Trade As One

This year we’ve been fascinated by the idea of Just One. We’ve been brainstorming with our producers about new ways to express how important Just One Fair Trade purchase can be, and we’ve come up with some exciting numbers and stories that we’ll be sharing here on our blog every day for the next week or so. We’ll be talking about how our Christmas purchases here in America can provide health care, education, food, and other necessities for the women and men making the products that Trade as One sells. We’ll be uploading new products and stories every day, so make sure to check back, and please share these posts with your friends!

Just One Rug - Feed the family of a woman with HIV/AIDS for a week.

Our rugs are made by the women of Beacon of Hope in Kenya. They work in the Kware slum, just outside of Nairobi. They work with those infected with and affected by HIV/AIDS, providing health care, counseling, education, and job training to women who face the scourge of HIV/AIDS, and the cultural stigma that accompanies it. We couldn’t be more proud of our partnership with Beacon of Hope. They represent exactly the kind of Fair Trade partnership that we gets us really excited: an excellent product, made by a group of hardworking people who now have the chance to support their families with dignity.

The income from each rug gives the artisan the opportunity to provide her family with food for a week. For many in Africa, HIV/AIDS and the stigma surrounding it prevent those with the virus from supporting themselves, much less their families. Your purchasing decisions mean that these women can continue to provide for their families, receive medical care, and live with dignity long after their diagnosis. 

Each wool rug comes with a tag signed by the weaver who created it.

Click here to see all of our rugs.

This year we’ve been fascinated by the idea of Just One. We’ve been brainstorming with our producers about new ways to express how important Just One Fair Trade purchase can be, and we’ve come up with some exciting numbers and stories that we’ll be sharing here on our blog every day for the next week or so. We’ll be talking about how our Christmas purchases here in America can provide health care, education, food, and other necessities for the women and men making the products that Trade as One sells. We’ll be uploading new products and stories every day, so make sure to check back, and please share these posts with your friends!

Just One Holiday Card - Schooling for a younger sibling for a week.

Purchasing Just One Holiday card from Trade as One creates the income to allow one of the artisans in Rwanda to send a younger sibling to school for a week. These cards are made primarily by the leaders of child-led households, which are all too common in Rwanda. The Rwandan Genocide in 1994 and the HIV/AIDS epidemic have decimated a generation of Rwandans, often leaving the oldest surviving child as the leader of the household. Cards from Africa works with these households, and when the oldest sibling is of working age, creates opportunities for these brave women and men to provide for their brothers and sisters while working inside their own homes. Each handmade card provides a significant income for these artisans, and that income allows them to provide food, water, housing, and schooling for their younger siblings.

Trade as One has an array of Holiday cards made by these hardworking women and men. These cards are a unique way to show love both to the recipient, and to the people hand-making it in Rwanda. Your purchase means that they have a dignified, stable, and sustainable way to take care of their families. It’s a better way to celebrate the Holidays.

Click here to see all of the cards available here on our site.