Little Feet Coffee is scoring big with coffee lovers and soccer players across Southern California

An airline pilot’s impulsive gesture of giving away “one” soccer ball has evolved into a coffee company that’s making a big impact and not just here in the US.  Whole Foods Markets and Mother’s Markets throughout Southern California have now picked up little Feet Coffee, the ‘coffee with a kick’ and are having a hard time keeping it stocked on their shelves.

 

In 1999, Trevor Slavick, an airline pilot, gave away a soccer ball to a 10-year-old boy who was shining shoes at the San Pedro Sula Airport in Honduras.   This gesture was the start of Little Feet, a socially conscious company that has now donated over 70,000 soccer balls to children in poverty around the world.  (www.littlefeet.com) In March of 2008, on a Little Feet trip to Las Capucas, Honduras, Slavick came across kids playing soccer with burlap coffee sacks.  When he found out why, he wanted to help.

“In the US, we drink over 300 million cups of coffee per day,” Slavick said.  “Of the $2 average price per cup, less than a penny goes to the farmer who grew it.  It’s no wonder why their kids are playing soccer with coffee sacks instead of a real ball.  This needs to change.” 

The Little Feet Coffee Company pays the farmers directly at a fair price determined by the farmers themselves and offers the farmers profit sharing on all their sales; both are a first in the industry.  A portion of the proceeds are also allocated to the soccer loving kids of Las Capucas by providing them with the proper equipment and coaching.  There are over 300 kids in the soccer program now; each with a new ball of their own, and this summer Little Feet Coffee will begin building a new soccer field in the community.

The support so far has afforded Little Feet Coffee the opportunity to add a second cooperative from Rwanda, which it will announce later this year.

Little Feet Coffee is certified Fair Trade, Rain Forest Alliance, and USDA Organic.

You can support Little Feet Coffee by signing up for recurring delivery at www.littlefeetcoffee.com or by visiting Whole Foods Markets and Mother’s Market in Southern California. 

Little Feet Coffee Now Available at Whole Foods Markets and Mother’s Markets in Southern California 


Release via:  Little Feet Coffee Company
(877) 900-4625 or trevor@littlefeet.com 
 

I have written a few times about emerging designers offering jewelry that is as beautiful as it is sustainable. These designers are part of an evolving movement in the luxury sector. The definition of “luxury” is finally starting to reflect social and environmental responsibility and Yilin Choo is a poster child of sustainable luxury. The Singaporean designer has exquisite taste and isn’t afraid to combine old world artisan style with modern luxury. 

  

Yilin’s jewelry is made from recycled metals, ethically sourced gems and is fair-trade made by artisans from the Karen tribe in Thailand. By supporting Yilin, you are helping to push the sustainable luxury agenda forward and contributing in a meaningful way to the preservation of artisan culture in Thailand.

Check out (and purchase) more of Yilin’s work on Etsy.com.

Author: Meghan Connolly Haupt is the founder and principal of Sulusso offering custom design services and ready-to-wear pieces that you can feel good about.

OK... this week is not about design.  No gorgeous, "green" bed linens.  No stunning recycled glass vases.  No organic cotton arm chairs that make you want to sell your 1st born in order to afford.  This week my inspiration comes from the Rothbart brothers of Found Magazine - who's L.A. show a couple of nights ago with the gorgeous & talented Watson Twins (also attended by Seth Rogan, Fiona Apple, Mirand July...) opened me up to an approach to recycling I'd never before considered.  If you're not familiar with Found, it's what creator Davy Rothbart calls (I forget his exact wording, but you'll get the gist) "a massive community art project".  In a nutshell, the concept is to find, share and cherish love letters, interesting receipts (I swear... they actually have discussion-worthy receipts), hilarious hand-written contracts, etc... all that have been discarded or lost by their original owners and found by people all over the world - and then sent in to & published by Found Magazine.  Out of context, these scraps of paper are almost always hilarious, sometimes touching and every once & awhile a bit nasty.

 

June 26, 2009
Tucson, AZ » Hotel Congress, 8 pm, 311 E. Congress, 520-622-8848
[ With The Watson Twins; tickets are $6 at the door ]

June 27, 2009
Albuquerque, NM » Guild Cinema, 8 pm, 3405 Central Ave. NE, 505-255-1848
[ Tickets are $8 ]

June 28, 2009
Denver, CO » Curious Theatre, 8 pm, 1080 Acoma St., 303-623-0524
[ Sponsored by The Onion and Decider; tickets are $8 ]

June 30, 2009
Salt Lake City, UT » Brewvies, 8 pm, 677 South 200 West, 801-355-5500
[ Tickets are $5 ]

July 01, 2009
Boise, ID » Visual Arts Collective, 8:30 pm, 3638 Osage St., 208-424-8297
[ Tickets are $5 ]

  If you can't make one of their shows, pick up a Found Magazine or two... you'll never look at a scrap of paper blowing down the street the same again!

Learn more about Deana at
 

Lynn just returned from London where, among other things, she met with several "green girls," who are immersed in sustainable fashion and art. One of them, Lupe Castro, writes for the hip green online zine, Daisy Green, and in addition is an ethical stylist who refuses to work with anyone unwilling to dress head to toe in eco-friendly attire. Lupe shared with me the hottest British trend for forward-thinking eco-conscious women, "swishing."

In this video, Lupe explains how swishing works. Basically, we're talking about a clothing swap, but swishing sounds like a lot more fun than gathering a couple of friends and trading out of each other's closets. In April of this year, Daisy Green pulled off what is most likely the UK's biggest Swish. Have a listen, then think about how much fun it would be to stage your own swish. Let us know if you do.