Inca Kids, Fair Trade and Sustainable Living

Fair Trade Calendar now for sale! (bulk or small orders)

2009-11-07T21:02:00.000-05:00

The Fair Trade 2010 Calendar is the first annual collaborative publication, between FTRN and the Fair Trade Federation, highlighting the Fair Trade movement. The full color 13.5″ x 9.5″ calendar features a winning photo each month from our recent FT Photo Competition. Bulk discounts are also available. The calendar is printed on environmentally friendly paper using earth-friendly printing processes.

Click here to order from the Fair Trade Resource Network.

2009 Fair Trade Holiday Festival

2009-11-07T20:57:00.003-05:00

The Community Action in Latinamerica is hosting their second Fair Trade Holiday Festival in Monona Terrace.

This year, the organization will to experiment with Domestic Fair Trade vendors; encouraging shoppers to connect their international fair trade purchases with the idea of continuing that minimum "degrees of separation" from the producer when they buy local products. Last year shoppers enjoyed local foods as well as wool and honey.

Save the date and time: Saturday, December 5, 2009 from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm.

Send email to "festival" at "calamadison.org" to become a vendor. Only 100% fair trade items are sold.

Fair Trade Holiday Gifts Guide

2009-11-03T20:24:00.000-05:00

As a supporter of the "Fair Trade the White House" campaign; Inca Kids is assisting with the distribution of a Fair Trade Holiday Gift Guide. More than 80 fair trade gifts in categories ranging from body-care to food to clothing are featured, many retailers are including exclusive discount offers throughout. Inca Kids is offering 15% off in any order (code: VIENNA).

Please e-mail us if interested in receiving an online copy of the guide. Distribution is of course, FREE!

Friends and Family FREE SHIPPING coupon

2009-10-29T13:40:00.005-04:00

Once again, we are sharing our "Friends and Family" FREE SHIPPING coupon this year. Please use coupon: FAMFACE when checking out. Coupon applies for orders $25+.

Also, if simply ordering bags, we are offering a different coupon BAGSALE (Free domestic shipping, too).

Hurry up, the coupon will only be valid for a couple of weeks + we have tons of stuff on sale!

Thanks for your support,

The Inca Kids Team

Reverse Trick-or-Treating!

2009-10-29T13:35:00.002-04:00

For its third year, Global Exchange is presenting "Reverse Trick-or-Treating"

This Halloween, it is kids who will be giving treats to adults!

Hundreds of groups of Trick-or-Treaters in the United States and Canada will unite to help:

END poverty among cocoa farmers
END forced/abusive child labor in the cocoa industry
PROMOTE Fair Trade
PROTECT the environment

A pleasant surprise will greet nearly a quarter million people distributing candy at their door, when youth reverse the Halloween tradition to hand adults a sample of vegan-friendly, Fair Trade dark chocolate.

The chocolate will be accompanied by a card informing recipients of poverty and child labor problems in the cocoa industry, affecting mainstream candy enjoyed at Halloween and around the year, and how Fair Trade certified chocolate provides a solution.

Parents of last year’s youngest participants raved about how Reverse Trick-or-Treating transformed Halloween into a meaningful event when youthful activists can give back to their neighbors and to cocoa growing communities.

The chocolate and cards are FREE!
Thanks to generous donations of Fair Trade chocolate companies listed below.
Recipients are charged shipping and packing supplies only, which is $5.50.

Request your kit TODAY; we always run out long before the deadline!

If you choose not to request a kit, you can still participate by distributing flyers on Halloween! Click here for more information.

Participating Fair Trade chocolate companies:

Equal Exchange
Alter Eco
Sweet Earth
La Siembra
Coco-Zen

If you have questions, please email fairtrade@globalexchange.org (email is the preferred method of contact, for the fastest response) or call 415.575.5557.
The printed cards are not available in Spanish, but feel free to print out the Spanish translation to distribute with the cards. It is available here: RTT-Espanol.
Only one kit request per shipping address permitted.

