader Joe's and this farmer was brought to mind.

Green Mountain Fair Trade Advertisement

Some of the stories shown on 60 Minutes don't seem to offer much hope for the world. But between stories, the commercial for Green Mountain Fair Trade coffee gave me much hope for the farmers of La Plata, Columbia.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5sr2-NiWn9M

Salon on the Square

Discovered Fair Trade Organic Argan Oil at the Salon on the Square in Santa Cruz. Owner Lauren McLaughlin sources the argan oil from a women's collective in Morocco.