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Surrounding us there is beauty and there is fear. The majesty of the mountains above us and the valleys below inspire awe in the natural world. The simplicity and lack of modernity in these isolated valleys of Sankhuwasabha, Nepal, equally inspire wonderment at human survival and endurance. Tucked snugly on the northeastern edge of Nepal, Barun Valley National Park is home to towering snow capped mountain peaks, high waterfalls and lush green forests that offer a remote wilderness experience that has been relatively untouched by humans.

The inhabitants of this valley are Lhomi people, an indigenous community that have lived and subsisted on farming barley, potatoes and millet and traded wild herbs and plants for medicine for centuries. Living in difficult terrain with limited resources has meant many Lhomi women endure additional issues during menstruation. Historically, the women have been known to “free bleed” and/or use scraps of cloth which are hard to come by. In more recent years, the younger women have taken to using disposable sanitary pads but these are expensive to procure and their disposal leads to environmental challenges.

Given these circumstances, the people from and around the region have struggled to connect with organizations or networks for support and resources. This need was highlighted by Chhing Lhomi, vice chairperson of National Indigenous Federation (NWIF), the chairperson of Lhomi Women Welfare Forum (LWWF), and the Himalayan Indigenous Society Nepal (HIS-Nepal). These organizations strive to work on behalf of indigenous women through social justice and women’s empowerment programs. Through my conversations with her, she was able to express the value and need for education on menstrual health and hygiene for the Lhomi women. That is how we set our plan to go to Sankhuwasabha.

As CCF’s Menstrual Hygiene program manager, I approached the CCF Board to see if they would be willing to work on this project. Since this program fell directly within CCF’s mission, board members talked with Chhing Lhomi and myself and agreed to fund the trainings, kits, and distribution of the CCF funded & newly completed Menstrual Hygiene manual.

With 2200 pounds of goods consisting of 3000 Menstrual Cloth Kits (2-day pads, 1 night pad, 5 liners, 1 soap, 2 underwear, 1 bag), fabrics, menstrual hygiene manuals and stationery supplies, we set out for Khat Bari, a region in Arun Valley. Preparation for this undertaking was challenging and was years in the making. To prepare we:

• Procured the PUL (water proof) fabric that prevents the pads from leaking from China,

• Bought all the materials for the kits, refining the pattern every time we got feedback,

• Trained four women for two years in how to sew menstrual kits (giving them sustainable income that uplifts them from poverty)

• Created and published a Nepal centric Menstrual Health and Hygiene training manual in both Nepali and English for participants and communities to have as a resource and,

• Figured out the logistics for transporting everything into a remote area with no telecommunication or roads during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Each step of the way was carefully executed. With support and funding from Conscious Connections Foundation, a four-woman team of leaders, and the support of the local Lhomi village women, we were extremely well prepared to make this expedition happen. Together, our goal was to raise awareness on Menstrual Health and Hygiene and introduce rural girls/women to reusable, environmentally sustainable products while at the same time teaching them how to make their own cloth pads, helping their communities become more self-reliant. With that mission in mind, our group of four women, two locals, Somi & Samjhana and Jenny Shakya and myself took a 12 day trip into the Arun Valley.

Together, we covered 80-90 miles hiking through deep gorges and waterfalls along Arun River. The Arun river enters from Tibet at an elevation of about 3500 meters (11,500 feet) and flows south across the district, forming one of the world’s deepest valleys relative to Makalu mountain at 8481 meters (27,825 feet) to the west and Kanchenjunga mountain at 8586 meters (21,869 feet) to the east. As we hiked up and down the evergreen trails, we were greeted by ‘Tashi Delek’ a Tibetan phrase which means, “May you be happy in the here and now” by friendly locals who asked us where we were headed as they sped past us on their daily walks.

The locals we interacted with were friendly and had a matter of fact way of looking at life. Despite heavy rains and frequent landslides that blocked roads and made life precarious, they seem to be more joyful and accepting of the vicissitudes of life.

In rural societies with limited access to technology and modernity, people seem to come together to help each other thrive and survive. As we moved from village to village, the locals helped us find a caravan of mules – the primary means of bringing the much needed menstrual supplies into the hinterlands of Sankhuwasabha. We started our first of three training sessions in Hattiya village followed by a similar training in Lingum village. We were welcomed by the Bhot Khola District Department of Education. Women pre-organized by Chhing Lhomi and myself came from eighteen neighboring villages to the trainings. We were interested in knowing their views, beliefs about menstruation and teaching them what we knew in the process. The participants were from all ages from 14 year old girls to 60-70 year old grandmothers. Lhomi women have less social and religious restrictions compared to Hindu women in Nepal, but still have limited access to menstrual products which makes them vulnerable to menstrual related illnesses.