NEW Fair Trade DVD "A Thousand Fibers"

2009-10-12T20:31:00.002-04:00

Partners for Just Trade is pleased to announce their new DVD, A Thousand Fibers: Binding Together through Fair Trade is now available.

The DVD contains two versions of the film. One version (33 minutes) is designed as a standalone educational tool for individuals, community groups, retail stores, schools, and more. The second version (41 minutes) can be used as a multimedia aid to accompany PJT's Bible study "Using our Purchasing Power for Justice and Hope."

You can learn more about the video, watch the trailer and purchase the DVD on PJT's website here.

Celebrate Fair Trade Month!! Special FREE SHIPPING COUPON

2009-10-08T13:30:00.000-04:00

We are happy to offer our readers a coupon for FREE DOMESTIC SHIPPING in orders $45 + (please use code FALL01) Orders over $100 get FREE DOMESTIC SHIPPING + 2 finger puppets (code is FALLCC)

Teaching Guides for Elementary School Teachers

2009-09-30T13:30:00.003-04:00

Our friends from proartemaya.org have just created a guide for elementary school teachers who are interested in the fair trade movement as well as learning about contributions of the Maya traditional culture. The guide includes materials about Fair Trade presented to NY teachers in workshops given by the NY State Labor and Religion Coalition

This is a wonderful effort that comes in time for Fair Trade Month (every October). You can find the guides here. Read them online or download them in PDF for easy printing.

If you are in touch with any elementary teachers who might be interested, please pass my information on to them. Coloring pages accompany the guide.

Other teaching materials can be found on the "Teaching Tools" page of FTRN website.

Fair Trade Gifts that Keep on Giving

2009-09-26T16:21:00.006-04:00

"Gifts by the Stars" just compiled an interesting list of fair trade companies selling high quality products and Inca Kids is featured in it.

It is encouraging and interesting how more and more publications, from blogs to several articles in the last 6 months in Time Magazine (click for the latest one about coffee here) are addressing the issue of profit distribution, fair price, fair wages and sustainable business practices.

Forbes ran a great story about a company which has tapped into people’s concern about people in Third World countries being paid fairly for their work. Ten Thousand Villages works with over 130 artisan groups in 38 countries who make fair trade jewellery, home decor, gifts, clothing and other items and is considered one of the largest companies in this field (it netted $US24 million in sales in 2009, up from $US10 million in 2000).

To read more of the article, click here.

Sustainable Fair Trade Management System Put To Test

2009-09-16T14:23:00.002-04:00

The World Fair Trade Organization is currently developing its own certification scheme, the Sustainable Fair Trade Management System (SFTMS).

Based on management thinking, the SFTMS is designed to be a certification system underlining continuous quality improvement to transform a business into a sustainable fair trade business.

The system aims to empower small producers to meet the increasingly challenging requirements of global markets and thus increase their chances to access new (mainstream) markets for their products.

Compliance with the SFTMS voluntary standard means that an organisation has a proven set of practices, procedures and processes that demonstrate sound behaviour from a social, economic and environmental point of view. After a successful, independent third-party audit the product sold by the certified organisation may carry a label communicating that this item was sourced and produced under Fair Trade principles and practices.

Unlike Certification by the FLO (Fairtrade Labelling Organisations International), which is applied for on a product-by-product basis and which is limited to agricultural products mostly catering to export markets, the SFTMS applies to an entire business and all of its products and services and would be rolled out to cater for both export and local markets.

As such the SFTMS wants to respond to the complexity and variation of products and processes characteristic of the majority of marginalized handicraft producers in the South.

WFTO launched an international, multi-stakeholder (internal and external) consultation process in compliance with the ISEAL Code of Good Practice in Setting Social and Environmental Standards to collaboratively elaborate the Standard Framework.

The SFTMS Standard is now in its second draft.

The finalisation of the SFTMS Standard will be subject to the recommendations following pilot studies. The pilots will be implemented across different countries in Asia, Europe, Africa and Latin America.

