I drink a tea from the Traditional Medicinal tea company everyday!  I’m slightly allergic to coffee, which is horrible here in America as that is our national beverage next to beer; so my warm beverage for the morning commute is tea.  I like the Traditional Medicinal tea brand for what I feel to be REAL tea, no added flavoring, or coloring like some of those other companies, in fact some of their “specialtea” blends have what I call an acquired taste – my sisters says dirt!  These teas are not for the Celestial Seasonings users, you can add sweetner if you wish, but I like mine straight up!

I was really happy to see in my inbox a press release stating Traditional Medicinal teas have received the first US certification for the new FairWild certification.  They’ve been a leader in fair trade for quite some time, but this sustainability standard, established in 2006, sets international social, ecological and quality standards for wild-collected plant species, with a fair deal for all those involved throughout the supply chain.

“We are very proud to have this new sustainability standard for wild-collected ingredients for our products. However, investing time and resources in developing new universal standards for wild-collected plants is not a marketing idea, this is an example of how we do business,” said Blair Kellison, CEO. Well said!

We love to shop – no economic crisis is going to dampen that urge. Even primitive villagers in the most remote jungles love to “look good” and put plenty of time and energy into gathering the goods to make themselves look and feel pretty, powerful, important. But didn’t the buying frenzy get us into this mess? What to do?

Commerce is really just trade between people, and trade is the force that knits people together, that forms relationships of importance, and creates interdependent communities. Countries that have a healthy trade relationship with others, secure themselves against war with those countries. It is a major strategy in peacework to lift impoverished nations into the trade community so that they are better protected from the crisis of war.

Business – trade – commerce, is also the place that the damages have been done to our planet and our people. In the drive for the most profit, corporations have been willing to exploit, and even destroy communities and ecosystems all over the world. They were only able to go that route because we so vigorously supported them with our buying.

These days, the media has indulged themselves in the image of an economic crisis and lured us to withhold our cash from flowing through the marketplace. When we do spend, following the media’s encouragement, we’re encouraged to put aside ideals, and buy the cheapest we can find to meet our needs.

I’d like to argue that these purchases further support the exploitation and destruction that has gotten us in so much trouble in the first place and that by “voting with our dollar”, we can support and strengthen a new economy to take hold.

The marketplace is incredibly simple. When one group does well, the others follow. When we support  those who are developing sustainable business practices, who demonstrate human rights and earth rights as important, we have the opportunity to help them succeed. And you can bet, that when they succeed, others will follow. The chain reaction has already begun, and the more we feed it, the more it will grow.

When sustainable business practices begin to flourish, so will the underdogs, the smaller communities, the poor nations, the farmers, the laborers, the people who are being hurt most in the economic slowdown. We have a big influence, even in our smaller budgets, to impact the flow of capitol and life blood into new pathways for a better future for all of us.

I know that your cash flow is down to a drip these days, mine is too. But I believe that we can reinvigorate the economy, and stimulate a new type of marketplace, if we use what we have to support those who are paving new roads. Getting the cash flowing is like getting the blood flowing when you’ve been sick or out in the cold – it’s the first step to health and vitality. The more we keep it moving, the more we stimulate life and new growth. If we pour it into sustainable practices, we fertilize a chain reaction of alternatives that will develop into trends.

And the rewards are there – the new organic cottons are luscious, bamboo makes amazingly soft sheets, towels and clothing. Organic foods, as well as housewares and clothing are healthier for our bodies, and our families as well as the planet. Buying fair trade supports small family farms all over the world, and often gives you a direct photo, video or story about the people providing your goods. And more often than not, the products are superior, because they were created by people who care, rather than by conglomerate machinery.

Let’s break the myth – withholding your cash flow is not going to make anything better – for you, for the economy, for our future. Now is not the time to deny yourself the joy of shopping. Certainly be responsible to your bills and your family, but it’s an ideal moment to be a revolutionary, and use your tiny cash flow to prime the pump for a future we can be proud of. When you do spend, take action! Enjoy the moment, bring home goodies that are healthy for you and the planet, and help build a better future too!

