Organic Holidays is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Have you ever wondered how many countries your pants have crossed before they end up in your shopping basket?  Or how many hands have touched them before they reach the shop? 

Becky John, social entrepreneur and founder of whomadeyourpants? asked herself those same questions and believing that everyone should be able to answer them, she set up her own business to do things differently.  We interviewed Becky to find out more.  You can read the interview in full on the Ooffoo website.  Here are some juicy snippets…

When Becky John answered the telephone ‘Hello, who made your pants?’, I knew that I was going to enjoy quizzing her about her knickers. Becky, the founder of a Southampton based workers cooperative, had agreed to a telephone interview. She promised me I would be inspired and she didn’t disappoint! Becky is a buoyant and passionate woman, and I felt every breath of her story as she told it.

Becky makes and sells ethical pants using upcycled materials, with a team of volunteers and refugee women whom she is helping through the scheme.  She dreams of a day when all knicker-wearers will be asking how many hands have touched their knickers before they reach the shop and how many countries they’ve crossed on the way to the shopping basket.

   “I’d started to realise that I didn’t have to do what I didn’t want to do. I knew I was ready to make a big change; that I didn’t have to stay within the constraints of a safe job and a safe income. Putting these feelings together with my ambition to do something socially responsible and my love of knickers was a perfect match.”

   “I love beautiful underwear – it makes you feel sexy and confident, but I didn’t want to compromise my ethics to have it… [ so I ] …decided to make and sell the kind of pants I wanted to wear.” 

   “I had begun to realise that women are just subjected across the world to crap messaging and societal norms that even in our culture don’t support women to feel as strong as they could. Having found my own strength I wanted to help other women to help themselves…Our motto is that we work with women who have never had opportunity, or have had it taken it away.”

   “I had a job earning lots of money to do nothing. Now I am poor and busy, doing something I love. I’m so happy.”

Read the full interview.

whomadeyourpants? are members of Ethical Junction.  View their profile here.

Based on a combination of chess and draughts a new on-line maths game has received some rave reviews. Keen2learn have just added the new game of Counter Challenge to their selection of educational games and teaching resources. The game allows different skills and age levels to be set to offers a maths challenge from one to four players. To take an opponents piece from the board you have to correctly answer a couple of questions in a pop up box.

The questions involve addition, subtraction, division and multiplication selected before the game starts. The bigger scoring counters have the trickiest questions. The winner does not necessarily take the greatest number of opponent’s counters but achieves the higest score.

The game was reviewed in the September 2010 Maths In School Journal, “Pupils will pick this up very quickly and the competitive element will provide a stimulus. The calculations will be carried out without pupils really noticing they are doing them and it is easy to see some becoming addicted to the game.”

Keen 2 Learn is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Dear Colleagues,

We invite you to the Quakers and Business Autumn Conference,

Our theme is “BEST BUSINESS PRACTICE IN UNCERTAIN TIMES”

And we are really lucky to have Gillian Tett of the FT as the keynote speaker.

The day will be packed with learning opportunities, networking time and a chance to reflect on how you and your business are reacting to these difficult times.

We recognized that it’s easier to hold to our principles in the good times, and that these times will test us sometimes to the limit. We wanted to take some time to reflect and build, so that we are more able to find a way through to withstand the pressure. We hope you will join us and that you will go away refreshed.

We do expect a good response to this conference and places are limited so please do book early – you can see the programme and book your place through the Q&B website at www.qandb.org

We look forward to hearing from you and seeing you on the day,

Q&B Events Working Group

Quakers and Business is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Dear Colleagues,

In light of the progress in the reform debate in recent weeks, Paul Moxey of the ACCA, and Eoin McCarthy of Quakers and Business will address this topic with four panelists including John Kay, Prof Andrew Kakabadse, Frank Curtiss and Sean Tully.

We expect very high quality discussion during the panels.  Attendance is free but booking is required

For the full programme and booking details please go to

www.zyen.com/long-finance/long-finance-events/695.html

Eoin McCarthy
Events Working Group convenor
For Quakers and Business
www.qandb.org

Tel: +44 (0) 1684 891 566
Skype: EoinMcCarthy6

Quakers and Business is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Autumn got off to a great start for Onya Bags – we were invited to Prince Charles’ Eco Garden Party in London! We had a great time there and are looking forward to the Festive Gift Fair in Birmingham at the end of November, to show of our expanding range. Our collection of Onya Bags made from rPET (recycled plastic bottles) is getting bigger all the time – we now have 22 different bags made from the lovely stuff – and that is set to grow. This year we’ve got new pocket designs, and new colours for your delectation. Charcoal grey for Uncle Ted and bright purple with a tree design for Auntie Muriel. So encourage your loved ones to love their planet too – an Onya Bag lasts for ages and can save hundreds of wasted plastic bags.