In its effort to increase professionalism among small-scale producers and enhance their access to markets, the Trade for Development Centre of Belgian Technical Cooperation has committed to financing the pilot studies in Africa and Latin America.

Pilots financed by the Trade for Development Centre will be run in Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda. WFTO-LA will coordinate the process in Latin America whereas COFTA will coordinate in Africa.

Apart from providing input to the further development of the SFTMS standard and formulating guidelines for the implementation of SFTMS, the pilots need to allow producer organisations to get a better understanding of the process.

The pilot studies will involve 30 producer organisations in Africa and 10 in Latin America. The total cost equals EUR 217,000 of which the Trade for Development Centre finances EUR 133,000.

For more information on SFTMS, go to http://www.wfto.com/sftms

Be Fair And Sustainable Contest

2009-08-20T21:11:00.000-04:00

“BE FAIR AND SUSTAINABLE” CONTEST

On the occasion of the 8th Fair Trade Week, Belgian Technical Cooperation, through its Trade for Development Centre, organises the “Be Fair and Sustainable” contest.

Through this call the Trade for Development Centre invites legal entities established in developing countries that are engaged in Fair Trade to participate in the contest for the category:

Best initiative for the development of South - South Fair Trade

The winner of the contest will be granted a BE FAIR Award (and is free to communicate about this in its publications) and prize money of Euro 5,000.

The winner will moreover be invited to attend the BE FAIR Award ceremony (costs related to attendance will be paid by the Trade for Development Centre) that will take place in Brussels during the Fair Trade Week on Tuesday October 6th 2009 at the Atomium, one of Belgium's most famous landmarks.
The contest is open to all legal entities established in developing countries that are engaged in Fair Trade.

Proposals must concern EITHER:

A project for the establishment (in 2009-2010) of a company, organisation, association or cooperative that aims at promoting fair trade products or fair trade services in the South

OR

An action plan for the further development for the further development of activities of an existing company, organisation, association or cooperative that aims at promoting fair trade products or fair trade services in the South

Deadline for submission of proposals: September 1, 2009

Questions?
Contact Steven Decraen, Trade for Development Centre – Belgian Technical Cooperation - rue Haute 147 - 1000 Bruxelles - Belgique, steven.decraen@btcctb.org - +32.2.505.18.83 – +32.2.502.98.62 – www.befair.be

Fair Trade Calendar Photo Competition!

2009-08-20T20:56:00.003-04:00

The Fair Trade Calendar Photo Competition, a joint project of the Fair Trade Federation and Fair Trade Resource Network has stopped receiving pictures as of August 17th. The voting process has started!

Share a couple of minutes from your time and pick your favorites! The winners will be featured in a calendar showcasing Fair Trade producers, organizers, activists, students, and promoters submitted by Fair Trade businesses and organizations.

Follow the link for more info! http://www.competico.com/browse-competition/fair-trade-photos/1

Fifty-four Children Rescued from Slavery in Cocoa Plantations

2009-08-06T21:58:00.003-04:00

Fifty-four children were rescued from slavery in the cocoa and palms fields in West Africa earlier this week, one of the biggest developments in the effort to end child slavery in cocoa in years. The children were as young as 11 years old, endured hazardous working conditions, labored 12 hours a day, and were not paid.

(See www.interpol.int/Public/News/2009/CotedIvoire20090803.asp.)

The article demonstrates that lower prices requested by consumers encourages irresponsible plantation owners to support human trafficking and slavery in the region.

At the same time, we have received news that Hershey is inviting the public to “Celebrate National S’mores Day” on Monday, August 10, by making s’mores with their chocolate…even though some of their cocoa supply may be tainted by child slavery.

We believe that this is the moment in which we need to stand up and say YES to Fairly Traded Cocoa as well as all the other Fair Trade products available in the market.

Let's celebrate Smore's day with Fair Trade chocolate and ask Hershey to do the same!

Please visit www.globalexchange.org/cocoa for more information on how to participate.

New Products at Inca Kids!

