"Imagine having to organize politically for the right to eat slowly and well. The fast food economy has created a world in which we have to protect ourselves from it."-Molly Schwartz-
In "
Watch Your Foodometer", artist and activist
Molly Schwartz discusses her experiences traveling across America...and trying to find a place to eat that isn't McDonald's or Uno's. With co-author Donna Schaper, she discusses the
slow food movement's stance and explores the impact our food choices have on the world.
Donna Schaper is also the author of
Grassroots Gardening. You can read more on the
slow food movement here.
posted by Alexandra at 6/29/2007 09:20:00 AM
"But the farmers and producers (almost all in the developing world) who send their goods to us with fair trade labels represent only a portion of the number of farmers and producers wanting to join the network of international trade in fair and environmentally-responsible goods."-Sarah Rich-
Sarah Rich over at
Worldchanging explores the latest on the fair trade front. What's new? The
Finance Alliance for Sustainable Trade (FAST) has recently launched. FAST's objective is to simplify and centralize access to capital and resources for farmers who want to build sustainable sustainability businesses. That objective is complemented by FAST's plan to demonstrate that financing sustainable production is a valid and valuable proposition for commercial banking institutions.
Check out the
Sustainable Food Lab for more background on this new, and important, organization (FAST's current web site is sparse; SFL has some more robust information).
posted by Alexandra at 6/21/2007 08:48:00 AM
"I'm that kid...After my mother was fired, I always tried to go to school no matter how I felt. I didn't want her to be fired again."-Jeannetta Allen, 18-
In "
Sick Children, Working Moms," Ellen Bravo delves into what happens for working mothers who work 9-to-5. What she's discovered is that kids are dragging themselves to school sick to keep a parent from losing pay or getting fired. As she writes:
"I first became aware of this three years ago at a 9to5 leadership conference in Washington, DC. Members were getting ready to tell their elected officials why they need paid sick days--something half the workforce, and three-quarters of low-wage women, do not have. For these workers, staying home to care for one's own illness or a sick family member could mean not only loss of pay, but loss of a job."
posted by Alexandra at 6/18/2007 09:25:00 AM
"...it is no wonder that the gathering of world leaders and international organisations at Heiligendamm, Germany on 6-8 June 2007 can appear like the latest act in a perpetual cycle where public declarations matter more than results..."-Stephen Browne-
In "
G8 Aid: Beyond the Target Trap", Browne of the
International Trade Center in Geneva, analyzes the problems surrounding G8 aid and offers reform ideas to get us from promises to action.
For more on the current G8 conference, check out
Dropping Knowledge, a site that uses advanced web technologies to link the voices of individuals and organizations, enabling the global public to ask and answer questions, exchange ideas, and start initiatives around the most pressing issues of our time. They have an entire section, comprised of blogs, video/film and photos, documenting the summit.
posted by Alexandra at 6/07/2007 11:37:00 AM
"Remember those photos of Iraqi women triumphantly raising freshly inked fingers for Western cameras after voting in their new "democracy"? They were presented to the world by the U.S. government as an indication of a policy that would liberate Iraqi women and men. Well, it didn't quite work out that way..."-Kasia Anderson-
Anderson interviews Iraqi women's rights activist
Yanar Mohammed, who argues that the situation for women in Iraq has worsened significantly since the American invasion in 2003. Read "
Iraqi Women Worse for the War". To read more about the general movement for women's rights, check out
Feminist Majority Foundation.
posted by Alexandra at 6/05/2007 11:10:00 AM 
