1. Heifer International - Heifer International is a global nonprofit with a proven solution to ending hunger and poverty in a sustainable way. Heifer helps empower millions of families to lift them out of poverty and hunger to self-reliance through gifts of livestock, seeds and trees and extensive training, which provide a multiplying source of food and income.
2. Ten Thousand Villages - Ten Thousand Villages' mission is to create opportunities for artisans in developing countries to earn income by bringing their products and stories to our markets through long-term fair trading relationships.
3. Nest - Nest is a nonprofit organization that empowers female artists and artisans around the world. Using a unique combination of interest-free microfinance loans, mentoring from established designers, as well as a market in which to sell their crafts, Nest helps its loan recipients create successful small businesses. Nest instills pride of ownership, preserves ancient artistic traditions and successfully moves women from poverty to self-sufficiency.
4. Goods 4 Good - Our slogan is straightforward because our mission is straightforward: through the innovative use of surplus, G4G promotes the development of orphans and vulnerable children. Send an E-Card or make a donation to help out this amazing organization!
5. Peacekeeper Cause-Metics - Peacekeeper Cause-Metics is the first cosmetics line to give all of its after-tax, distributable profits to women’s health advocacy and urgent human rights issues. PeaceKeeper builds a bridge between extraordinary women in the land of plenty and extraordinary women who, by chance of birth, don’t have our resources or opportunities.
6. Nothing But Nets - Nothing But Nets is a global, grassroots campaign to raise awareness and funding to combat malaria, one of the largest killers of children in Africa. With a $10 contribution, Nothing But Nets provides individuals – from CEOs to youth, professional athletes to faith leaders – the opportunity to join the global fight against malaria by sending a net and saving a life.
7. Global Girlfriend - Specializes in fairley traded apparel and accessories hand-made by women and communities in need.
8. Women's Peace Collection - The Women’s Peace Collection is an enterprise that fully supports women in regions of conflict and post-conflict – as mothers, peace builders, entrepreneurs, and skilled artisans.
9. Global Sistergoods - Brings you the finest in fair trade, eco-friendly, and handmade gifts, jewelry, handbags, accessories, children's clothing and toys, baskets, and home decor items. All of our fair trade products are made by women from around the world, and offer the high quality and one-of-a-kind feel that today's socially responsible customer demands. Each fair trade product is as unique as the woman who makes it, and each purchase helps women throughout the world earn a living wage and build beautiful, thriving communities.
10. One Mango Tree - One Mango Tree uses a fair trade model to provide income generating opportunities for women in impoverished and conflict-ridden areas of the globe. Our first project is now well underway in Northern Uganda, a region devastated by more than twenty years of armed conflict. The war has taken the lives of thousands, displaced more than two million, and destroyed the once-vibrant local culture and economy.
11. Same Sky - Is a fair-trade company whose mission is to empower women worldwide and inspire a movement of women empowering women. Founded in 2007, Same Sky aims to be a part of the global movement lifting women out of poverty by giving them the tools to become entrepreneurs and lead self sustaining lives.
12. Vital Voices - Our mission is to identify, invest in and bring visibility to extraordinary women around the world by unleashing their leadership potential to transform lives and accelerate peace and prosperity in their communities.
13. Kiva - Kiva's mission is to connect people, through lending, for the sake of alleviating poverty.
13. Kiva - Kiva's mission is to connect people, through lending, for the sake of alleviating poverty.
Heifer International (HI) is an organization that claims to work against world hunger by donating animals to families in developing countries. Its catalog deceptively portrays beautiful children holding cute animals in seemingly humane circumstances. The marketing brochure for HI does not show the animals being transported, their living and slaughter conditions, or the erosion, pollution and water use caused by the introduction of these animals and their offspring.
ReplyDeleteBy definition, animals raised for food are exploited in a variety of ways. The animals shipped to developing countries are often subject to; water and food shortages, cruel procedures without painkillers, lack of veterinary care resulting in extended suffering as a result of illness or injury.
A large percentage of the families receiving animals from HI are struggling to provide for themselves and cannot ensure adequate living conditions, nutrition, and medical care for animals they have been given. HI provides some initial veterinary training to individuals and the initial vaccines. But, long term care for these animals and their offspring is up to the individuals.
To make matters worse, animal agriculture causes much more harm to the environment than plant-based agriculture. The fragile land in many of the regions HI is sending the animals cannot support animal agriculture. Although they say they encourage cut and carry feeding of the animals to avoid erosion, the reality is often quite different.
The consumption of animal products has been shown in reputable studies to contribute significantly to life-threatening diseases such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and a variety of cancers. Regions that have adopted a diet with more animal products see an increase in these diseases. The remote communities supposedly served by HI have no way of dealing with the health consequences of joining the high-cholesterol world.
While it may seem humane and sustainable to provide just one or two dairy cows here or there, the long term consequences are an increased desire for animal products in local cultures leading to an increase in production. These communities may be able to absorb the additional water use of one or two cows, what happens when there are hundreds or thousands of dairy cows, each consuming 27 to 50 gallons of fresh water and producing tons of excrement? The heavy cost to animals, the environment and local economies is not figured into HI's business practices.