2009-07-23T08:48:00.005-04:00

We have exciting new products at our online store; from hand knitted cupcakes to hand puppets and paper products and a cute piggy bank.
As always, our signature is excellent quality, bright colors and affordable prices while mantaining our 100% fair trade only principles.

We are particularly happy with our soft doll made in natural ovine yarn and our paper products, crafted by skilled yet handicapped artists in Peru from the Non-Profit Yanca Huasy. See video of their work below:

To shop, please visit our online store.

7 Wonders of Peruvian Cuisine - EVENT

2009-07-16T09:07:00.008-04:00

If you like Peruvian food, this is a MUST.

The "Real Felipe", a stone-wall fort in a pentagonal shape, built in the 1700's to repel attacks from pirates and privateers will host the final event to choose the "7 Wonders of the Peruvian Cuisine" on July 26th.

The event will feature more than 20 dishes prepared by famous chefs from the across the country.

Tickets are for sale now here. All proceeds will benefit children affected by metal pollution in Cerro de Pasco.

For more information about the event and contest, visit http://www.7maravillasgastronomicas.com (in Spanish) or contact us.

Inca Kids

NEW Ethical TV

2009-07-01T22:10:00.001-04:00

www.ethical.tv is the first dedicated global online TV website for films, stories, news and views about ethical lifestyle issues that affect people across the world.

Ethical TV has been created by Hand Up Media, the ethical publishing, media and events company that promotes fair trade and ethical lifestyle issues in positive, stylish & empowering ways to consumers across the globe.

This site is funded through sponsorship and new channel generation, operating internet TV platform.

Ethical.TV aims to encourage and inspire active participation and empowerment through their channels that include:

Human Rights
Health
Education
Investment
Environment
Fair Trade

Second European Fair Trade Fair

2009-07-01T22:07:00.002-04:00

Equi’Sol (an association promoting Fair Trade) is organising the second European Fair Trade Fair, with it’s European partners (The Trade for Development Centre is one of them), from 2nd to 4th October 2009.

300 exhibitors and 20 000 visitors are expected ! The perfect occasion to share about Fair Trade, to meet professionals, to discover new products, to exchange with Southern producers, to attend conferences and round tables on current Fair Trade events.

Learn more here

U.S. Sales of Fair Trade Certified Products Up in 2008 Despite Economy

2009-07-01T21:41:00.005-04:00

On an article posted by the Fair Trade Resource Network (FTRN) we learn that the demand for Fair Trade Certified products has grown rapidly nationwide, according to TransFair USA's recently released 2008 Almanac.

Annual imports of coffee grew by over 30% in weight, tea by over 20%, cocoa by over 95%, and bananas by over 250%. Additional income to farmers and producers grew 74%, to $32.6 million.

In other news, a grass-roots, nonpartisan coalition of Fair Trade organizations, vendors, retailers, schools, individuals and consumers, is inviting the First Lady to help extend the Fair Trade movement by declaring the White House a "Fair Trade Home." Having the White House seek to purchase and use fair trade goods encourages households throughout America to refine their buying habits toward ethical consumption so that poverty, both in America and around the world, is reduced.

Throughout the year, the campaign will seek online signatures from consumers and organizations to show the First Lady the momentum and support of the Fair Trade movement. The coalition hopes that the First Lady will accept the invitation so that a ceremony is conducted in May 2010 in honor of "World Fair Trade Day."
Learn more or participate in the campaign at Fair Trade the White House.

Fair Trade Dolls Featured in Specialty Blog

2009-06-13T20:52:00.004-04:00

The Natural Child Project, a parter of Inca Kids carrying exclusive dolls made by our artisans has been featured in the blog "Allthingsdoll.blogspot.com". check out our beautifull 100% handknitted dolls in ovine yarn! They depict an Andean woman carrying and wearing a child.

The Natural Child Project promotes attachment parenting and envisions a world in which all children are treated with dignity, respect, understanding, and compassion.

What the World Needs Now...

