{"id":42112,"date":"2010-10-14T04:00:30","date_gmt":"2010-10-14T11:00:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/getrichslowly.org\/blog\/?p=42112"},"modified":"2018-11-21T19:42:49","modified_gmt":"2018-11-22T03:42:49","slug":"using-consumerism-for-social-good","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.getrichslowly.org\/using-consumerism-for-social-good\/","title":{"rendered":"Using Consumerism for Social Good"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/a>When I shampoo my hair, I’m helping buy bicycles for girls in Togo to get to school.<\/p>\n According to UNICEF, in Togo, a small nation in West Africa, about half of the women 15-24 years old can’t read or write, and the numbers are higher for those in rural areas where there’s no access to transportation. Children have to walk 5 to 15 miles, and girls, who typically have more household chores than boys, are particularly likely to drop out before secondary school.<\/p>\n You’re probably wondering what bikes in Africa have to do with shampoo. All costs of the Bicycles for Education project \u2014 shipping, bike repairs, distribution, and follow-up costs \u2014 are paid for through the sales of Alaffia<\/a> products. Alaffia is a line of hair and skin products made from fairly traded, handcrafted shea butter. While the pros and cons of fair trade certification have been debated, Alaffia founder Olowo-n’djo Tchala, who grew up in poverty in Togo, puts the African communities first, with direct involvement in the entire process and 10% of sales going to community empowerment projects. The current list of projects includes the following:<\/p>\n Consumerism with a cause<\/strong><\/em> While lathering up in the shower, I noticed that the bottle was covered in more than the usual directions and ingredient list. I read enough that my interest in the brand was piqued, and after rinsing, conditioning (no matted mess!), and singing one more verse of Don’t Cry for Me, Argentina<\/em>, I was on the organization’s website.<\/p>\n I liked what I read. After all, if I’m going to buy shampoo anyway, and the product works, why not support an organization that was founded to empower people in West Africa?<\/strong><\/p>\n Buying Stuff <\/strong>with a purpose<\/strong><\/em> There also are plenty of lists online for gift<\/a> ideas<\/a> that give twice<\/a>, and there are bound to be even more as we get closer to the holiday season. (In addition, you can use Allgive.com as your browser or GoodSearch.com<\/a> as your search engine, which donate a portion of their proceeds to your cause of choice.)<\/p>\n My favorite gifts to give are experiences<\/a>, which is probably because of the current war on clutter<\/a> I’m waging in my own home. I also like giving homemade gifts<\/a> or something purchased from local businesses<\/a>. But sometimes an actual gift item works better for the occasion or the recipient. Sometimes I can’t find something appropriate from a local business, and I run out of time to make a homemade gift. And sometimes a girl just wants a sulfate-free shampoo that makes her hair look more like this and less like this. When that’s the case, I’m going to make an effort to find a gift or product that gives back.<\/p>\n So, readers, what are your thoughts? Do you already do this? Share any insights (and websites!) you have on socially conscious giving.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" <\/a>When I shampoo my hair, I’m helping buy bicycles for girls in Togo to get to school.<\/p>\n According to UNICEF, in Togo, a small nation in West Africa, about half of the women 15-24 years old can’t read or write, and the numbers are higher for those in rural areas where there’s no access to transportation. Children have to walk 5 to 15 miles, and girls, who typically have more household chores than boys, are particularly likely to drop out before secondary school.<\/p>\n You’re probably wondering what bikes in Africa have to do with shampoo. All costs of the Bicycles for Education project \u2014 shipping, bike repairs, distribution, and follow-up costs \u2014 are paid for through the sales of Alaffia<\/a> products. Alaffia is a line of hair and skin products made from fairly traded, handcrafted shea butter. While the pros and cons of fair trade certification have been debated, Alaffia founder Olowo-n’djo Tchala, who grew up in poverty in Togo, puts the African communities first, with direct involvement in the entire process and 10% of sales going to community empowerment projects. The current list of projects includes the following:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":92,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[494],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.getrichslowly.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42112"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.getrichslowly.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.getrichslowly.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.getrichslowly.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/92"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.getrichslowly.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42112"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.getrichslowly.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42112\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.getrichslowly.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42112"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.getrichslowly.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42112"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
\nI didn’t originally buy Alaffia products for any of those reasons. I was at my health food store on a reconnaissance mission to find a sulfate- and paraben-free shampoo that didn’t leave my head full of curls a matted, tangled, dry, or gummy mess. I debriefed the helpful saleswoman, who pointed me to the Alaffia line.<\/p>\n
\nI’ve started to look for more organizations that sell products that benefit a good cause. While I’m trying to cut back on Stuff in my own life, some occasions \u2014 gift-giving ones come to mind \u2014 are great opportunities to support these kinds of organizations. Interested in doing the same? The following are two places to start your search:<\/p>\n\n