Menstruation is considered a natural process within the realms of Buddhism and some Lhomi women see menstrual blood as a powerful tool during Buddhist tantric rituals. Several female Tibetan deities, Dhakinis, are associated with menstruation but this portrayal is not widely acknowledged in Tibetan culture. Palden Lhamo is an icon in Tibetan Buddhism and represents the protector goddess whose wisdom and compassion overcome every obstacle. She is depicted riding a mule across a sea of menstrual blood serving as a metaphor for fertility.

Despite the strong female Dhakinis in Buddhist tradition, the Lhomi women talked about how gendered roles still suppress women in Lhomi culture. Giving space during these trainings to the voices of the indigenous Lhomi women was a vital part of the learning process. Room was given for them to talk about their personal health issues without feeling embarrassed or ashamed.  Samjhana Lhomi, our trainer from Bhot Khola helped translate some of the topics into Lhomi and made the topic of menstruation lively with shared laughs and personal menstruation stories. Sonam, a Lhomi woman, said how her husband loves it when she has her periods and the room burst into laughter.

Many women also claimed to ignore heavy menstrual bleeding and pain they feel during periods because they think it’s a normal part of menstruating. Many claimed that their husbands did not know anything about menstruation and they were too shy to share any information about their bodies. One of the moments that stuck with me was how many women said they used dry leaves & rags and ended up with bacterial or viral infections which got worse because there were no hospitals or clinics in their village.

We worked on the basics of how menstruation happens, talked about the difference between gender and sex, female and male anatomy, the reproductive cycle, menstrual hygiene and about the pros and cons of different contraceptives in Nepal. The basics were a good introduction to the Lhomi women, as most had never had any kind of formal education and this was the first of its kind in Bhot Khola, Sankhuwasabha. Many expressed that it was the first time they heard about eggs in their bodies and were fascinated by the journey of an egg in the ovaries to the uterus. Most heard the word, ‘hormones’ for the first time and nurse Samjhana Lhomi did an excellent job explaining the complex relationship between hormones and menstruation.

 As the saying goes, ‘Teach a woman to fish and you feed her for a lifetime’. We spent the second day of the training teaching each participant to make their own cloth pads. This training was a huge success overall because many learned how to cut, hand stitch and make their own cloth pads. Sanitary pads are very expensive in this region because they come all the way from India and cost Rs. 150 ($1.25), an expense most families find hard to bear. We also distributed PUL Waterproof cloth pad kits which consisted of 2 day pads, 1 night pad, 5 inner liners, 1 soap, 2 underwear, and 1 carrying bag to each participant and had them take more kits to distribute when they returned to their villages. Then each participant who came to the training, in turn, pledged to teach women and girls in their village community, thus widening the impact of the training and encouraging each participant to become a village leader. As I’m writing this blog post, we’ve had 7 villages send us photos of them teaching their community on how to make these cloth pads.

Hiking past deep gorges descending through hardwood, conifer forests that weave through villages,  the word “Seva” comes to mind, Seva is the Sanskrit word for selfless service, a genuine compassion for others and a genuine desire to uplift those around you without expecting anything in return. I see this work as a Seva on both sides of the spectrum. We were receiving as much generosity, kindness and  knowledge from the Lhomi people as we were giving. Despite changes in our plans due to landslides, thunderstorms and road blasts, the locals were nonchalant about the external factors that they couldn’t possibly control.

I feel that the essence of our trip was to learn to be in the ‘here and the now.’ I’m so grateful to have received this lesson from the Lhomi people, and I give thanks to everyone that believed in us and made this work of distributing pads and menstrual education to the Arun Valley possible.

Want to support CCF’s Menstrual Health and Hygiene work in Nepal? Any amount makes an impact and helps empower girls and women. Hit the button below to donate. Thank you!

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We have asked you, our customers and people in our community to not only buy our products, but to help us rebuild workshops, send girls to school, build a remote health clinic and fundraise for earthquake relief, and what have you done? You’ve donated beyond our wildest dreams and made these things happen.