Saphir Lewis is founding editor of www.GirlPoweredPlanet.com

Buying green forces the global economy toward sustainability and supports those who are creating new roles for business. Get the style you love at Girl Powered Planet and make an impact too!

Nottinghamshire County Council publishes a great magazine called Living for Tomorrow. It’s all about Notts people putting sustainable solutions into practice. The latest edition included a very inspiring article about making workspaces greener in a building where I used to work.

The Green Group at the Nottingham Council for Voluntary Service (in the Voluntary Action Centre) formed to help NCVS plan and implement ways to green up their workplace. After discovering that 20% of their energy consumption happened overnight the horrified group members decided to call on the powers of the Green Fairy to help remind staff and volunteers about saving energy. The little virtual helper ‘visits’ desks anonymously and leaves green tips and advice. She even says “thank you” when her advice has been followed.

NCVS won an award for their green fairy innovation and spent the £500 on improving an outdoor space belonging to the building. The space is now filled with plants, herbs and vegetables and is used by staff as a meeting place, eating area and place to relax.

The Green Group’s latest addition is ‘Dr Green’ who takes suggestions and answers questions about eco issues. A couple of ideas put to Dr Green have helped save heating bills (and of course energy) and implement further recycling in the central office.

NCVS have a dedicated noticeboard for green and ethical updates. They sell fairtrade drinks and organic snacks in the building vending machine and every six months have a ‘chuck away day’ where offices clear out and recycle old stationery and equipment. On top of that all NVAC tennants have been given a CD full of tips, information and a model environmental policy to help them make their offices a brighter shade of green.

Some great ideas to consider for our own offices…

Wow, here’s an offer and a half! Fair Trade fashion pioneers, People Tree has teamed up with online travel directory, responsibletravel.com to celebrate the launch of their new Summer Collection with a fantastic competition.

Win a holiday and a holiday wardrobe!

To win a luxury weekend break for 2 in Devon, plus £300 worth of vouchers for a Fair Trade holiday wardrobe to match, all you have to do is answer this question:

Both People Tree and responsibletravel.com projects support communities in Peru.

Which of these regions is NOT found in Peru:
a) Amazonas
b) Cusco
c) Himalayas

Enter the competition

Find out more about the holiday, the competition and terms & conditions

20% off at People Tree

And if that wasn’t enough, they’re also offering a 20% discount at People Tree when quoting this special code, RTJUL08, to redeem the offer. You can also place orders at www.peopletree.co.uk or over the phone on 0845 450 4595.

Be quick though as the offer ends 8th July 2008!

As mine and Jez‘s big day approaches and most of the preparations in place I thought I would steal a little time to reflect and share my experience in planning our eco and ethical wedding.

Right from the start we wanted our wedding to reflect our everyday values and beliefs, how we live and work. Although we didn’t tell anyone until the summer, our plans started last spring, looking for all of the main wedding necessities – a place to have the ceremony, a place to celebrate and someone to provide food.

Ceremonies & Celebrations

Finding a place to have the ceremony was easy, neither of us wanted to get married in church and the cost of using a hotel or other licenced venue ruled that out immediately. So, register office it was to be. We didn’t choose the one in Nottingham city as it isn’t very pretty and would be further for our families to travel so we chose one in a nearby town which has a walled garden and is just as easy to get to via public transport.

Party Venue
Looking for a place to celebrate and a caterer went hand in hand because of course the venue needed the facilities to prepare and serve food and the caterer had to be happy working in the chosen venue. It took me a little while to catch on to the idea of having a celebration in a village hall, I don’t know why but I think I originally got the idea from an Ethical Weddings blog post. I had spend days and days scouring the internet for a suitable place in Nottinghamshire, again hotels were just too expensive and many places wanted to provide their own food but I was determined to find an ethical caterer of our own.

