Brought to ECS by the Parent Community Organization, the Holiday Marketplace is an opportunity for students to shop for gifts for their loved ones during the first week of December. The Holiday Marketplace aims to provide a selection of fair trade, sustainable, affordable gifts. Learn more about some of our unique, interesting vendors and the products they offer:
Baskets of Cambodia was one of the first businesses to open up new markets for handcrafted items in Cambodia in 1996 after the war. With the help and dedication of talented Cambodians they have created a growing business that employs upwards of 400 people each year and has sold over a million products worldwide. They strive to produce eco-friendly products of original design that are labor friendly, and exhibit great craftsmanship and quality.
Building New Hope is a volunteer-driven non-profit organization based in Pittsburgh, PA and Granada, Nicaragua that has been supporting grassroots development projects in Central America since 1992. They sell the fairly traded organic coffee that has been part of the monthly coffee fundraiser at ECS since last year.
Divine Chocolate produces quality and affordable fair trade chocolate bars. Divine is a leading fair trade brand of chocolate and a pioneer in the world of socially responsible enterprise. The success of Divine means that cocoa farmers in West Africa have a secure source of fair trade income that continues to grow year on year.
Fair World Designs is part of the Fair Trade movement that began in Europe over 40 years ago. The Fair Trade purpose has been a mission full of hope to build small businesses of artisans to the point of securing sustainable incomes. Fair World Designs markets jewelry made from recycled paper beads.
HandCrafting Justice is a fair trade partnership working with women struggling for economic justice and independence in developing countries. They promote human dignity and justice by creating opportunities for economic and social transformation in part by marketing items the women make, such as candle holders, finger puppets, jewelry, coin purses, hand-made cards and much more. They also produce ECS's hand-embroidered polo shirts.
Mr. Ellie Pooh is an eco-friendly, innovative company that sells 100% handmade journals, stationery, crafts, scrapbook/photo albums and various grades of paper made of 75% elephant dung from Sri Lanka and 25% post-consumer paper. Ellie Pooh Paper is also sold at the Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium.
SERRV is a nonprofit organization with a mission to eradicate poverty wherever it resides by providing opportunity and support to artisans and farmers worldwide. Through their work with community-based organizations in 36 countries, they create economic opportunity so these artisans and farmers can support their families and themselves. Their fair trade products include jewelry, ornaments, baskets, candles, and other food and gift items.
http://www.serrv.org
Ten Thousand Villages is an exceptional source for unique, handmade gifts, jewelry, home decor and personal accessories representing the diverse cultures of artisans in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East. One of the world's largest fair trade organizations, the company strives to improve the livelihood of tens of thousands of disadvantaged artisans in 38 countries. ECS is working with the local Squirrel Hill branch to bring a variety of gift items to our marketplace.
Women of the Cloud Forest, founded in 2001, produces beautiful jewelry in a never-ending range of colors, styles and patterns using sustainably harvested seeds from the dry tropical and wet cloud forests of Costa Rica. (You may have seen the rainforest beads on the lanyards used for volunteer name tags in the ECS office.) The women also sew bags, hand embroidered with colorful, accurate reproductions of North and Central American plants, birds, butterflies, and other animals.
Download
shopping instructions and
FAQ.
Questions about the Holiday Marketplace? Contact marketplace@ecspco.org