Or if you gave them all Onya Bags last year, why not give them a bottle? The range of H2Onya is growing, and we now have a larger range in an even bigger range of beautiful colours. Bottled water is as expensive as petrol, so why not save your family some money with an H2Onya, so they can send you on that cruise next year?

Please use the code xmas2010 at the checkout to get a 20% discount.

Onya Bags Ltd is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

As climate change issues grow in their severity and investors grow more sophisticated, the nature of investing is becoming more environmentally and socially responsible.  Nowadays, we want to see a profit from our investment but we also have a moral conscience about what we do with our money.  With an array of socially responsible investment available today, this is not a problem for the new-age investor, but there can be pitfalls.  Read the Silva Tree guide to socially responsible investing, and avoid the cowboys.

1. Check out the investment structure.  Is there a legal safety net, is there an FSA regulated body involved?
2. Check out the social element- are the benefits to environment/society proven anywhere?
3. Beware of your IFA- Some IFAs will put you off a product because it earns them less money.  Make sure the advice you receive is from an impartial advisor.
4. Do your homework- due diligence is important, make sure you checkout all paperwork and don’t be afraid to ask for proof of anything you feel is appropriate.
5. Don’t believe everything you read- don’t rely on the press or the internet for your research.  In today’s society, anyone can post anything, whether or not it is true.  You could be reading a positive review written by the investment company’s CEO, or a damning report by their competition.
6. Do use the internet wisely- check out companies house, recognized social organizations and reliable internet sources to confirm evidence of the investment’s existence and performance.
7. Check the standards- does the investment follow some sort of published social standard or code of practice? 
8. Don’t be too easily impressed- glossy brochures and smooth talking staff are not an indicator of a good investment, neither is evidence of money having been spent on development. 

Finally, trust your gut feeling- if you find the organization offering the investment to be pushey or evasive, take extra care.

Silva Tree Panama develop environmental projects in Central America, adopting a secure investment structure based in the UK.  FSA-regulated trustees Citadel Trustees hold all projects in trust and handle investor monies.  Silva Tree work with many FSA regulated IFAs, wealth management companies SIPP trustees and international agents.  They launch their Paulownia for Biomass fund, operated by Citadel, this autumn.

Silva Tree is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

With the feed-in tariff, solar PV panels are more accessible than they have ever been, but you still need to make sure you’ve got a suitable site before you install them. In this video, Stuart Houghton of Abacus Renewable Energy talks through the key things to check.

If you prefer to read, here’s the summary:

1. A predominantly south facing roof, although south east to south west is fine.

2. From flat roof to 45 degree angle is OK. Optimum in the south west is 38 degrees. The steeper the roof, the better it is in winter. Shallower is better in summer.

3. Shading can significantly reduce the output. What you don’t want is something that is shading any part of the panel permanently all day.

This was first published on YouGen. For more information os solar PV for your home, visit the YouGen website.

YouGen is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

Ethletic white high cut sneakers, made with oragnic and Fairtrade cotton and with built in arch supports are currently half price here

The Fair Deal Trading Partnership Llp is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more

The 100% recycled card calendar has been ingeniously designed so that at the end of each month the user simply tears off the page and folds the pre-creased sheet into a branded CD/DVD card wallet, ideal for storing data or packaging a branded CD!

No part of the WowCalendar need end up in landfill as the small amount of left over card is easily recycled and the discrete metal screw that holds the calendar together can be re-used time and time again.  With a minimum order of just 10 units, the WowCalendar is ideal even for companies who are looking to send out a promotional desk item to a select few clients.  The benefits are enormous as the company’s brand will be sat in front of their clients for 12 months along with a powerful reminder of the brand’s environmental ethic.

The WowCalendar has been launched in perfect time for the pre-Christmas rush for brandable gifts and the Bradford based company is confident that their utterly unique concept will generate a huge buzz in the market.

wewow Ltd is an active member of Ethical Junction, learn more