Ethical Caterer
Luckily after the great realisation that a village hall would be just right for us, I narrowed it down to two possibilities, visited them both and chose one immediately, a charity run hall not far from the register office. In-between times I was glued to my computer searching for a suitable caterer and in Nottinghamshire that isn’t easy. I think in total I found 3 caterers that could provide local, organic and fair trade food but when I called Cate from C8TER I need look no further. Right from the start Cate reassured me with her friendly, professional and flexible approach and her attention to detail. She’s knowledgable about sourcing local and organic food and after sampling her cooking I’m really looking forward to the meal on the day!

Dressing Up

Luckily, finding a dress happened quite quickly, although I expected it to be difficult. In fact initially I didn’t see myself with a traditional wedding dress and thought I would buy a pretty organic cotton dress or something similar. However, wedding fever soon took over and I got carried away with the idea of having a bridal gown. At this point I can’t say too much as Jez hasn’t seen the dress and I don’t want to give anything away.

Oxfam Bridal
Once I knew I was going to get a wedding dress I also knew where I wanted to buy it – Oxfam Bridal. So, last July my mum and I excitedly set off to Leicester where the nearest Oxfam Bridal store is. Unfortuntaly I didn’t find the dress for me on that first trip but I was heartened and encouraged by how nicely they had set up that separate part of the shop and the variety of gowns. The next nearest Oxfam Bridal shop is in Bradford and that shopping trip was the ultimate in making the most of public transport – All tied in with a business meeting and a visit to see some friends I managed to get from Bradford train station to the Oxfam store, pick a dress, try it on, buy it and get back on the train all in about 30 minutes! I was so pleased that I’d found something that was just right and was really impressed with the choice and facilities in the Oxfam shop. The staff there were excited and fussy which made it even more special.

I realise that for some people the thought of buying their bridal gown from a charity shop sounds terrible but its probably the single item that I’m most pleased with and I’m so happy that I did manage to find it at Oxfam.

Bouquets and Posies
I had a mixed experience trying to find a suitable florist for my bouquet. Initially I was going plant some tulip bulbs in the garden, ask our families to do the same and make my own bunch of flowers nearer to the time. Then I came to my senses and realised I know absolutely nothing about keeping or arranging flowers once they’ve been plucked from the ground and decided to seek professional advice.

I spoke to a few different florists, some of whom were sympathetic to the idea of having a green and ethical wedding and others who just looked baffled when I asked about locally sourced flowers. I’m not picky, I think all flowers are beautiful and so I wasn’t going to dictate exactly the type of flower I wanted as long as it was grown as nearby as possible and were roughly in the colours I wanted. I chose a florist called The Rose Bower in the end because they were the most helpful and were willing to find out what seasonal, locally grown flowers would be available at this time of year before I’d even decided to use them. I can’t wait to see mine and Beth’s (my bridesmaid, niece & guest GGG editor) tulip bouquets when I go to collect them on the morning and they will have only travelled from the next county, Lincolnshire.

Invitations & Decorations

After organising the food and venues the rest of the planning was quite easy. I love making things and wanted something individual, so I decided from the start that I would make the invitations, menus, favours, name places and decorations myself.

Bunting!
The village hall is quite typical in that it really needs a lick of paint and looks quite grubby in daylight but I like a challenge and so last September Jez, his mum, my parents and I went off armed with notepads and tape measures to figure out how we could transform it into a beautiful place to celebrate. From then on I spent months finding large pieces of fabric and sheets to drape around the room, some from charity shops and some from ebay. I also bought some pink, yellow, green and white cotton to make my own bunting. I have metres and metres of the stuff and my friends at our craft group, Stitched Up, found it quite amusing that this cotton bunting never seemed to end!

I love bunting, it always seems to cheer me up. I’ve even had a small piece hanging up in the house for a few weeks.

