The Chocolate Fudge Cafe

National Press Release from Fair Trade Resource Network website. 

IS THERE A SWEATSHOP IN YOUR HOME? HUNDREDS OF EVENTS PLANNED NATIONWIDE TO ENCOURAGE AMERICANS TO “FAIR TRADE YOUR HOME” Events to Provide Simple But Effective Tips For Creating a Fair Trade Home; Common Household Sweatshop Items That Can be Fairly Traded are Clothing, Home Goods and Chocolate. WASHINGTON, D.C.//April 29, 2010//Is there a sweatshop in your home?  For millions of Americans, the answer is an unwitting yes.  Americans across the country can find out how to replace goods made in sweatshops with Fair Trade products at hundreds of events taking place across the U.S. over the course of the next two weeks to mark World Fair Trade Day on May 8^th  (http://www.fairtraderesource.org/wftd-10/). They can also win great Fair Trade prizes by submitting pictures of fairly traded goods in their homes (http://www.fairtraderesource.org/wftd-10/fair-trade-my-home-contests/). Most Americans would be appalled to learn of the extent to which the everyday items that they use in their homes are produced in sweatshops or even by slave labor.  Widely used household items that fall into this category are all forms of clothing – from t-shirts to dress clothes to jewelry, home goods – including furniture and decorative items, and foods – including chocolate, coffee, sugar and spices.  World Fair Trade Day organizers are calling on Americans to get those sweatshop items out of their home and to instead “Fair Trade your home” to support farmers and artisans worldwide. World Fair Trade Day national campaign coordinator, and Executive Director, Fair Trade Resource Network Jeff Goldman, said:  “There are lots of reasons to celebrate Fair Trade as we bring dignity and justice to millions of vulnerable farmers and artisans around the world. By committing to use Fair Trade goods at home, we can enjoy high quality and take action to improve our world. The Fair Trade system helps producers and suppliers earn a living wage and take steps to protect the environment.  It also serves to empower individuals and communities, support women’s and children’s rights, promote dignity and respect, and connect developing nations with developed nations and markets. World Fair Trade Day is the largest Fair Trade event in North America, with over 65,000 people having participated in 2009.   In the U.S., small businesses, high schools, universities, churches, groups and individuals will be raising awareness about the benefits of buying Fair Trade products.  The theme of this year’s events is “Fair Trade My Home”.  Events across the country include: scavenger hunts, coffee tastings, dinner parties, arts and crafts festivals, and so much more.

Major co-sponsors of World Fair Trade Day include nonprofit and faith-based organizations, such as Green America, Catholic Relief Services, Fair Trade Towns and Fair for Life, as well as retail companies, such as Ben and Jerry’s, Wholesome Sweeteners, Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps, and Anti-Body.

5 TIPS TO “FAIR TRADE YOUR  HOME” Some of the best ways to get rid of sweatshop items in your home and to go Fair Trade are as follows: ·         Purchase Fair Trade Coffee, Tea, Sugar, and Cocoa:  When conventionally purchased, these popular food items are often grown in “sweatshops in the fields.”  Buying them Fair Trade Certified™ means that farmers are being paid a fair wage and communities are being supported.·         Purchase Fair Trade clothes – from t-shirts, to shoes to dresses, there is beautiful Fair Trade clothing from all over the world made by artisans who are paid a living wage.·         Buy Fair Trade Home goods – plates, tablecloths, and even furniture can be purchased Fair Trade.·         Buy Fair Trade handicrafts – from vases to sculptures to rugs – Fair Trade artisans produce beautiful crafts. And, when you purchase them from Fair Trade organizations, you know that no child labor or sweatshops were involved. ·         Gift Fair Trade – You can purchase Fair Trade toys for kids, sculptures for adults, and chocolate for everyone on your list.  When you gift Fair Trade, you are giving a high quality product and introducing someone to the value of purchasing Fair Trade every day. About World Fair Trade Day On and around May 8th, people in 80 countries worldwide will hold events to mark World Fair Trade Day in order to highlight the importance and benefits of Fair Trade. Across North America, participants are entering “Fair Trade My Home” contests. Both individuals, as well as organizations, will win Fair Trade prizes for bringing Fair Trade, or deepening Fair Trade, in their homes. Fair Trade supporters will host hundreds of events to encourage the public to take home many Fair Trade items, and enter the contests. Events such as festivals, fashion shows, speeches, food and drink tastings, film showings, sports games, neighborhood crawls, and concerts are being planned to help celebrate the day from May 1-15. CONTACT:   Leslie Anderson, (703) 276-3256 or landerson@hastingsgroup.com.  

Why Use a Reusable Grocery Bag

There are countless reasons why you as an every day American should start to use a reusable bag. We have studied article after article, paper after paper, and blog after blog. Other than the fact that Reusethisbag.com makes the coolest reusable bags around, you are now on the cutting edge of a unique Grassroots movement that is sweeping the nation! It is our belief that within five years over 90% of the country will be using a reusable grocery bag! Its time to wake up and smell the coffee we say! Here are a few of our favorite facts in regards to why we are urging you to make the very important choice to put down your paper and plastic and protect your Earth today! It isn’t too late. In fact, we are just getting started!

