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Welcome!
I am Joe from Smart Citizens. Set up in 2010, we are a local watchdog that fights for the rights for the disadvantaged in society, as wll as for the battlement of their standards of living. Today, I'm here to tell you about being a responsible shopper.
I think the best way to explain our goals is by using an example. Imagine - you are out shopping with a friend and you find a great pair of jeans. It's everything you've been looking for and the price is right. Then, your friends tells you....
This is made by sweatshop labourers who get extemely low pay for long hours of work under poor working conditions. Not all of them are grown-ups, either; some of them are as young as five years old! What's more, many of these workers suffer from poor health because of the harmful chemicals used during the production process.
Does this information bother you?
Would you put the jeans back on the rack, or would you buy it anyway?
If you answered 'yes' to my first question - congratulations! You have the qualities to become a responslible shopper. For those who answered otherwise, I hope the following information will convince you to make smart and responsible shopping choices.
Let me first explain what a responsible shopper is. At Smart Citizens, we see this as someone who purposefully shops for animal-friendly, eco-friendly or fair trade products. Animal-friendly products are goods that are produced without involving cruelty to animals. For example, free-range eggs are from hens that are allowed to freely move about rather than being locked in small cages like battery chickens.
Eco-friendly products, such as organic fruits and vegetables , are goods that are produced without polluting the environment, i.e. land, water ot air.
As for fair trade products, they are goods produced by workers who are fairly paid and have good working conditions.
To help you get a better picture, let's look at the case of footballs.
Football, or soccer as Americans call it, is one of the world's most popular sports. Every year, tens of millions of footballs are sold all over the world. I think many of you probably own one, too. However, do you know where most footballs come from?
Many of these footballs are produced in Pakistan. They are hand-stitched by labourers who are often poorly paid. To further cut down on productions costs , many factories employ child workers as well. Loss of eyesight, severe back pain, finger cuts and evern deformation are common among these workers.
Let's take a look at the following slide to see how things have improved through a fair trade football scheme:
- NO child workwer has been employed to make it.
- NO harm has been done to the environment in the production process. No harmful chemicals also mean a much safer working environment.
- NO difference in quality to non-fair trade products. In addition, for every fair trade football sold, a percentage of the sale will go to a fund to help the stitchers live better lives.
As you can see, when we buy fair trade products, we can help change the lives of these labourers, giving them hope for a better future, What's more, many of these fair trade products also carry an eco-friendly label, so you'll also be helping our planet when you purchase these products.
Next time when you go shopping, look for products marked with a fair trade logo from leading international organisations such as Fairtrade International and the World Fair Trade Organization(WFTO). Read the labels carefully to make sure the items are 'Fair Trade Certified' before you put them in your shopping basket.
Whether you buy fair trade, eco-friendly or animal-friendly products , It's good to know that you are supporting and funding a good cause. If more people buy from ethical businesses, it will encourage other businesses to follow suit so that the world can become a better place.
Let's become a responsible shopper today and change the world!
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other ways to show support
Research
Look for information about ethical shopping products, e.g.
- fair trade/ child-labour free footballs from Pakistan (Asia)
- eco-friendly/ fair trade plant products such as cotton from India, cocoa form the Dominican Republic( Central America) , bananas from Ecuador (South America) and sugar from Malawi (Africa)
Knowledge is power that helps you make the right choices
Promote
Start an action group to encourage shopping for ethically-produced products.
To everyone around you, pass on this massage
Shopper means power.
Petition
Write to shops and supermarkets to ask them to carry ethically-made produce. Demand that products be suitably labelled to encourage responsibel shopping.