Citizen Brand

Last minute Valentines

Just a reminder that if you are looking for that last minute Valentine's Day gift for that special someone, head on over to TwoHandsWorldshop.com and make it a Fair Trade Valentine's Day.  

TwoHands update

Brady and Alicia are about two years into their online business selling fair trade goods at TwoHandsWorldshop.com.  It's growing quite nicely because they are doing some very cool things to market themselves.

Last Saturday, more than a hundred folks braved some cool, rainy weather to attend the Lawrence version of a worldwide coffee break.  The event at Watson Park in Lawrence was sponsored by TwoHands and served up some great fair trade coffee to the attendees.

On May 19th, TwoHands will cosponsor a special showing of the film "Black Gold."   The film has received rave reviews in telling the story of how one man fights for a fair price for his coffee.  It should make us think more carefully about our morning cup of joe and where the beans for it started.

Finally, TwoHands will be present for the big Wakarusa Festival from June 5-8 at Clinton Lake outside Lawrence.  Brady and Alicia will have fair trade products on sale throughout the festival which is fast becoming one of the big music festivals in the nation.

Great stuff!

Fair Trade Love

Time to take a commercial break from our continuing election coverage here at Citizen Brand for a word from our sponsor.....

Looking for that unique gift for that special Valentine?  Look no further than Two Hands Worldshop for that fair trade gift for the one you love. 

Now back to our regular programming......

A Fair Gift

It's not too late to visit Two Hands Worldshop and pick up that last minute gift for someone special.  And the good news is all their gift ideas are fair trade goods from all over the globe.  I was thoughtfully surprised last week by my co-workers with a whole reusable cloth sack full of fairly traded goods - cool coffee mugs; BBQ rubs for grilling; coffees and nuts etc.  Another one of my colleagues was given some incredible jewelry from India.  She said it was better than anything her husband had ever given her.  (I promise not to tell him she said that.)  And you can still get things shipped in time for the holidays.

I'm going there right now to finish some shopping.  Hope you do too.

Enjoy this great time of the year.

It's the Earth, stupid

With apologies to James Carville who helped Bill Clinton win an election in 1992 by making sure his candidate and the campaign stayed focused on the economy with a similar admonition.  Wouldn't it be refreshing if a candidate or candidates running for President in 2008 put the same emphasis on the environment.  Voters will always care about the economy - that is a given.  But it would seem that there is a growing consensus among the vox populi that we had better start paying attention to Mother Earth.  If this is true, the candidates will not be far behind.

Today is Blog Action Day.  More than 15,000 blogs are focusing attention on a single issue - the environment.  My two cents worth is that unless we do begin to take all actions large and small to impact the future of our planet in a positive way, nothing else will matter someday.  Most especially the economy.

 

Andrea is already in the mix today with a simple message from a young man who understands that each one of us can make a difference with our actions.  Another action bloggers can take is to join up with others of us over at Razoo.com and make a difference every day in ways both large and small.  Check it out.  And Alicia and Brady always know of good links when it comes to the environment (and of course fair trade.)  Alicia recommends The Accidental Environmentalist as a place to get good ideas and fresh thinking about taking care of our planet.

So tonight, make sure you turn the lights off when you leave a room; try to use a little less water in the house but make sure your flowers and trees have enough to drink; and, take one less trip in the car each week.  These seem like little things, but they are all doable.  It takes 21 days to form new habits.  Today is a good day to start some for all of us.

Anyone can be a fair trader

Alicia over at TwoHandsWorldshop gives us all ten easy ways to get involved in fair trade.  And don't forget to check out the new fair trade products from around the world at TwoHandsWorldshop.

What's new with fair trade?

I admit that I have neglected Citizen Brand a bit this late spring and early summer.  But thanks to so many others out there who are not so neglectful, I can share some other points of view.  For example, take a look at the TwoHandsWorldshop blog to hear the latest and greatest on what is happening in the world of fair trade.  Trust me, there is plenty going on.

And Joe tells us how buying a simple pair of flip flops can be a very good thing to do.

And thanks to Britt for telling us about a nice film festival in San Fransisco on Monday, June 25th.  Wish I could be there.

Thanks for hanging in there with Citizen Brand during these interesting times.  It's the new normal as my friend Jenne calls it.  For the record, my wife has begun her chemo and is doing very well.  My sister starts hers on July 6 and is ready to go.  We appreciate all the notes, emails, thoughts and prayers coming our way.  They work, so please keep it up.

Chicago Green Festival

Brady and Alicia of Two Hands Worldshop (aka - my son and daughter-in-law) spent Earth Day weekend at the Chicago Green Festival.  Visit the THW blog for their first person reports from the Windy City.

If you missed Chicago, there will be two more Green Festivals this year in Washington D.C. in October and San Francisco in November.

A spotlight on Two Hands Worldshop

A link to a nice article about my kids' online store in the Lawrence Journal World.  If you are looking for a great and unique holiday gift, click on over to Two Hands Worldshop and find some incredible fair trade products from around the world.

Two Hands Worldshop

A new business is open and ready for you just in time for the holidays.  In the interest of full disclosure, I will tell you right now that this is from a very proud father.  My son Brady and daughter in-law Alicia, have launched Two Hands Worldshop on line at http://twohandsworldshop.com.

Two Hands Worldshop is a fair trade store now open on line but Brady and Alicia's objective is to have a retail store open in Lawrence, Kansas sometime in 2007.  I just finished purchasing some very cool holiday ornaments made in India.  What is great about the site they have built is that with every product you buy, you learn about the artisans that made it.  It is one of the most personal on line shopping experiences I have ever had.

So give it a try when you have a chance.  I have put a permanent link in the left column of Citizen Brand.  I hope you give it a try.