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Fair Trade
Fair Trade in Europe started as a grassroots movement about 40 years ago. The aim was to alleviate poverty in the ‘South’ – Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean – by building direct, sustainable relationships with disadvantaged producers and providing fair access to markets in the developed ‘North’. The aims are the same now, but Fair Trade has developed into a powerful force, symbolised by a high level of European co-operation.
Fair Trade is a trading partnership, based on dialogue, transparency and respect, which seeks greater equity in international trade. It contributes to sustainable development by offering better trading conditions to, and securing the rights of, marginalized producers and workers – especially in the South.
Fair Trade organisations (backed by consumers) are engaged actively in supporting producers, awareness raising and in campaigning for changes in the rules and practices of conventional international trade.
All involved in Fair Trade accept that it has to include: paying fair prices to producers which reflect the true cost of production, supporting producer organisations in their social and environmental projects, promoting gender equality in pay and working conditions, advising on product development to increase access to markets, committing to long term relationships to provide stability and security and campaigning to highlight the unequal system of world trade which places profit above human rights and threatens our environment.
Kazuri - Handmade Ceramic Jewellery from Kenya.
Kazuri, which means small and beautiful in Swahili, is Fair Trade.
Kazuri's handmade, hand-painted ceramic jewellery is made in Nairobi, Kenya. Every bead which goes to make up a necklace or bracelet is shaped by hand by one of the 200 local women employed by Kazuri. The beads are then kiln fired once, glazed and fired again before being strung. The late Lady Susan Wood founded Kazuri in 1975. Observing that many women in the villages around Nairobi were struggling single mothers, she and two Kikuyu women organised a ceramic workshop to teach them jewellery making skills. Today Kazuri has grown considerably whilst retaining its philanthropic roots. The workshop is still located on part of the farm once owned by Karen Blixen, of 'Out of Africa' fame, at the base of the Ngong Hills outside Nairobi.
The Colours Of Kazuri
In an age of mass-produced goods, Kazuri jewellery from Kenya stands out as a little bit different. As every piece of jewellery is handmade, every one is unique. Indeed, many pieces take on the quirks and trademarks of the individual people who shape the beads, paint them or string them. For this reason, some of our designs have been named after ladies who have inspired or influenced them, like Angela. Others are named after objects they resemble, literally or figuratively. Like Bird Eggs, Pita Pat and Shale. There are some that naturally take on a name that suits them, Crackerjack, Tango and Warrior. Some are Swahili names - Sahani means plate. And finally, many Kazuri styles are named after areas, tribes and other features of the Kenyan landscape. Evocative names that resonate with the organic, natural clay medium that makes our jewellery - Mara, Samburu and Turkana. So a Kazuri piece is more than just a piece of jewellery, it's a piece of Kenya. .jpg) Kazuri's product   
Hatti Trading ltd, The Esther Benjamins Trust, Maiti Nepal and Association for Craft Producers.
Hatti Products are designed for the western market and made by rehabilitated survivors of human trafficking, disadvantaged and stigmatised individuals, small cottage industries and rural villagers.
Hatti bags are exclusively designed handbags made with a social conscience.
These bags are made in Nepal by rehabilitated returnees of human trafficking, disadvantaged and stigmatised women, small cottage industries and rural villages.
Nepal is one of the poorest countries of the world where 85% of the people live in the rural countryside, often in extreme poverty.
Most rural people are farmers barely existing on self sufficiency, and one of the few sources to subsidise their income is the production of hand craft.
Due to the extreme poverty many young girls are unwittingly sold into prostitution or into bonded labour such as circuses where they are regularly beaten, raped, abused and exploited.
Hatti Trading promotes Fair trade and works with organizations such as The Esther Benjamins Trust, Maiti Nepal and Association for Craft Producers, who support these survivors of Human Trafficking, disadvantaged and stigmatised women and girls and provides a market in the UK, enabling them to built a new life of independence and dignity. Hatti Trading constantly aspire to:
Fair Wages for Workers
Safe Working Conditions for all employees
Development of Community Projects
Development of Maternity Benefits
Development of Sickness Benefits
Fair Conditions of Employment
Training and Development of Skills Programmes
Development of Child Education Programmes
Support Small Cottage Industries and Craft Producers
History:
At the beginning of 2004, Emma Triplett, the Founder of Hatti Trading, took a holiday to Nepal to go trekking in the Himalayas; at the time she didn’t know that this holiday would change her life forever. After the holiday she returned to her job and her Western way of life, but could not forget Nepal and its friendly, beautiful people, so she traded West for East and moved to Nepal.
In 2005 she started teaching on a voluntary basis for an English Registered Charity called The Esther Benjamins Trust. Her students were girls who had been unwittingly sold or tricked into circuses in India and become victims of child abuse. The Esther Benjamins Trust had rescued and returned these girls to Nepal to be reunited with their families where possible, but where not, to undergo rehabilitation and training. 
Her interest in and compassion for these victims of human trafficking and society led her to research organisations whose purpose is to help disadvantaged and stigmatized individuals lead a self-sufficient and independent life. It quickly became clear to her that, although Nepal is half the world away from the UK in geographical terms, it is a world away in terms of women’s rights and progress.