You have organized store campaigns and been our co-creators.  Like the bees who gather nectar from flowers and deliver pollen to fertilize, you have worked cooperatively with us to make these projects flourish!  One of our goals in establishing a non-profit was to connect conscientious North Americans to the incredible communities in Nepal–you, our wonderful customers are our connection and everlasting community so thank you. You help us achieve our mission to “educate North Americans on their ability to positively impact these individuals lives with direct donations.”

From our combined efforts the Conscious Connections Foundation was born and CCF was officially given its 501(c)3 status on September 5th, 2014.  To learn more about what the Conscious Connections Foundation is doing, please visit our website.

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What a difference two months can make. In early April we were celebrating that CCF’s Nepal team had reached over 3500 women and girls in Nepal giving them access to Menstrual Hygiene information, education and supplies that will forever change their lives and the lives of their children and communities. When CCF’s Nepal team led this training in Eastern Nepal in early April, Covid was almost a non-event. Today I am writing about how Nepal is suffering from the highest transmission rate of Covid in the world. It happened overnight and with a vengeance not really conceived of before.

In early June the New York Times, BBC and sources in Nepal reported:

• Over half a million Covid cases and a 44% infection rate,
• A 668% increase in Covid infections over a 2-week period, the highest in the world
• 7454+ deaths, numbers that experts believe deeply undercount the total
• for weeks now, 40 percent of the tests conducted have been positive (up to 90% in the remote area of Dolpo)
• less than 2% of the population has been fully vaccinated and India has halted all exports of vaccine to Nepal leaving them a million doses short
• a population of over 30 million with approximately 1 doctor per 100,000 people
• hospitals beyond capacity (and beyond most people’s financial reach), limited testing, oxygen or hospital beds,
• little National leadership so community leaders are having to step forward

Nepal is currently in a months-long lockdown due to the rapid resurgence of the COVID 19 virus and its highly contagious new variants. As a result, the economy has plummeted and those who rely on daily wages and the informal economy are the hardest hit. All businesses, except those providing food, have been closed. Government assistance is minimal.

In the face of this Ganesh Himal Trading and our partners in Nepal once again were lucky to get a shipment hastily (but safely) out of Nepal before the lockdown on May 6^th. This means our producers received money, and for some advances, so that they can weather the lockdown. But, groups like the Association for Craft Producers who have large operational costs have, once again suffered terribly.

In late May I received a letter from my dear friend Meera Bhatterai, Founder and Executive Director of ACP in which she stated (among many other things):

“In order to curb further infections and deaths from COVID, the government has again imposed a lockdown in most places of the country. Kathmandu, the capital city where we and most of our producers are based, continues to top the chart with the highest number of infections in the country. At ACP, a total of 14 staff and artisans tested COVID positive within a short span of initial two weeks.  More of our employees/ artisans and their family members have been infected since then. Sadly, some of them have lost their spouses and family members. Unfortunately the government has also barred the insurance companies from the renewal of covid insurance which we had done for 320 of our employees and artisans last year.

The current situation of the country has made us very vulnerable- emotionally, mentally and financially… Our producers are engulfed with extreme fear and do not want to risk their or family’s health and safety. Due to the extreme mental pressure many of them are not working at home as well.  Ironically, they miss out on work when they need it most.

We are not certain how long the current lockdown will be extended or how things will go after it is lifted. From mere sustenance last year with the help and support of our partners, we are once again forced to think whether we can survive further. We are in a precarious situation.”

Ganesh Himal Trading was able to give ACP a $7500 advance on their order for July and our partner non-profit Conscious Connections Foundation has another $6600 grant that will be provided to them this week for operational costs and producer support. All in the hopes that they will be able, along with other buyers and development partners’ support, to hang on through this severe crisis.

Other producer partners have not been spared Covid and several knitting communities in Nepalgunj (along the Indian border) and from Barpak have needed assistance due to the Covid outbreak. CCF has been able to provide 70 of those families with healthy food for 10-15 days (at a cost of less than $20/family) and will be watching their situation closely. The rest of our producer groups report that they are doing fine and working safely from home. Some have even received the vaccine, so that is good. Our plan is to have a shipment leave Nepal at our regularly scheduled time in July but with very limited international flights and many potential safety issues we will need to be very flexible.