RSVP
Because the venue is near to a maypole (which I used to run around and around when I was little) we’ve ended up with a maypole theme and the spring colours lemon, pink and green. So, I was very lucky when I asked my graphic designer friend if she could design me a motif for invites, menus etc using that theme. What she came up with was beautiful and I just what I wanted. I bought all of the recycled card, paper and envelopes I needed from Eco Craft who delivered it very quickly.

We asked our guests to RSVP via a website we’d built. The website also provides details of transport, directions, local hotels and so on to save from using up any more paper than necessary.

Tables, Favours & Name Cards
Aside from card for invites and menus I bought some lovely recycled paper which has confetti embedded in it. From this I made little origami boxes (which I talked about in my ‘Origami Genius!’ post) and will put in each of them a bulb from my Dad’s garden – these are our guests’ favours.

The name places are hand made, natural fruit lollipops with no artificial colours or flavours from sweetstall.com and I have added little labels to each one for our guests with a little picture. Jez and I have a house rabbit so our labels have loved-up bunnies on them, ahhhh. The others have butterflies, hearts and flowers.

Also, to decorate the tables we painted some plant pots white and decorated them with our colours and theme and soon I will be planting in them primroses or another spring flower which have been grown by a gardener just a few miles down the road.

The day before the wedding myself, Jez and an army of sisters and nieces and my mum and dad will spend the day putting all of these decorations together, hopefully creating a lovely room for eating, drinking and dancing.

Cake, Wine & Water

One of the nicest things about planning a wedding is that people really want to help and be involved. Jez’s mum is brilliant at making and decorating cakes and there was no question that she would be making ours. We decided to go for a traditional fruit cake (with organic ingredients) as well as Fairtrade chocolate cupcakes. Jez’s mum and I spent a lovely weekend making all of the little white sugar flowers for the main cake and hearts and butterflies for the cupcakes.

Guests will will take home slices of cake in pretty white recycled card boxes from The Tiny Box Company. Rachel at The Tiny Box Company was so obliging, helping me to choose the right size box and keep within my budget – This was the very last thing I bought and so I didn’t want to spend too much. It was a very speedy delivery too so I didn’t need to worry about any last minute hitches.

The bubbly and wine is all organic and Fairtrade and one of the types we have chosen is an English wine from Pennard Organic Vineyard.

I’m also extremely happy that we even managed to find eco friendly bottled water thanks to our Green Guy Gareth’s post ‘Bottled Water: Environmental Disaster?‘ . In that article Gareth mentions Belu Water, a carbon neutral company whose profits go towards clean water projects. So, I contacted Belu who very helpfully found me a local supplier, Lee & Fletcher, who delivered the water to my door in just a couple of days!

I Do!

The rings are the last thing I’m going to talk about although I’m sure I must have forgotten something. I’ll probably give an update afterwards anyway so I can show pictures of the decorated venue and my dress, which won’t be a secret by then.

Looking for rings was quite a strange experience. We wanted to get antique or second hand rings because that is the greenest option available – I always work on that principle and used it throughout the wedding planning. I guess we were a little niaive thinking that we’d be able to pop into one of the many antique shops in Nottinghamshire, pick up two gold wedding bands and be on our way. Apparently this isn’t the case.

After going into a few shops, looking at every other type of antique ring but finding no wedding rings one lady told me that they just don’t sell them because people are too superstitious to buy them. She said that if a wedding band was brought to the shop it just got sent for scrap! What a waste! I was so disappointed. However, the internet is a fantastic thing and after a quick search I not only found John Clive Jewellers but two perfect second hand rings in exactly the right size!

When I look back I’m proud of what we’ve achieved. Not everything is 100% green, we’re having a fancy car to take us to the register office and a disco in the evening but all-in-all I think we’ve done really well.

I’ll be in touch again at the end of April to let you know how it all went!

Having started 2008 on a rather gloomy note, what with the rise of interest rates and the prospect of an economic slump, it was surprising, yet reassuring, to see that the levels of ‘fast fashion’ purchasing seem to have levied off. The discount fashion market has slowly been declining for the first time in a decade.

