Directly Impact Clothing Makers with Kiva.org

"If you look at Kiva.org, people with a very modest amount of money can make a huge positive impact all around the world"  

- President Bill Clinton

One of the major themes of Fashion Revolution Day has been the disconnect between consumers and makers of fashion. The more we reconnect the links, the closer we come to a fairer future. That's why I was excited to hear from Brianna who works at Kiva - the world's largest micro-lending platform. Micro-finance is a term used to describe financial services to low-income individuals or to those who do not have access to typical banking services. It's also the idea that low-income individuals are capable of lifting themselves out of poverty if given access to financial services. Importantly, Kiva is a nonprofit organization and makes no money from the loans they facilitate.

Brianna explained to me that Kiva believes in ethical and eco-friendly business practices, greater transparency and fairer working conditions in the fashion industry. You can read about their own involvement in Fashion Revolution Day here. 

Having discovered Kindness by Design, Brianna realised that my passionate reader's would surely be interested in a simple yet powerful way to impact the makers of fashion. I agreed!

The way it works is pretty simple:

100% of every dollar you lend on Kiva goes directly towards funding loans; Kiva does not take a cut and does not charge interest to their Field Partners, who administer the loans. Click here to read about the lending process in more depth. 

So what kinds of positive change are you enabling through your loan? Let me introduce you to Pamela. 

Pamela is one of Kiva’s artisan borrowers from Kibera, Nairobi. When the single mother of four found out she was HIV positive, she started treatment for HIV and founded a support group for recently diagnosed women called the Kibera HIV/AIDS Support Initiative Program. She also taught herself to bead and now owns her own jewelry shop, which donates 50% of its profits back to newly diagnosed women in the group.   

With a loan from Kiva, Pamela was able to expand the types of goods she offers in her shop. In 2012, the average annual income per capita in Kenya was less than $950. Pamela now makes an average of $2,100 per year.  Pamela is a shining example of how a Kiva loan, partnered with hard work, dedication and belief in a better future, can empower artisans around the world. When I searched under the category 'clothing' today on Kiva, I found 300 loans available!

There are a number of other ways to support Kiva's vision of connecting people and alleviating poverty. You can join with other lenders to achieve larger goals, ask your wedding or birthday guests to donate funds, become a Kiva Fellow abroad and much more. 

You can connect with Kiva via Facebook and Twitter.  

Have you had experience with a Kiva loan or other micro-lending program? I'd love to hear about it in the comments below :-)
Disclaimer: This is not a paid post. Reviews cannot be purchased and submitting a product/service does not guarantee a favourable review. The opinions are 100% the author's own. 

Kind Events: Every Purchase Matters

"I must do something always solves more problems than 

something must be done" ~Author Unknown

World Fair Trade Fortnight (8th – 22nd May 2015) kicks off this week with special events happening all around the globe. One of these fair trade focused events is being held next Wednesday 13th May right here in Sydney and I'm thrilled that the lovely folks from The Fair Trade Association have provided me with four tickets to giveaway to my readers!

On the night there will be fair trade markets, a screening of the powerful award-winning documentary 'Black Gold', and a Q & A session with leading figures in the Fair Trade Movement in Australia and the Pacific. Panelists will include: Wells Trentfield (CEO Jasper Coffee); Harvey Purse (Fair Trade Advisor OxfamAustralia); Molly Harriss Olson (CEO Fairtrade Australia); Mel Tually (Coordinator Fashion Revolution Day Aus/NZ); and Shannon Sheedy (Owner The Dharma Door). 

Coming right on the heels of Fashion Revolution Day, it's vital to continue asking the hard questions about our consumer purchases. The Fair Trade Association is calling on shoppers to carefully consider the impact of every purchase they make on the world’s poorest producers.  According to Executive Director of the Fair Trade Association, Chris Hartley, “The small act of putting a Fair Trade product in your shopping basket assists the world poorest producers to lift themselves out of poverty”.  

To win 1 of 4 free tickets to attend Every Purchase Matters, simply leave a comment on KBD's Facebook page finishing this sentence: "Every purchase matters because...". The first four Sydneysiders to answer will receive a free ticket!

After Fashion Revolution Day - The Beginning of a New Fashion Future

The first ever Fashion Revolution Day (FRD) has now come and gone, but the fight for a fairer future for fashion has only just begun! The driving force behind FRD has been a desire to use the power of fashion to catalyse change and reconnect the broken links in the supply chain. As with any type of purchase, whether it's food, fashion or furniture - it can be difficult to feel a sense of that item's full history and the imprint its creation has had on both people and planet. Our lack of knowledge can mean that our purchasing decisions can lead us to become unwitting accomplices to human rights violations and environmental degradation. 

The great thing about FRD is that it was never about making us as consumers feel guilty and helpless but to empower us all to take control of our choices, to be curious, find out more and take simple but effective action. To kickstart this process the world was asked to make a statement by wearing an item of clothing inside-out and asking the brand on the label - who made your clothes? 

As a member of the FRD working committee for Australia and New Zealand I was delighted by the amazing response we received leading up to and on the day itself. People from a wide variety of backgrounds and of vastly different ages joined FRD in saying 'enough is enough' - it's time to face up to the consequences of fast and unethical fashion. It was so inspiring to see people showing a true desire to follow the thread linking the garment to the machinists who sewed it, all the way down to the farmer who grew the cotton. 

Rather than slowing down after the actual FRD on 24th April, it feels like momentum is continuing to build on the topic of making fashion fair for all. Last Friday our amazing Country Coordinator for FRD in Australia and New Zealand, Mel Tually, joined a panel discussion on cheap and dirty fashion hosted by Oxfam's 3 Things Project.  The panel also included Simon McRae from Ethical Clothing Australia, Lisa Heinze of Clean Cut Fashion and Nishan David from Bloodless. 

The key messages I gained from this insightful discussion were: if you care, be persistent when asking brands for information about their supply chain; never assume anything, for instance if a brand has a charitable foundation that's great but it doesn't necessarily mean they pay their workers a living wage; and when in doubt, the best thing you can do is buy less and cherish what you already have!

So what now? For starters I'll be continuing to bring you the latest developments in fair fashion here on Kindness by Design. In the meantime you can also take one or more of these simple actions:

1. Invest in the future of Fashion Revolution Day by supporting their campaign here on Indigogo and nab yourself some stunning ethical fashion perks at the same time! Talk about win-win :)

2. Purchase an official Who Made Your Clothes tee designed by Michael Stars and produced by Under the Canopy with 65% of the proceeds going to the Rana Plaza Donors Trust Fund. These limited edition tees were made in a geothermal/solar powered factory, using certified organic cotton and patented chemical-free, seaweed-based dyes. You can grab yours here.

3.  The FRD site has a wealth of fantastic resources and links to connect you to more information about ethical and sustainable fashion. Check them out here. 

4. If you're in Australia or New Zealand you can follow all the FRD news and events on Facebook and Twitter. From somewhere else? No worries! Find your local groups here.

 Photo credit: Matt Hoggett