2009-06-02T21:29:00.003-04:00

Since 1993, when she made history as the first female White House press secretary, Dee Dee Myers has been wondering what would happen in more power was give to women. Myers, according to her book "Why Women Should Rule", believes that women are more interested in consensus than partisanship and look beyond the traditional skills in jobs and her research has shown that she is not only right, there is much more that makes investing in women a wise investment.

Women are wise investors, achiving higher finantial returns than men do. But of course, that should not be a surprise since women already make most of the purchasing decisions at home and their financial power continues to grow. Her reseach has also confirmed that both Republican and Democratic women are more likely to initiate and fight for bills that champion social justice, protect the environment, advocate for women and families and promote non violent conflict resolution.

Also, studies show that when women manage the family funds, generally spend more on health, nutrition and education. In fact, increases in women's income improve child survaval rates 20 times more than similar increases in men's income and children's weight-height measures improve eightfold.

An esential commitment of the Fair Trade Movement makes is to provide equal opportunities to men and women and if you consider that women form the majority of the co-operatives in small towns and villages that our project Inca Kids support, then they are able to capture many of the benefits the model provides. Not only fair wages but also assistance in finantial education, product development, safety at work, etc.

Remember that 70% of the pupulation living on $1 or less a day are women or girls. Buy fair trade and make an impact in the world!

Inca Kids

A New World Record!

2009-06-02T13:56:00.004-04:00

Yes, we did it!! On May 9th we broke Finlands 2008 record of over 52,000 in the largest fair trade coffee break. The US had over 60,000 people (and counting, report your event attendance here.

We had over 456 events across the country Click here to see pictures of Fair Trade Day!

Thanks for your support!

Inca Kids

55,000 participants in World Fair Trade Day!

2009-05-01T12:26:00.004-04:00

Pass along this rockin' WFTD video to friends and coworkers to help us reach a world record of over 55,000 participants in World Fair Trade Day.

Attend and event or have a Fair Trade Break wherever you are!

Get in the rhythm of a music break by using tips from this video or Drum Circle Guide from JAMTOWN.

World Fair Trade Day is a growing, global movement of artisans, farmers choosing to participate in an economic model that is both fair for the consumer and producer.
Celebrating Fair Trade creates a dignified life for us all. Thank you!

55,000 for Fair Trade!!

Fair Trade Markets Growing Quickly (NPR)

2009-04-20T20:54:00.003-04:00

This morning, NPR run a short story about Fair Trade and its impact in third world countries as well as its barriers.

The story focuses on cocoa and coffee, two of the main traded products, however, I find refreshing that more and more fair trade is showing in main stream media.

Follow the link to hear the story:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103270772&ft=1&f=3

Join us for World Fair Trade Day, May 9, 2009 at the Community Building! Create your own World Fair Trade Day event too, visit www.ftrn.org for a World Fair Trade Day organizing kit!

Inca Kids Can Now Ship Internationally!

2009-04-14T22:55:00.001-04:00

Yes, we are finally able to ship our handmade products to Canada, Puerto Rico and some countries in Europe: Germany, France, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Austria, Finland and Belgium.

So please help us spread the word and yes, we are also looking for retailers in those markets supporting our project and the fair trade movement.

Gilda

Internationall Women's Day 2009

2009-03-02T23:45:00.003-05:00

Each year around the world, International Women's Day (IWD) is celebrated on March 8. Hundreds of events occur not just on this day but throughout March to mark the economic, political and social achievements of women.

International Women's Day has been observed since in the early 1900's, a time of great expansion and turbulence in the industrialized world that saw booming population growth and the rise of radical ideologies.

Some years have seen global IWD themes honoured around the world, while in other years groups have preferred to 'localise' their own themes to make them more specific and relevant. This year, the theme is: Women and men united to end violence against women and girls

On March 5th, " A Powerful Noise" the acclaimed documentary film,will be shown in 450 movie theaters around the country followed by a live town hall discussion. Click here to find the closest location

For more information and other events in your area, visit www.internationalwomensday.com