As part of its commitment to actively promoting fair trade, Ramsey-based fair trade store Shakti Man has launched its own Facebook page. The main aim of the page is to tell the stories behind the products Shakti Man sells – and how, by buying them, people in the island are helping to change the lives of some of the most vulnerable people in the world.
When you Google ‘fair trade’, you’ll get a definition like this one from About.com: ‘An organized movement developed to promote standards of environmentalism and fair wages, and alleviate global poverty.’
One of the key words here is ‘promote’. As Leni Lewis, Shakti Man’s owner, explains, “A big part of being a fair trade retailer is promoting the whys and wherefores of this global movement. To complement our leaflets, fashion shows and workshops in schools, we wanted to spread the good news via social media too. As well as telling people about new products as they come in, we will have a ‘beautiful story of the week’ about the different fair trade projects we work with and the beautiful things they’re helping to make happen.”
Just one of the many beautiful stories is Cards from Africa. This fair trade business produces fabulous cards, hand-made by orphans of the Rwandan genocide of 1994. These young people have become the heads of their families, and the money they earn goes towards putting their younger brothers and sisters through school. Christine, a Cards from Africa employee, sums it up with beautiful simplicity, “I wrote a song that tells people it is time to stop crying. It is now the time to move forward with hope.”
Each card made by Cards from Africa is signed by the young person who made it. And in the case of fashion and textiles made from recycled saris, like the bunting from Sari Bari pictured, each piece is unique. As Shakti Man’s Jen James says, “I love recycled sari creations. They’re interesting and unpredictable, because you never know what pattern you’ll get – and it feels like you have a little piece of someone’s history.”
To help make fair trade the only way to do business, visit Shakti Man on Facebook and ‘like’ the page – http://www.facebook.com/ShaktiManFairTrade?fref=ts
Photo - Jen James at Shakti Man with recycled Sari bunting from Sari Bari.