In particular, Primark, George at ASDA and Matalan have seen sales drop by 1%. Conversely, higher priced retailers have seen sales increase by 4% (Connie Tran, City AM, February 2008). This has been a welcome response to hundreds of independent, organic, fair trade and eco-friendly shops and sites who are pleased and relieved to hear that the ‘fast fashion’ bubble may have burst.

With this in mind, it is important to carry on supporting our local independent retailers, spreading the ‘fair trade’ word and encouraging more resourceful production. Fair Trade Fortnight in 2008 saw sales of fair trade goods rise to £493 million (www.fairtrade.org.uk). This is very encouraging, and hopefully we will see 2009 sales being even higher.

There are more and more companies who are focusing solely on fair trade accessories, gifts and more. Fair trade is not just limited to chocolate, tea and bananas, but can be associated with all products. However, seemingly, it has been proved that the fresh produce areas of fair trade have received more publicity and thus more sales than other sectors. Indeed in the UK, fresh fair trade produce makes up 52% of the total fair trade market (www.talkingretail.com). For example, fair trade coffee sales rose to over £117 million in 2008 (www.fairtrade.org.uk) and 8 million fair trade cups of tea and hot beverages were drunk in 2008 (www.fairtrade.org.uk).

However, as well as sourcing fair trade goods why not look for companies who use recycled and natural materials? It is amazing what one can recycle and re-use to create something new and original. By supporting smaller boutiques you are helping them to become more established and hopefully more successful. Perhaps try, even if it just once a week, to support your local florists, butchers, fishmongers and market stall workers. To them, sales mean everything. To supermarkets, your money means next to nothing. It is vital we encourage young entrepreneurs and not to succumb to the corporate world. By shopping at boutiques, both on the high street and online, one receives a more personable service, as well as a unique and individual gift. Try not to succumb to the lure of the high street where not only the products are generally produced in sweat shops, but also the choice, as well as the quality, is limited. With over 320 fair trade towns in the UK (www.fairtrade.org.uk) why not look to see where your nearest fair trade town is?

Claire Watt-Smith
CEO BoBelle
www.bobelle.co.uk
Fair Trade Fashion
Organic Cotton Baby Wear
Hand Made Gifts

This is my final instalment of articles about our experiences at Make Hay of working to be a green and ethical company. This article is related to my previous posts where I talked about using ethical suppliers and encouraging others with your ethical policy.

Just to recap, the previous articles were:

Part 1 – Powered by the Wind
Part 2 – Waste? What Waste?
Part 3 – Be a Smart Consumer
Part 4 – Live your Policy

PART 5 – MAKE ETHICAL FRIENDS

Starting out with an ethical business was sometimes an isolating experience for us. At that time there was not the huge number of like-minded entrepreneurs around us and we were often told that what we were trying to do was a bad idea.

If it wasn’t for the enthusiasm of the people we met via green blogs, directories and networks life would have been much more difficult.

Making ethical business friends does not necessarily mean you are running an ethical business but it certainly motivates you to keep learning and working harder to improve. Seeing more and more new ethical businesses appear shows that the market is growing and consumers want more responsible services. I strongly believe that there’s power in unity and making links with these businesses allows us to share ideas, good practice and collectively raise the profile of ethical entrepreneurship. If, collectively, ethical businesses can influence business practice as a whole then eventually ethical business won’t be unusual or alternative but just the way things are done.

Community Working

Another way that we have made friends here at Make Hay is by getting involved in local community groups and activities.

Some businesses align themselves with a charity and donate a percentage of their profits to that charity. This can work well for larger companies but for small businesses like ours there is another, more creative way to provide useful, substantial support; and that is to volunteer your expertise.

We are actively involved with a few community groups in this way. For example, we provide free Green Hosting and voluntary web designs services to All Ours. This is grassroots service which holds social sessions and cooks healthy, organic meals for people experiencing mental ill health. For the Gedling Fairtrade Group we provide voluntary web services and work on the steering group to raise awareness of Fairtrade issues in the local area. Additionally, we are currently providing voluntary web design and consultancy to the Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust and have built them a brand new content managed site.

