Every Saturday in the month of July, the Global Exchange Fair Trade Stores in San Francisco (map) and Berkeley (map) are offering 15% OFF savings on featured clothing, scarves, tablecloths & kitchenware, AND much more!

Here’s a look at the Saturday Specials coming up…

Saturday, July 16: 15% OFF Haitian Metal Garden Art

Saturday, July 23: 15% OFF Cotton Tablecloths and Napkin Sets

Saturday, July 30: 15% OFF Aprons, Potholders and Kitchenware

Be sure not to miss a special presentation by Fair Trade Coffee producer, Gilbert Ramirez, from the CoopeAgri cooperative in Costa Rica and FREE Fair Trade Peace Coffee Tasting!  Saturday July 23, 1-4pm at the Global Exchange San Francisco Store (map)

Saturday, July 16 Made from recycled 55 gallon oil drums, our Haitian metal garden art is both a tribute to man’s imagination and resourcefulness in the face of dire economic need. Artisans use only a hammer and chisel to cut the sculpture from 4’x6′ pieces of the flattened oil drum. Each piece is hand formed and unique, and can be hung either indoors or outdoors.

Saturday, July 23 Our cotton tablecloths and napkins are handmade in India with natural dyes of pomegranate, indigo, palm sugar, and other materials. A traditional block printing technique is used to make detailed designs that are colorful, tasteful, and compliment many styles of dishware. We carry two sizes – 60″x60″ and 60″x90″ – with cotton napkins to match. The machine washable tablecloths and napkins are long-lasting, so you won’t have to buy any more paper napkins. Great for the environment and your dinner table!

Saturday, July 30 These stylish Aprons (pictured left) are handmade in Ghana at the Sankofa Center for African Dance and Culture, which uses African dance, music, and drama to educate youth and adults about HIV/AIDS. The aprons, which have matching potholders, are made using wax block sprinting. We also have potholders from Bali and India in traditional and colorful designs.

Also perfect for the summertime table are olivewood serving spoons handmade in Kenya by Fair Trade company Swahili Imports. Fair Trade African serving utensils bring more to the table than function. The unique style of handmade African wood and bone salad servers transforms your dining table into a feast for the eyes. Swahili’s remarkable assortment of Kenyan servers are made from an assortment of materials including, bone, horn and olivewood.

 

See you Saturdays at the Global Exchange stores in Berkeley and San Francisco!

In partnership with Thanksgiving Coffee Company, Global Exchange is proud to announce a new line of Global Exchange Fair Trade and Organic coffees.

The coffee beans are purchased from purchased from small-scale farmers and cooperatives, and roasted by Thanksgiving Coffee Company, whose motto is Not Just a Cup, but a Just Cup’.

The coffee beans in the Global Exchange coffees originate from Ethiopia, Sumatra, Uganda, and Nicaragua. The six new roasts carry such names as Justice Blend Espresso, Solidarity Vienna Roast, and Respect Decaf and are all shade grown, organic and Fair Trade Certified.

The importance of Fair Trade cooperatives is significant because it allows small-scale farmers to work together to sell directly in the international market. By cutting out the middleman, these farmers and their cooperatives are able to build long term relationships with buyers and negotiate better prices for better quality, as well as create local democratically governed community institutions.

Working together through their cooperatives, coffee farmers around the world are transcending a history of exploitation by some of the world’s largest multinational corporations, earning a fair price for their exceptional coffee and creating dynamic opportunities for community led development.

Global Exchange is happy to work with Northern California artisan coffee roaster, Thanksgiving Coffee Company. They are a family run company that has been roasting coffee for over 25 years now. They source their coffee directly from family farms and cooperatives, which they keep long-term trading relationships with. They work closely with the partner cooperatives to invest in the social, economic, and environmental sustainability of their communities while sourcing some of the most distinctive and finely crafted coffee in the world. Visit their blog to get a better taste of their Fair Trade work.

Don’t forget to visit the Online Store to get yourself a bag of Global Exchange Fair Trade Coffee.