Our other emergency response to Covid in Nepal, through CCF, has been focused on day laborers and those who have no income or savings and risk starvation. We feel that helping these people stay home and fed and off the streets is one way we can help to stem the transmission of the virus.  Once again we have an incredible resource in Nepal through our longtime partner Kesang Yudron. Since May 24 with Kesang’s help, CCF has been able to fund (at a cost of approximately $20/family for 10-15 days of food) the distribution of food, cooking fuel, money and masks into the hands of:

• 70 knitting families
• 65 families and 18 new moms in the slum areas of Kathmandu
• 100+ families in Kathmandu desperately in need of food through the Hiteri foundation
• 50 transgendered women who have no family, government or community support
• 20 families in Bhaktapur who were in dire need of food

CCF has will also be funding Covid relief prevention and care in the area of Sindupolchowk through our long time partner TEAM Nepal.

The takeaway from all of this is that Covid is still very much a threat in the world and one that can rise quickly and unexpectedly through variants and a feeling of complacency. Nepal needs our continued financial help to move through this second wave, but what they really need is vaccines. Poor people there, similar to those here in the US and Canada, simply do not have the luxury of social distancing or staying home. We must pressure our governments to supply vaccines and get large populations immunized. Experts say the only way to control the spread of the virus is vaccinating as many people as quickly as possible. But the government has been struggling to secure vaccines. On June 3 the US promised 7 million doses to countries in Asia but it is unclear how many Nepal will receive.

As always, Ganesh Himal Trading, Conscious Connections Foundation and our partners in Nepal are so grateful for all the ways that you provide us with support. It is because of you that we can work together to make it through these unbelievable difficulties that they have faced over the years. I want you to know that each and every one of our producers is so grateful to you all. It is difficult for them to see the light at the end of the tunnel right now but your support means everything as they wander through this darkness.

Hopefully the next letter I write will be full again of hope and promise but for now we have to deal with the situation at hand and that means clasping hands and moving forward. Thank you for being a part of our community and thanks for your continued support and understanding.

Namaste,

Denise

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Finding the Golden Threads

By Denise Attwood
Co-Owner of Ganesh Himal Trading

Weavings are my passion. So much so that I have no more room on my walls or floors or in my house for any more. I love their textures, patterns, unbelievable strengths and extreme vulnerabilities, I love that they sail us across seas and swaddle our babies. I love that multitudes of single fragile threads are combined in a way that they can hold water or catch fish, that the patterns woven into rugs can tell stories and be passed along through generations.

But weavings, even the strongest, have to be cared for, and tended to, and sometimes can’t endure. Their strength relies not only on the collective whole but on the integrity of each of their fibers and the care of their owner. They are highly vulnerable even in their strength; one cut, not repaired, can render a weaving useless or can cause its unraveling. And then what? That is yet another of their gifts, they can be woven anew.

Right now things seem to be unraveling as we cycle on through Covid, political strife and extreme racial injustice and immense loss. But with this unraveling comes great opportunity, if we look closely we can glimpse the beauty of each strand, often hidden or not acknowledged, or maybe never used and with care, patience and attention we can weave something new. When we step back and really look we can find the golden thread that as Terry Tempest Williams so eloquently states “shows us “the through line” that weaves the world back together again.

Time for each of us to get out the darning needle or the loom, finger the threads and rework the patterns anew. Time to create a weave much richer, more vibrant and much more inclusive. Time to really see those threads that have been “pushed aside, dismissed or straight up erased” (as Tekia talks about below) and feature them boldly in the weave. I feel I am in good company. Here’s to an amazing 2021 full of deep learning and reweaving together.

Namaste,

Denise

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Black History Month…Revisited

(Just don’t pack it away in a box for next year)

By Tekia Thompson

The Storyteller Statue. Mercy, Isn’t she beautiful?  I know that we are several days in to #blackhistorymonth and I haven’t been blowing up my social media pages with all the facts and “did you knows” about black people. I know it seems like this is my time to shine right! But I always feel like this is the time where those who care try to cram it all in…all the joys and triumphs of black people. I mean, we only have 28 days, right? Only 28 days to highlight the best of us. Only 28 days to remind the world that we do in fact matter. So, we better make it count, right?!.

To be honest, I’m used to so many of our stories being pushed aside, dismissed or straight up erased for centuries. Heck, as a black woman and I am still learning about so much. I’m digging deeper, peeling back layers and opening up old wounds. You know they didn’t teach us ALL the things in school! True story, I grew up in the south and remember one teacher stating, “listen we’re not gonna dive into that whole slavery thing ok so don’t get upset.”  Yeah, let that sink in.

