Chicago non-profit shop offers fair trade products, including recycled accessories and organic cotton t-shirts.

If you live in the Chicago area, or you’re a fan of supporting eco-friendly and fair trade companies, then you should definitely check out the Greenheart Shop. The Greenheart Shop opened its doors in Chicago in 2007, but the idea for the shop began in the early 90’s when founders Emanuel Kuntzelman and Laura Rose were living in Ibiza, Spain. They came up with the idea for the "Greenheart" (which is a symbol of love and respect for the planet and its people), opened a few shops in Spain to bring people closer to nature, and then took their peace-loving idea to America!

The Greenheart Shop is Chicago’s first ever fair trade store. Besides offering beautiful handcrafted and recycled products that support families around the world, the company also created an international initiative that allows students to study abroad. The students get to live with host families, who educate them on the importance of fair trade products as a source of income. Plus, the students get to purchase fair trade products directly from the people who make them!

One of the coolest aspects of the Greenheart initiative is the wide variety of artisans that sell their products through the shop. Some artisans include:

• Fair Earth - A Chicago-based fair trade and earth-friendly company that produces and markets high quality fair trade products from East Africa.

• Mayu - Works directly with women who live in a rural community in the Andes Mountains, who sell hand-knit accessories made with pure alpaca fiber.

• World Finds - A Chicago-based fair trade company that partners with fair trade organizations, women's self-help groups, and small families of artisans in India, Vietnam, Nepal, and Indonesia.

You can see the entire list of involved artisans here.

Now that you know about the shop and the artisans, let me show you a few of my favorite fair trade products:
 
Recycled rice wallet - Created by disadvantaged people working in a cooperative in Cambodia.
Mayu flower scarf - 100% alpaca wool scarf made by a group of women in the Andes Mountains of Chiquian.
Funky monkey stuffed animals - 100% cotton animals made in Peru by five women artisans from the cooperative Ima Sumacc (which means “how beautiful”).
Coin journal - A cruelty-free leather journal made in Rajasthan, India. Includes cotton-derived paper that is 100% tree free.
Recycled soda can pen - Made by two women in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Hand painted wood coasters - Made in small family workshop in the mountains of Bali, Indonesia. They come in a box made of recycled paper.
Recycled flip flop shoes - Crafted from organized garbage scavengers in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Telephone wire bracelet - Made from recycled South African telephone wire. They were created by artisans from the Bat Shop, a South African organization that helps to support dependents of people who have HIV/AIDS.
Fair trade soccer ball - Union made and vegan soccer balls created by adult workers in Pakistan for the Fair Trade Sports Company.

These are just a few of the awesome fair trade products offered from the Greenheart Shop. If you like any of them, and you’re intrigued to learn more, just look through the website. Then you’ll see just how much “heart” is put into this shop.

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