Jacob Levitt is a student with a mission-to prevent child labor, and to ensure fair labor practices for everyone, young and old. 

Jacob is now thirteen and first learned about child labor when he was in sixth grade and his class began a lesson on it.  He was horrified to learn that children around the world were sold into slavery and forced to work long hours, but he also wanted to find out more about the issue in the hopes that maybe he would be able to do something about it.

When Jacob began middle school, he joined a group called SANDBOCS, which stands for Saving All Neglected, Denied, and Blatantly Oppressed Children from Slavery.  In addition, as part of his Bar Mitzvah preparation, Jacob must take on a social justice project.   Like a lot of kids, Jacob loves sports, and so he decided to combine his love of sports with his growing interest and sense of injustice over child labor issues.

Jacob has since become one of the youngest and most dynamic supporters of our Fair Trade Sports soccer balls.  He organized a meeting with the Northampton Soccer Club, where he explained unfair labor practices and convinced the group to begin using our Fair Trade balls.  He's now trying to encourage the Northampton High School to team up with the Northampton Soccer Club to make the bulk amount of balls they will need to order feasible and more affordable.  He's also hoping to get the city of Northampton Recreation Department to consider using Fair Trade Sports soccer balls in their leagues as well.

Kudos, Jacob!

Co-op America stands for many of the things that I believe in. 

They help the world become a better place by providing the National Green Pages (a directory of green businesses from coast to coast), by offering education for US consumers about Fair Trade, and by collating reports of abusive labor practices around the world.  They provide information to help us all make more socially and environmentally responsible purchasing decisions.

Co-op America also co-sponsors Green Festivals, or "parties with a purpose," with Global Exchange in several cities across America each year.  Green Festivals bring leading thinkers of the sustainability movement together in one place to share ideas and attend workshops. 

Co-op America does a monthly interview with a business owner; they chose Fair Trade Sports for their July interview.  You can read it here to learn more about what makes Fair Trade Sports green, what "respect" really means to me, and what green product (aside from my eco-friendly Fair Trade soccer ball) I would not want to live without.

If you did not catch the What Would Jesus Buy? docu-comedy at your local indie theater yet, please put the it on your to-do list now.

You don't have to be religious to appreciate Reverend Billy's no-nonsense "stop shopping" message. He presents it in a manner which is hilarious, challenging, and incredibly effective. Susan and I were only 15 minutes into the film before we began arguing about our recent purchases!

The DVD was just released a few weeks ago, so (irony alert) be sure you go buy yourself a copy right away.

Reverend Billy's message about American's over-consumption struck home with me, for both my personal consumption, as well as my professional roles doing the marketing for two ecommerce operations (Fair Trade Sports and the abolitionist Not For Sale Campaign). Some folks would say that getting people to buy stuff is at the very core of what I do. Geesh, I even teach MBA candidates how to do the same thing at the sustainable MBA program Bainbridge Graduate Institute.

So where does a person who's primary skill set revolves around Marketing fit in a country that honestly needs to buy less stuff? I don't know. I've struggled with this before, and likely will for quite awhile. My current focus is on getting folks who buy stuff to at least buy good stuff. Sweatshop-free stuff. Eco-friendly stuff. Union-made stuff. Fair Trade stuff. But it's still shopping; it's still consumption.

I often explain to folks interested in our company that I'd first rather have them purchase a used sports ball from a neighbor or an outfit like Play It Again Sports. Then, if they can't find what they're looking for, to make sure to buy a ball they know was made from certified environmentally friendly materials by adult workers paid a certified fair wage. For now, that gives you only one choice...us.

:)

I was also recently asked, so what do you think Jesus would buy? My response was, "Reverend Billy's DVD. And then after watching it, I think he'd give it away to spread the message even further." Watch it, enjoy the laughter, and the challenges. Highly recommended.

For our local readers, here's a quick bit of news on an exciting development for Seattle.

San Francisco, Portland, Olympia and many cities across the country have passed SweatFree ordinances for procurement by their city. In the South Puget Sound, the Clean Clothes campaign is working to make Washington State SweatFree. These campaigns are part of a national SweatFree Communities network run by Liana Foxvog, who is the rock star of organizers.

It is time for Seattle to become SweatFree. Fair trade, labor, environmental, religious, academic and social justice groups and committed individuals need to join together to insure that the buying in our city supports ethical labor practices and healthy communities. And we need your help to make SweatFree Seattle a reality!

Here are two ways you can engage with the team:

1. Join the SweatFree Seattle organizing meeting on June 23rd from 4-7pm at the offices of the Washington Fair Trade Coalition (606 Maynard Ave S, Suite 252 in Seattle).

2. Make a donation to support this campaign. Specifically, we are fundraising to help Portland’s Lead SweatFree organizer, Elizabeth Swagger, travel to Washington to share her experiences and galvanize the SweatFree Seattle team.

For more information on either of these, please contact Kristen Beifus at 206.437.5599 or kbeifus@globalgoodspartners.org.

Thank you, Seattle!

In November, we told you about Project Good (a joint venture between World of Good and eBay) - donating 40 of our Fair Trade soccer balls to Kenya, Africa.

The eco-certified Fair Trade soccer balls were sent to an organization founded by James Rose, the Better World Cup that we’ve mentioned previously.