It’s tough but worth it. WE are worth it. Give us the mic, create a space, share the platform and let us shine! I recently saw a message posted by American Poet, Amanda Gorman. She mentioned that “…especially for girls of color, we’re treated as lightning or gold in the pan—we’re not treated as things that are going to last.” I am not here to be someone’s one and done, a single burst of light that only comes once. And I think I can say the same for all black people. We are makers, dreamers, doers, contributors, inventors, and so much more!  No doubt many of the things you enjoy and use in your daily life, started in the minds of beautiful black people (i.e. your home security system). Check out Maria Van Brittan.

The Storyteller Statue reminds me that there is so much more to us. So many beautiful, rich stories to be shared about the creativity, passion, BEAUTY, intelligence, soul and power of black people, especially black women. Our story spans more than 28 days worth that’s for sure.

So let’s take our time and spread it out. Learn and share the stories throughout the year. 365 days. Year after year. Because our stories are woven into all parts of life. We were here before. We are here now. And we’ll be here in the future.

*The Storyteller Lost Wax Statue created by artisans working with Atelier in Burkina Faso.  Available at @villages_overlandpark.

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Learn more about this recycled silk sari poncho that Tekia is so beautifully modeling here!

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Tekia Thompson currently serves as Assistant Manager for Ten Thousand Villages Overland Park in Overland Park, KS. When not fulfilling her duties with Villages Overland Park, she spends her time coordinating volunteers at various farms and community gardens to harvest and distribute produce to hungry families. With the support of Villages Overland Park, she serves as host and content creator for Amplify LIVE! a new independent video/podcast that amplifies the voices of the entrepreneurs, makers and change agents who bring fair trade & sustainable change to their local communities. She is also creator of Black & Fair, an Instagram page that explores the role of people of color within the fair trade and beyond. She is an Alumni of Avila University in Kansas City. Prior to her work in fair trade, she served as a missionary in Juarez, Mexico, leading teams in building houses for those in need as well as serving in rural Appalachia and Poland performing community and educational outreach. She has worked for various nonprofits throughout the Kansas City area including Sunflower House Children’s Advocacy Center and the American Cancer Society as director of communications. She was featured in the “New Faces of Philanthropy” March 2020 Issue of In Kansas City Magazine

When she’s not wrapped up in fair trade joy or rescuing produce for hungry families, she’s creating community engagement opportunities for her local church in addition to serving on various community committees/advisory boards in Kansas City including Carry the Cross Ministries/On Eagles’ Wings Farm, Jubilee Community Garden Leadership Team, and Johnson County Food Policy Council. She was recently appointed to the Avila University Board of Counselors. She is passionate about people, building community, and inspiring hope! 

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These years have not been easy, especially the last 10 months as we have roiled in the chaos of racism, politics and pandemic, but in that chaos I have found stillness and beauty and a deepened partnership with those who doggedly seek a world that works for all beings. Would I want to replay this time, no, just as I would not chose to swim those rapids again, but I am grateful for what I have learned, the alliances formed, the visions of the future expressed and the community that has evolved.

Thank you for all you have done to support Ganesh Himal Trading this year and for the last 36! May 2021 see a bit of the calm below the rapids and give us gratitude for the immense lessons learned and a clearer vision and greater determination for the path forward. We are so grateful to you all.

Co-Owner of Ganesh Himal Trading

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CCF Helps Artisan Group (ACP) Survive COVID

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Now, however, with the lockdown due to Covid-19 and the subsequent loss of sales, ACP’s situation is dire and they have reached out for help. There is no PPP loan in Nepal nor are there government resources for those who have lost their employment. ACP’s monthly expenses for salaries and benefits alone, comes to $33,000/month so you can see that they will need a lot to cover the producers wages in the coming months. With sales at 40% less than previous years and orders to make they need capital to survive while they learn how to adapt.

“ACP has been self-reliant since our establishment in 1984, as a Not-for-Profit social enterprise, ACP had become self-sufficient from the 4th year…it has been 30 years since ACP has relied on its own income source for day-to-day operations.  In 2015 after the devastating earthquake, we had a very fragile financial situation and we sought donor support to meet our operational expenses. We once again face a difficult situation. We are in dire need of working capital to tide over the present grave crisis imposed upon us by the pandemic.  Sadly nothing significant has been announced by the government which would benefit MSMEs and SMEs like us.  We are trying to locate funding support for our operational cost for the next 6 months, amounting to NRs. 30,000,000 (USD 260,000).