• A Plastic bag takes 450 years to biodegrade. Imagine 10 billion of them!
• The production of Paper bags causes 70% more pollution than Plastic.
• When Plastic “photo degrades” it ends up in our oceans. Incidentally, it appears much like a plankton, and is then consumed by fish. Fish eat it, and it winds up on your dinner table. YUCK!!!
• The recipe for making paper bags starts with 1 part pulp, 400 parts WATER. What a waste of water!
• The recycling of plastic emits heavy metals into the air causing extreme air pollution
• An average person will use over 350 bags in a single year!
• In New York City, one less grocery bag per person would reduce waste by five million pounds and save $250,000 in disposal costs!
• In 1999 more than 14 million trees were cut down to produce 10 billion paper bags that were used by Americans that year!

The facts are staggering and we could go on and on as to why it is so imperative that you stop using paper and plastic now.

• Reusable bags save trees
• Reusable bags save water
• Reusable bags save gas and oil
• Reusable bags help air pollution
• Reusable bags help our oceans
• Reusable bags help our sea creatures
• Reusable bags save 700+ bags over the span of their lifetime!
• Reusable bags help our families!

Rights of Mother Earth

An auspicious event is planned for Earth Day 2010.  President Evo Morales has called for the First Peoples’ World Conference on Climate Change and Mother Earth’s Rights to be held in the Bolivian city of Cochabamba.  The event is planned to close on Earth Day – April 22 with a Declaration of Rights of Mother Earth.  

A delegation from Nevada County is hosting a benefit on Saturday, March 13th in order to raise funds to attend the conference.  You can get more information about helping this delegation at www.arewelistening.net.

This historic conference is a grass roots response to the a call for broader international commitments to addressing climate change issues.   The call for a Declaration of Rights of Mother Earth is following the precedent set by Bolivia’s neighbor to the northwest.  In 2008 Ecuador rewrote its constitution to include a Bill of Rights of Nature.

The Ecuadorian Constitution now includes:

Chapter: Rights for Nature

Art. 1. Nature or Pachamama, where life is reproduced and exists, has the right to exist, persist, maintain and regenerate its vital cycles, structure, functions and its processes in evolution.

Every person, people, community or nationality, will be able to demand the recognitions of rights for nature before the public organisms. The application and interpretation of these rights will follow the related principles established in the Constitution.

Art. 2. Nature has the right to an integral restoration. This integral restoration is independent of the obligation on natural and juridical persons or the State to indemnify the people and the collectives that depend on the natural systems.

In the cases of severe or permanent environmental impact, including the ones caused by the exploitation on non renewable natural resources, the State will establish the most efficient mechanisms for the restoration, and will adopt the adequate measures to eliminate or mitigate the harmful environmental consequences.

Art. 3. The State will motivate natural and juridical persons as well as collectives to protect nature; it will promote respect towards all the elements that form an ecosystem.

Art. 4. The State will apply precaution and restriction measures in all the activities that can lead to the extinction of species, the destruction of the ecosystems or the permanent alteration of the natural cycles.

The introduction of organisms and organic and inorganic material that can alter in a definitive way the national genetic patrimony is prohibited.

Art. 5. The persons, people, communities and nationalities will have the right to benefit from the environment and form natural wealth that will allow wellbeing.

The environmental services are cannot be appropriated; its production, provision, use and exploitation, will be regulated by the State.

“Public organisms” in Article 1 means the courts and government agencies, i.e., the people of Ecuador would be able to take action to enforce nature rights if the government did not do so.

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change includes a proposal for a Declaration of Rights of Mother Earth states  “The 20thcentury has been the century of the human rights. First, with the approval of the civil and political rights in 1948, and second, with the approval of the economical, social and cultural rights in 1966. Now, the 21th century has to become the century of the Rights of Mother Earth and all natural beings.”  For more information visit www.runwiththejaguar.com.

About the Recycle Revival:

Greater Good Productions, together with WECT, are proud to announce the first annual GREATER WILMINGTON RECYCLE REVIVAL!

This celebration of everything 2nd hand, recycled, and environmentally friendly will showcase area organizations, businesses, artists and farmers that contribute to an overall healthy and sustainable community. It will feature a community yard sale, artists and crafters that work in recycled or earth friendly materials, a farmer’s market sneak preview, locally made products and food, music, “green living” businesses, 2nd hand fashions, and more. Proceeds from this event will benefit the Cape Fear River Watch, PenderWatch, and the North Carolina Coastal Federation and their efforts to keep Southeastern North Carolina clean, healthy and beautiful.

GREEN LIVING SHOWCASE

More and more people are realizing the importance of living green. Whether its through buying local, using less toxic chemicals, or simply recycling, people are making an effort to reduce their carbon footprint and make our planet more healthy. This is what the Recycle Revival is all about - reusing, reducing, and doing what’s right for our planet Earth. We at GGP feel that the “green” trend is probably the most beneficial trend to ever impact our culture, so much in fact, that we hope its not a trend, but a planetary movement towards a better way of life. 

For more info about this event: http://greatergoodwilmington.wordpress.com/upcomingevents/rr/