President Clinton has invited the founder of soleRebels footwear brand to be one of the panellists at the Clinton Global Initiative annual meeting on 22 September, in New York City. Bethlehem Tilahun Alemu becomes the first African entrepreneur to be invited in this yearly event. She will join with other top attendees like US First Lady Michelle Obama, US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams, former Heads of State, CEOs, philanthropists, leaders of NGOs, academicians and prominent members of the media (follow the link to see featured attendees).
 

The Fair Trade Federation has launched FairTradePrinciples.org to explain the Fair Trade business model and inspire others to adopt trading practices that distribute power, risks, and rewards more equitably. The site offers real world examples from Federation members for nine principles of Fair Trade: Create Opportunities for Economically and Socially Marginalized Producer; Develop Transparent and Accountable Relationships; Build Capacity; Promote Fair Trade; Pay Promptly and Fairly; Support Safe and Empowering Working Conditions; Ensure the Rights of Children; Cultivate Environmental Stewardship; and Respect Cultural Identity. Members have undergone a rigorous screening process to assess their full commitment to these principles in all of their work.

The oldest Fair Trade Organization in Indonesia is celebrating its 35th anniversary in the months of August and September. To mark this occasion, Pengembangan Kerajinan Rakyat Indonesia (Indonesian People’s Folk-Art and Handicraft Foundation) or Pekerti launched the ’35 Reasons to Support Fair Trade’ online campaign. This campaign is entirely online to minimise carbon footprints. It targets online users who are potential buyers of Fair Trade products. Pekerti decided to launch this low-cost campaign to gather opinions and insights of the online users who are the stakeholders, like, buyer organizations, local consumers, customers abroad and other prospective buyers. The knowledge that will be collected from this campaign will be used to inform Pekerti on its goal to strengthen the organization and methods of engaging in Fair Trade business.

soleRebels is the greenest footwear company according to EcoBold, a leading provider of online video reviews of various green and eco-friendly products. Based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, soleRebels [bostex plc] is one of the six winners of the first edition of the Green Awards by Eco-Bold. The award aims to recognize green companies that excelled in making an eco-difference. Several companies have competed in six different product categories: cleaning, clothing, shoes, personal care, food and furniture. soleRebels received the 2010 Green Award in the shoes category.