You have always believed in our work and supported us in time of crisis. We once again seek your support…We thank you for your continued support and looking forward to your response.

Take care and stay safe.

Warm regards

Meera”

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Fair Trade Partners Spotlight Series

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Ganesh Himal Trading believes that if we want the world of trade to change we can’t do it alone and that we are stronger together. So in the spirit of creating a movement for economic justice that will build far into the future we want to spotlight some of our fair trade partners who are doing great work right along side of us. We hope this series will give you hope and help you see what an amazing fair trade community exists and how we can build it even stronger together.

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Blossom Inspirations

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From Denise Attwood, Co-Owner of Ganesh Himal Trading

In June I was fortunate to serendipitously run across a blogpost Change Starts with Us by fellow Fair Trader, Rosa Chang, of Blossom Inspirations . Rosa’s blogpost and her honesty touched me deeply and I realized how important it was to bring her courageous writing to a larger audience. So I emailed her and told her how much I appreciated what she had said and that I had shared her blog on the Conscious Consumer Network.

Rosa immediately responded with the kindest email giving me all kinds of information and encouraging words. She is about the warmest individual I have never met (but I hope to)!  After that we talked on the phone and from that  conversation decided it would be fun to collaborate and cross pollinate our two businesses! So here we go! Rosa has inspired us and we hope to inspire you to look deeply into the reasons why these two businesses do the work we do and to realize how wonderfully our products compliment each other. With that, we are proud to introduce our fellow Fair Trade peer Rosa Chang and Blossom Inspirations! Please read her interview below:

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With their floral candleholders gourds, Blossom Inspirations are not only supporting artisans from Perú and young moms in Chicago with Bright Endeavors. Now they are also working synergistically with Ganesh Himal by adding table placemats to support artisans in Nepal, which is good for the planet, and good for you. Cheers to the Power of the Community!

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Back to school with your Fair Trade handblocked backpack from Ganesh Himal . Inside find the book “Cuyita Wants to Know the World” and get ready to embrace culture, diversity and inclusion with a bilingual book for kids, parents, grandparents, teachers and friends.

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What inspired you to start your business? How did you choose Peru and Mexico to import from? What kind of work did you do before you went into fair trade?

In 2008, during the financial crisis, my husband Jeffrey Hansen and myself Chang Claro were impacted with the downsizing of GE financial division.

This uncomfortable moment and my homesick (I left my native country Peru when I was 25 years old to study my master in Mexico) became an opportunity to meet again with my friend and partner Jorge Cam Rosell and altogether find ways to continue being in touch with Peru, to contribute and to preserve Peruvian and Mexican art passed over generations.

I will always be grateful for what Mexico and Peru have given me: education, values, family, friends, culture, food, art, etc and this is my way to pay forward.

You recently came out with a new book, can you tell us more about the impetus for writing the book and what it’s about?

I started to write this bilingual book ”Cuva Wants to Kow the World”  over a year ago. It is inspired in many magical nights, where my husband and I recreated and read bedtime story for our girls in Spanish and English to expose them to different language and identify them with their roots.

The book talks about diversity, inclusion, empowering women to follow their dreams and come with an Alpaca toy (Cuyita, the  guinea pig) handmade by the artisan. Based also on my tech background, I used technology as a driver for social inclusion and to connect the reader with the artisan too (it contains a QR Code to find step by step how Cuyita has been made)

However, I never imagine that this book will arrive during this pandemic and social crisis and that it would become my response to COVID to support artisans on their basic needs and bring them work.

 In a recent blogpost, you talked about racism & fair trade. Can you talk about how the Fair Trade movement is connected to issues of racism, and why it’s important to address this issue within our community?

I think that Fair Trade could be an ally not only to reduce poverty, inequality but also to reduce racism, because as owners of small fair trade business, we constantly are educating people to accept other cultures, arts and traditions, promoting diversity and inclusion. And in addition, we have a very important mission, to communicate people where their money go when they buy a fair trade product, who made their products? How are they benefiting? And more important now, living in this crisis where your money can make the different to support vulnerable people or multi-millionaire. Are you reducing or increasing the equality gap, racism?

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