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[The CNN Freedom Project: Ending Modern-Day Slavery] The dark side of chocolate - The CNN Freedom Project: Ending ...: A few years back when people wanted to put Kathy Gifford’s head on a platter for having children work in her factory, a man from that country was interviewed and said that we (mainly us Americans) were actually making it worse and that if we stop buying products in protest and factories close the families are left in dire straights and many would end up actually selling their children and not for the purpose of giving them a better life.

[Diplomunion] Roflpotamus' Suggestion and Idea Thread: They could be refugees from the onslaught of the Scourge or rebels that dissented with the HE society and attacked the Alliance only to be put away and later freed by the Naga. The possibilities for lore here are quite open to however one wants to play while still allowing for the much needed lore gap to be filled, for a balancing fallback that would support Brown’s, and as a means to imbue Outland with more life and action.

[Pitt Blather] Pitt Blather Permalink » The Tenth Team Looms: I know they have been a pretty successful D-1AA **oh sorry FCS program** (I think they ended top 5 this past year and won the title 2 years ago), but can we actually expect them to compete within the next 5 years?

[Local Buttons] Consumer Coma: We are aware that young children in Bangladesh are currently working under horrific conditions for hours on end for a meager wage so that they can contribute in a small way to their families earnings,and provide us with cheap clothing we can purchase from H&M. In our province of Ontario, probably as you are reading this, male migrant workers from Mexico are working long hours for less than minimum wage with no benefits.

[Persona] Martin Marty - Fasting for the Poor « Persona: Also in elaborated but consistent paraphrase for the Bible-believers among us: “You can stamp ”˜In God We Trust’ on all your money, fight for particular prayers in public gatherings and schools, sing ”˜God Bless America’ and all,” but if the people would not feed the hungry, free the imprisoned, and take care of those in need, their fasting, they learned, was beside the point, if not futile and wrong. The ancient prophet said this more elegantly and with an authority that columnists cannot command, but his words should outrank other texts which are cherished by biblical literalists and their secular cousins during legislative and electoral conflicts.

[ArticlesWorld - Free Article Directory] ArticlesWorld - Free Article Directory» Coffee Amusement with ...: With all the wrongs through the world folks care increasingly more for the little guy, so why don’t you choose Fair Trade organic coffee while you’re at it? There are several organic Fair Trade coffees that are amazing and reasonably priced.

[|] The Confused Independent Coffee Shop « |: In defense of the coffeeshop, we should probably note that it was the Bearded Hipster who was confused, and not necessarily the coffeeshop (whose proprietor may share your thoughts). As a further clarification, let not this Bearded Hipster speak for all Bearded Hipsters –

[Aboutindo's Blog] Cat scat coffee and the fair trade mafia « Aboutindo's Blog has moved: The Fairtrade movement seeks to ensure that primary producers are paid a ‘fair’ amount for their product.  Apparently the market is not able to properly decide how much an ounce of coffee should cost.  So these experts have taken it upon themselves to increase producer prices.  But not for all producers, of course.  Only for those who are able to pay the license fee to the Fairtrade Foundation.  Then they have to play by the rules set by this first world organisation.  A few decades ago, another worthy organisation, the United Nations, tried fixing coffee prices, resulting in the usual corruption, cronyism and market disruption that always goes with attempts at central planning.  When the whole thing unravelled, there was a boom in production from new, more efficient players entering the market followed by a crash caused by the overproduction.  The Fairtrade movement could cause the same effect if they gain enough market power.

[Dani Rodrik's weblog] Dani Rodrik's weblog: I don't understand fair trade: The question of the conditionality of support in Dani's original post is a bit of a red herring, I think. Yes, the farmer would be better off having the premium to spend as he wishes, but he's still better off having the premium with conditionality clauses than not getting it at all (or else he wouldn't sign up in the first place.) Put simply, Fair Trade can still be a Good Thing even if it's not the Best Thing.

[Daily Demitasse Coffee blog] Hard Labor, Little Return for Coffee Farmers « Daily Demitasse ...: By year's end, he says, from the few thousand pounds he grows, he'll pocket about $1000 ”” around half the meager minimum wage in Guatemala. If we are to continue receiving our Fair Trade certified coffee, then the prices we pay for coffee need .

[green LA girl] Starbucks' CAFE practices, part II | green LA girl: And yes, because Starbucks is bigger it can and should probably do more, but then, McDonalds should be blowing Starbucks away with generosity in the international market (concerning Fair Trade), and I don’t see that happening. Nestle is HUGE compared to Starbucks, but where’s the press on all of the efforts they are making to support Fair Trade (cocoa and coffee are related farming products)?

[Unique Fundraising Ideas] Fund Raiser Ideas - Ways to Make Big Money - Unique Fundraising Ideas: One thing which can really make people identify and want to support your fundraiser is to have a private label. Some companies will use your organization's logo or artwork to produce a custom label to display your or your organization's principles.

[PSFK] A New Fair-Trade Business Model - PSFK: The artisans are able to work in their homes or village workshops, and CraftNetwork is able to sell large quantities of product to major wholesale buyers, delivering profits back to the artisans themselves. Benz says, “I have a whole village employed, a whole village that’s bringing in $70,000 a month -- based on one order.” That one order is from Carnival Cruise Line, which has bought 50,000 books weaved of banana leaves.

Reflected tags on Technorati: Blog, Fairtrade, Open Coffee Library