Check out the note I received in the mail recently from a young soccer enthusiast who was excited to help Rose continue to give soccer balls to children in need.

He sent in a good chunk of cash that he had earned and saved as a donation. As a for-profit company (whose after-tax profits go to children's charities), we can't accept donations. But with the permission of John and his parents, we applied his money towards the soccer balls that went to Better World Cup for their new project in Cambodia.

Well done, John. I'm pleased to know students like you are out there making the world a better place right now.

...it would be hard not to after watching Radiohead's "All I Need" video that they did with MTV's EXIT initiative (End eXploitation and Trafficking).

The video (shown to the right) shows a split screen, depicting a day in the life of a well-off child from a Western country versus a day in the life of a poor child who is forced to work in a shoe factory sweatshop.

Ed O’Brien said Radiohead became interested in the issue in part because of author Naomi Klein’s book No Logo which highlighted the production-to-retail practices of companies. Klein's book also ranks as one of my favorites.

The Hollywood Reporter reports that lead singer Thom Yorke lauded MTV for taking on such issues, given the fact that the network's hands aren't exactly clean.

Yorke said the band had linked with MTV to highlight such issues as child slavery, enforced servitude and sex trafficking because it was "about exploiting a situation while you have the chance."

"All power to MTV for taking this on because its obviously going to be difficult for them in terms of the advertisers," he said. "If you talk about slave labour, then the issue of cheap goods from the East is all about that.

With the [All I Need] video their lawyers had to beg to make sure there wasn't a single white [sneaker] with a logo on it because the implication would be a little too close. But the implication is still there," he concluded.

I spend a good portion of my working hours with the Not For Sale Campaign, fighting against slave labor in a way that my skill set allows (ecommerce, marketing, biz dev, that kind of thing). It is a logical tie-in to my other company, Fair Trade Sports, with our certified Fair Trade sports balls (read: adult workers paid a fair wage and ensured healthy working conditions).

If you are so inclined, we'd love to have your help with the Not For Sale Campaign. We've got lots of volunteer opportunities. You can make a direct, positive impact on this global problem...

We have several friends at OKé USA - the Fair Trade bananas folks - whose farmers need our help. 

As you may know, coastal Ecuador has experienced devastating flooding caused by heavier-than-usual seasonal rains since late January. El Guabo, a cooperative of 500 small farms in that region, are OKé USA farmer partners.  One member’s son was killed, several farmers have lost all of their land, and others have had their productivity severely impaired by the damage. 

Banana farming is the mainstay of the local economy and the effects of the damage ripple beyond their farmers to impact everyone employed in the region, from field hands and packing house workers to truck drivers and cantina owners.  You can see pictures of the damage OKé USA farmers have incurred on their blog.

The Board of Directors at El Guabo askign for help to raise funds for a Bobcat compact excavator for the cooperative.  This piece of machinery would help them drain the flooded farms of their members and do preventative maintenance to mitigate the impact of future floods.  OKé USA estimates that a used excavator would run $20,000 and has already 14% of that pledged.  

You can donate online at www.buythebobcat.org.

Overview of Damage of Ecuador Flooding
A birdeye view of loss in Ecuador:

• 51,300 people affected
• 3,645 people evacuated
• 490 experienced property loss
• 24 provinces affected
• 4 dead

OKé Farm damage

• 25 acres of organic farm land
• 300 acres of conventional farm land
• 4% decreased production
• 6-9 month estimate to recover from damages

Congratulations to the eco-resolution contest winners!

Your prizes of eco-certified Fair Trade soccer balls, volleyballs, and more are on their way to you now. Thank you for moving us closer to a sustainable future!

Who inspires you? Who makes you stop your normal routine of the day and take notice? Who makes you want to change (yourself, the world)?

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr is one of those individuals who - when hearing or reading his words - will stop me cold in my tracks and make me reconsider what I am doing, how I am doing it, and my motivation for doing so. Part of what makes me take notice of his words are the words themselves - powerfully written and poignant. But the other part of what inspires me is the delivery (style and manner) of his words.

I regularly look at the MLK quote on my wall - positioned just above my monitor so I see it all day - whether I'm designing a new Fair Trade soccer ball for Fair Trade Sports, or working on our abolitionist website, the Not For Sale Campaign. Dr. King is the one individual whose recorded words pull me out of the minutia of the day and gets me to think again about the big picture.

And now, there is another.

For more reasons than just the repetitive use of a key phrase, I'm reminded alot of MLK when I watch this video of Barack Obama's early January speech, created by Will.i.am from the music group Black Eyed Peas. Whether you agree with Obama's politics or not, watch and be inspired...

Can we make positive change in this world...and ourselves? Yes, we can.

Check out this video from Fair Indigo, a fair trade clothing company headquartered near Madison Wisconsin.

There, you'll meet Karina Madelaine Perez Leon, an extraordinary young woman who has made a big impression in her community in Peru, while she stands just two and a half feet tall!

Karina is making handcrafted jewelry in her first-ever real job, thanks to the efforts of Anonymous Angels (Angeles Anonimos), an organization that finds employment for people with disabilities.

Speaking of Fair Indigo, go ahead and stop by their website and get one of our children's Fair Trade soccer balls.