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How do I know the product is Fair Trade?

• Look for one of these labels, if they're not there, don't buy!

What should/can I buy Fair Trade?

10 things YOU can do NOW in Manhattan to save our world!

"Be the change you wish to see in the world" Ghandi

- There are no excuses, change starts with each individual person. It's not good enough to pick out all the problems and complain about them anymore. Now is the time for walking, we're sick of talking. Think globally, act locally!

- Theoretical underpinnings...

1. Walk (or bike): Manhattan is a very small community. If you are a student, there is no need to drive a car in Manhattan. People all over the world still walk, we can too. If you want a buddy to walk to the grocery store with, contact us, we do it all the time! It's fun, good exercise, a challenge, cost effective, enlightening, holistic, independent, liberating, responsible, and therapeutic. Every time you enter a car ask yourself, "Why don't I just walk?"
2. Grocery Shop Locally: Shop for groceries at Peoples Grocery (a 15 minute walk south from campus 517 South 17th St., Manhattan, KS 66502. 785-539-4811). Peoples is a local co-op featuring local produce, all organic, and fair trade grocery. Reduce the energy used in logistics for food, use your power as a consumer to dictate the market, eat healthier, pay appropriate amounts for food (the US spends the least amount of disposable income on food of any country in the world), and enjoy the walk... contact webmaster Kevin, he'll accompany you! Other good places: East and Westside Markets.
3. Shop Local: When grocery shopping buy as local as possible. It makes no sense to import products available locally. Transportation is perhaps the greatest threat to the environment. Choosing the local non-organic product can actually be better for the environment than the non-local organic product. Other than groceries, always strive to shop at the local stores to cut down on transportation and to support a sustainable community. Shop at the local hardware store rather than Home Depot; buy clothing from R&R in Aggieville rather than Wal-Mart. For a guide to local shopping, look to the right column!
4. Shop Fair Trade: Commodity fetishism and alienation are principles that describe nearly all our purchases. They dictate that we do not see the steps that it takes to make the products we buy. We have no idea what it took to make the t-shirt we buy at Wal-Mart. This makes it easy for us to ignore the Chinese sweatshop labor and the environmental atrocities that produced the t-shirt. To get rid of the fetishism and alienation, shop Fair Trade. Fair Trade is a certification that is given to products that are produced using fair labor and sound environmental practices (for more info). Most Fair Trade products come with a story telling who made them and where they were made. If there is no Fair Trade certification, ask the company where the product was made, by who, and what type of labor went into the production. This forces companies to address the issue. Fair Trade can actively help us even out wealth disparity in the world! For information on what products to purchase Fair Trade and where to purchase them, look to the left column.
5. Consume Less Energy: The easiest and most accessible way to save the world in Manhattan is simply to consume less. This means a commitment to a specific lifestyle. This means always asking the question, do I really need to be using this energy and is this the most efficient use if I do? Turn lights off, turn the TV off, turn the heater down and put on an extra layer, enjoy a shady tree rather than the air conditioner, take short showers, wash clothes when necessary rather than because they have been worn once, walk, bike, turn the water heater temperature down, winter and summer proof your home, use your own abilities rather than machines...
6. Recycle: Unfortunately we have no choice but to consume. However, this doesn't mean that we can't consume conscientiously. First reuse the recyclable, then recycle it. All you have to do is throw your recyclables in your garage, basement, or closet and take them down to Howies when you have a good amount (you even get paid for the cans!). If you live in the dorms, find out where you can recycle (behind Moore Hall?) and pressure the ruling body to make it easier to recycle. If in an apartment, pressure your landlord to set up recycling facilities next to your trash dumpster. Many people in Manhattan pay to have their trash hauled, thus recycling saves money by reducing trash volume. Howies accepts most recyclables including but not limited to: aluminum cans, steel cans, scrap metal, plastic #1 & #2 (no lids), telephone books, magazines, glass bottles, newspapers, cardboard, paper, hazardous waste. Finally, put pressure on local representatives to institute curbside recycling in Manhattan!
7. Consume Conscientiously: Never doubt your purchasing power. You dictate what type of products are available and their cost. The everyday commitment is to buy less and buy smarter. Bring your own mug to Bluestream when you go for coffee. At the bars drink the beer on tap out of a glass. Drink from kegs with glasses whenever possible. Buy beer in reusable glass growlers from Little Apple Brewery. Bring your own bags to the grocery store. Bring plasticware to the restaurant if you think you will have leftovers. Buy milk in returnable glass containers from Peoples. Ask the restaurant if they recycle and where they get their food from, and tell them that you (as a customer) would like them to recycle and buy locally (or praise if they already do). Stop buying fast food because it is unhealthy, non-local, and not sustainable (exception: Local Burger in Lawrence). Whenever buying any non-fair trade product, ask where it came from and what it took to make it. You usually won't get answers, but the question forces the company to think. Consider the answer or lack there of that you do get, along with cost, in your decision to purchase the item. Place a world detriment tax on the item... if you think the product is adding to the environmental and social problems in the world, put an imaginary tax on it so you see the "real" cost of the product.
8. Tell Others: Tell others what you are doing to change the world. It doesn't always help to tell others to change, so just tell them how you've changed your behavior. This is a subtle yet very powerful technique that gets people thinking about changing behavior. Tell them it is fun and a lot easier than you thought. Lead by example: change the world by action rather than talking. The better example you are, the more likely you are to have an impact. If a more direct approach is desirable, hint at it by telling them "we need to do this and we need to do that," rather than telling them "you need to do this and you need to do that".
9. Network: While telling others what you are doing, make connections with people. This is the only way to translate the individual behavior change to a larger movement. Connect with like minded people from all areas. Also connect with unlike minded people, because they can teach you more than you can learn from anyone else. Everyone will be useful and essential to have as a contact. Through this form of networking, we have access to the entire world.
10. Join SEA: Finally, join SEA! SEA is an already established formal network in the community striving to promote a more sustainable future. Meet new friends, expand your network of relations, shed apathy, go to fun events, and save the world! Look to the right for information about how to get involved.

"You don't have to move the mountain, just help me climb it" Nickel Creek

- We don't have to save the world all by ourselves all at once, we just have to help each other climb the mountain of sustainability. None of us do all of these ten things and these ten are not exhaustive, so there is always something to be working on and always someone to work on it with!

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." Margaret Mead

#11 Eat Bananas!