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5 Great Fair Trade Gifts for the Holidays
Our values are important to us, but we also want you to be able to integrate the values we practice into your daily life. That’s why I compiled this list of gifts to give this holiday season that fall in line with our Community Trade values. There’s something for anyone here, and I’d love to know how you are helping others with your holiday treats.
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“I’m Tired” Bracelets – We’re all tired of something. For most of us, it’s traffic or lugging laundry to the cleaners. Unfortunately, there are bigger issues in the world that many of us don’t consider on a daily basis. Luckily, here’s a gift to remind you how tiring some world issues can be. Designed by Joseph Bortoli and made of recycled tires, each bracelet has a charm that reads “I’m Tired of…” followed by one of several world causes of your choosing like “AIDS,” “Animal Cruelty,” “World Hunger,” and more. $5 of each $10 bracelet goes to important causes. These gifts are stylish and unique, and can help to show your support for Fair Trade related products.
• Red Panda, Sea Turtle or Rockhopper Penguin – No, I don’t mean you should go grab one of these from the wild, but you can adopt a wild critter via the WWF. There are dozens of nature’s finest beasts to adopt, and your contributions will go to the continued effort to preserve wild animals and their habitats. This is a great way to support animal rights as well as the communities surrounding the environments that these creatures call home. By helping to fund these communities, WWF helps them to create sustainable ways of living, and that’s something I can get behind.
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Divine Chocolate – This delectable chocolate isn’t shipped in from heaven, but it must be from somewhere close. With a wide range of delicious chocolate bars in such flavors as Mint Dark, Coffee Milk, and Hazelnut, the only problem you might have is deciding when to say stop. The best thing about Divine Chocolate is that it is Fair Trade from “bean to bar” and practices the kind of Community Trade that we can wholly endorse. As a matter of fact, Divine Chocolate sources its cocoa butter from the same cooperative that we do – the Kuapa Kokoo company, which absolutely gets our stamp of approval. Oh, and did I mention it is delicious?
• Fair Trade Quilts – If you want a truly authentic and warm gift to give your loved one this Holiday season, pick up one of these amazing Fair Trade Quilts. The quilts and other blankets are handmade in Guatemala, and your purchase supports Fair Trade practices with local artisans.
• Ethical Wine – It almost goes without saying that one of those obligatory gifts to bring to a Holiday party is a bottle of wine. This year, instead of arriving with a tacky bottle of table red, bring something that will no doubt incite a conversation. Etica Fair Trade wines are from select regions such as Argentina, Chile, and South Africa, and their Fair Trade practices help build better futures for farmers. Etica also practices “green” business, including everything from using eco-friendly cleaning supplies in the office as well as promoting alternative transportation for their employees.
These are all great gifts that help promote Fair Trade practices. I have others from our company that are my favorites, but I’m curious, what are your favorites (from anywhere)?