Women are still considered second-class citizens in Nepal. If a woman becomes divorced or separated from her husband, even through no fault of her own, she will end up with no house and no family and no means of support. There are no social services, NHS, Child Welfare, Income Support or free education. Moreover, due to extreme poverty, especially in rural areas in Nepal, there is a huge problem with trafficking of children and women into brothels and exploitative bonded labour in India (like the circuses).
Charities like The Esther Benjamins Trust and Maiti Nepal lead the fight against trafficking and help these girls escape their degrading life and return to Nepal. Unfortunately, once they are back these girls often remain stigmatized by their past and cannot return to a normal life in their villages with their families. These charities help tackle this problem by offering training in a variety of skills in order to give them a means to start a new independent life. There are also organizations such as the Association for Craft Producers and the Women’s Skills Development Project who provide skills training, marketing and business experience to help some of these most disadvantaged women to get back on their feet.
She found that many of the women supported by these organisations were making handicrafts and handbags. To sustain an income, however, they needed a market and products suitable for western tastes. It was clear that many people in the UK support fair trade and make conscientious purchase choices; however, they will only buy if they actually like the product, even if it is a great cause, so we started providing designs and ideas which would appeal to our western fashions.
After trying out samples of the handbags on her friends in England, she started Hatti Trading to meet this need. This is a socially conscious business selling fairly traded products. Hatti Trading supports these humanitarian organisations directly and indirectly. Hatti Trading already accredited as a Fair Trade Importer by BAFTS (British Association of Fair Trade Shops)and the Ethical Junction.
Hatti Trading's product:
   
Experience Hatti Trading's Felt Bags
Experience Hatti Trading's Cotton Bags
Experience Hatti Trading's Hemp Bags
Tribal Textiles, Mfuwe, Zambia. Tribal Textiles produce unique hand-painted traditional and contemporary fabrics in Zambia
Based in Mfuwe, close to the edge of South Luangwa National Park in Zambia, Tribal Textiles has been in operation since 1991. The company was started by Gillie Lightfoot who with a small group of local artists translated her dream into reality working under a tree on the banks of the Luangwa river.
The company produces 100% cotton hand painted textiles, soft furnishings and accessories for the home, supplying the local safari and retail markets and over the years has grown substantially developing markets in Europe, the USA and Japan. Working from a workshop close to Mfuwe Airport, Tribal Textiles has established itself as a fair trade producer through employee training, education for employees children through major support of a local school and regular wages.
The core success of the business is based on the artistic talents of the artists who design and paint the colourful products. Using freehand style their work creates totally unique produce with subtle variations in colours and styles.
Tribal Textiles employ 160 staff from the surrounding community. Traditionally, employment has been generated from subsistence agriculture and more recently through seasonal tourism generated by development of safari and game lodges in and surrounding the South Luangwa National Park.
Objectives:
Originality and true beauty is the focus of Tribal Textiles products. They do not mass-produce and in fact, believe the strength of our product lies in its hand-made process. The objective of the company is to promote fair trade practices, generate local employment and develop creative skills.
They actively support and fund-raise for the local community school, Malimba, educating over 160 children.
Designs:
Tribal Textiles collection includes an exciting selection of traditional, contemporary and African abstract designs including geometric, floral, organic, Moroccan & East African influenced ranges. Our traditional line focuses on tribal, animal and indigenous designs derived from African art. Additionally, we offer a fun and dynamic children's range, featuring Africa's favourite animals! Both durable and colourfast, Tribal Textiles designs will transform any interior and outdoor living area.
Process:
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Begin with the cutting, sewing & fraying of 100% cotton fabric.
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Individual designs are produced with starch solution & sun-dried.
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All designs are hand-painted, utilizing our many colourways.
- The cooking process, in an industrial oven, makes the textiles colour fast & fully washable
Following cooking, each piece is washed and dried in the sunshine.
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The starch designs are carefully removed to reveal the colourful designs.
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The final process includes sewing & pressing, in preparation for packing.
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The handmade paper is manufactured from indigenous materials using friendly methods and materials, utilising 100% non-woodpulp materials in the product line from the start and dyed using biodegradable components, used for gift items and decorative accents.
The bulk of raw materials used are vegetable fibres from bushes or herbs supplemented by agricultural by-products like rice straw and banana plant stalks to provide variety in texture and accent.
The two main fibres used in our paper line-up are abaca and salago. The salago (Wikstroemia spp.) is gleaned from the salago bush, a sturdy shrub that that can withstand droughts or floods and is abundant throughout the Philippines. All four species are used for our papers. The bark, from which the paper is made, is extracted by either hand-stripping it from the stem or steaming it, to separate it from the pith.
Abaca fibre is gleaned from the herb called abaca (musa textilis) or manila hemp and has proven its strength and durability through time as the traditional material used in heavy duty ropes and sacks.
Raffia fibre is gleaned from the leaves of a palm called buri (corypha elata). Sinamay is abaca fibre woven into a delicate translucent fibre and hand-embroidered for use in formal gowns and the local formal men’s apparel in The Philippines called barong tagalog.
Its home base projects such as the hand fans project, sinamay project and paper bag making has been remarkable and is still on-going. These activities had encouraged livelihood generation, particularly in buoying up the locals’ means of support and subsistence. The home base activities had created a diversion from the previous way of life (characterized by a type of gambling which is very popular among the locals), into a beneficial and environment friendly one.
Conduct of hands on training among the local workforce has been successfully done, and such trainings had highlighted efficiency, and quality work and products.
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