Whatever type of business you run it is highly likely that you have a product or service that you can donate to someone who needs it. You don’t have to have lots and lots of spare money (and most small businesses don’t) just be able to give up a little of your spare time.

Making friends with individuals and groups within your community allows you to make tangible changes by doing what you do best – your ethical business.

What do you do?

Well I’ve talked quite a lot about Make Hay and the things we do to be an ethical business but there is always room for improvement and new things to learn.

I’d love to find out about other business owners’ experiences (good or bad), practices and ideas. Contact me at Make Hay, I’ll look forward to hearing from you!

Yep, back again to Brighton is the Fashion Made Fair sample sale – much too good (in both the ethical and fashion sense!) to be missed…

From Friday to Sunday come along to Fabrica to take your pick of the best fair trade and ethical fashion.

They’ve got howies, People Tree, Kuyuchi, Terra Plana, Tonic T’s, THTC, Ethletic, Sandbag, Bamboo Clothing, Daryl Black, Amira and Green knickers… all available at up to 80% off!

The sale kicks off this Friday 5.30pm -8.30pm and continues Saturday 10am-6pm, Sunday 10am -4pm.

See you there?

Katie
www.ethicalweddings.com

I’m a massive fan of contemporary Indian art, and it was during a research trip in India that I witnessed the shocking reality of how some labels produce their clothing so cheaply. None of us would buy an item of clothing knowing it was made in a sweatshop, the problem is that when we buy clothes on the high street it’s almost impossible to find out about the conditions under which they were made.

The Fairtrade Foundation is an independent organisation which examines production methods in companies and then awards the Fairtrade mark. Wherever you see the Fairtrade mark you can be certain that no-one has been exploited during production and that your purchase has supported sustainable development. It also guarantees that no child or forced labour was involved, working conditions were healthy and safe and work is done with respect for the environment.

Our generation has really pushed forward ethical clothing and lifestyle issues. My trip to India was a catalyst to me setting up my own Fair trade clothing label. Tam & Rob is a women’s wear label dedicated to helping impoverished groups in developing countries. The clothes are produced in India and Nepal using organic fabrics and artisan techniques including hand tailoring and weaving. The entire production line is certified fair trade.

Fairtrade organisations specifically seek to work with marginalised and disadvantaged groups to help them overcome the barriers they face. The difference that fairtrade makes is that instead of living on the poverty line and constantly worrying where their next meal is coming from, workers have the opportunity to save money and make plans for the future.

Tam & Rob employs women who had a hard time finding work because they suffered discrimination for reasons such as their being victims of abuse. These people now have secure employment and we wanted to do something extra special for Christmas to help others in similar situations.

The idea was born of donating a sari to a woman through a suitable charity for every item of clothing sold. Social Action for Association and Development (SAAD) is a charity in Maharashtra, India, which gives skills training and legal advice to women outcast from society due to being descendant from Devdasi woman who had been married to idols or Gods. In previous generations they enjoyed a high status but changing beliefs mean they are now left ostracised and highly vulnerable. SAAD gives them the support they need to start an independent life and we hope the new sari will aid them in this. We named this idea Buy One Give One Free, a play on buy one get one free schemes which fuel so much unnecessary consumerism and waste.

One tenth of the worlds’ population works in the clothing industry and I for one feel so much more comfortable in my clothes knowing that everyone involved in the process of making them is treated fairly and lives a dignified life. To view our collections have a look on www.tamandrob.co.uk

I haven’t been able to find the link – but in the programme of Roskilde Festival they claim that there’s a whole area of green and fairtrade (due to the weather for the next couple of days I will join the mud girls global instead of green girls global) at the festival.

the area is the one surrounding the odeon stage – how cool is that ? – has anyone else any good fairtrade/green references from festivals ?

it’s so cool that they are acting on this =)