Who Made Your Clothes?
It’s really something to think about. Who made your clothes? Do the companies who make your clothes value people? How about the environment? Does their social responsibility extend across the supply chain from the farmer all the way to you as the consumer?
Learn more about the steps we are taking here at Moraine Park.
The Rana Plaza garment factory in Bangladesh collapsed on April 24, 2013, killing 1,138 workers and injuring over 2,500 more and bringing the much-needed fashion revolution front-and-center in the news. Since then, people from all over the world are coming together to stand up and demand change in the world of clothes manufacturing.
One of the best ways we can make a difference is through Fair Trade.
Moraine Park is a Fair Trade College. Fair trade supports farmers and artisans in developing countries. These producers lack economic opportunity and often face steep hurdles in finding markets and customers for their goods. Fair Trade is about making a tremendous impact on artisan and farmer communities while offering great products to the public all around the world.
Fair Trade certification promises a high standard including quality products, fair pay for producers, environmentally safe practices, safe working conditions, no child labor, no human trafficking, and more.
All of our Moraine Park bookstores now carry Fair Trade apparel from Alta Gracia.
This clothing is Fair Trade certified to make sure all the workers receive a living wage. A living wage is defined as the income necessary for a worker to meet all of their family’s basic needs. Alta Gracia pays their workers more than 3 times the minimum wage for apparel workers in the Dominican Republic! In addition Alta Gracia respects all the employees’ rights as workers and as human beings, including the right to a safe and healthy workplace, the right to be treated with dignity and respect on the job, and the right to form a union.
Be a conscious consumer! Be an agent for change! Shop Fair Trade!
Members from the MPTC Fair Trade team check out the new Alta Gracia clothing at the FDL bookstore, pictured left to right: Anders Bjork, Paula Stettbacher, Katie Gindt, Anne Lemke and Sam Saeger.
