WOO-hoo! We’ve got an exciting episode today - Elisha is chatting with Robin Tolkan-Doyle, founder of fair trade beauty marketplace, Beautyologie . Robin shares her journey from beauty journalism and public relations to starting an online marketplace as a hub for inspiration and knowledge for fair trade in the beauty industry. She highlights her new product line, World of Oil (WOO), created as a streamlined skincare option shedding light on each product’s origins and makers. Robin also offers in...
Dec 19, 2024•49 min•Ep 36•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode, Elisha chats with Laura Hertz, Co-Founder & CEO of Gifts For Good , a company on a mission to reinvent the $100 billion corporate gifting industry. From working with over 80 nonprofits and social enterprises to creating a new software called GIFTforward to minimize waste, they are transforming the industry and the world for the better. They discuss how a line item in a corporate budget can be redirected to change people’s lives. Laura shares her experience on how to help lar...
Nov 25, 2024•41 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode, Elisha chats with Julie Colombino-Billingham, Founder & CEO of Deux Mains . They dive into the contrasting dynamics of nonprofits versus social enterprises and how each strives to create lasting change. Julie shares insights into the unique challenges of running a fair-trade business, such as competing against large companies with misleading "sustainable" claims and overcoming Haiti's high import dependence. She explains Rebuild Globally's model in Haiti, which provides jobs...
Oct 30, 2024•49 min•Transcript available on Metacast The doctor is in! Join Elisha for this insightful conversation with Ryan Zinn, Regenerative Projects Manager at Dr. Bronner’s . He discusses the company’s pioneering efforts in the early days of the business to ensure their products cared for people and the planet, and shares what he’s learned helping farmers incorporate fair trade and organic practices into their agricultural rhythms. Ryan also shares why the company chose Fair for Life certification and discusses the importance of regenerative...
Oct 10, 2024•52 min•Transcript available on Metacast Join Elisha for a conversation with Brad Jeffrey, the co-founder of MadeFree, an ethical fashion accessories brand working to end human trafficking. Brad discusses his pivotal experience meeting young women in difficult circumstances in Africa and Southeast Asia, which ignited his passion for addressing global issues like poverty and slavery through sustainable solutions. He notes that consumer behavior is increasingly driven by a desire to buy products that make a difference, but he criticizes ...
Sep 25, 2024•42 min•Ep 32•Transcript available on Metacast Join Elisha for a special episode of the podcast in honor of World Refugee Day, featuring Winston Bui, a refugee of the Vietnam War. Winston recounts his family's harrowing escape from Vietnam during the fall of Saigon in 1975, highlighting their dangerous journey amidst bombings and chaos. They eventually made it to America, where a generous couple in Oklahoma helped them resettle, securing housing and jobs for his parents. Despite the initial hardships, Winston and his brothers adapted by taki...
Jun 20, 2024•36 min•Ep 31•Transcript available on Metacast Ever wonder what are the keys to building a business (or socks) that lasts? In this episode, Amie Farkas, Head of Supply Chain & Products from Maggie’s Organics shares with Elisha about their 30-year journey of setting the highest standards as a fair trade and organic apparel company. From moving cotton production across continents due to climate change to welcoming 3rd party certifier audits, this conversation gives important principles to creating longevity and sustainability in business. ...
May 29, 2024•48 min•Ep 30•Transcript available on Metacast Trade in your cynicism for some hope in this heartwarming conversation with Gretchen Huijskens, founder and CEO of Trades of Hope. She shares with Elisha her journey transitioning Trades of Hope from a charity to a direct sales model and how that benefits both the artisans and the sellers. Gretchen highlights her hopes for her new book and how she hopes Trades of Hope will expand in the future. Finally, they both share about how their work in Haiti and the importance of long-term economic soluti...
May 08, 2024•42 min•Ep 29•Transcript available on Metacast Put on your dancing shoes–we’ve got a special treat for you today! Bethany Tran of the Root Collective walks us through the process of making fair trade shoes, from how the soles are developed to sourcing their materials. She also shares why the company made the switch to pre-orders for their shoes and how they incorporated pre-loved shoes into their overall business model. Finally, Bethany and Elisha highlight challenges facing small fair trade brands in a tough economy and share practical ways...
Apr 03, 2024•50 min•Transcript available on Metacast Calling all tea-lovers! We’ve got a flavor-packed episode for you today. Elisha is joined by Paul Bain, founder and CEO of JusTea, to talk about their fair trade partnerships with small-holder Kenyan tea farmers. Paul describes how they were able to set up tea cottages after working to enact legislative change in Kenya and why they’ve worked with women’s cooperatives right from the start of the business. He also shares a surprising fact about where tea comes from and why purple tea is so rare. F...
Nov 08, 2023•48 min•Ep 27•Transcript available on Metacast We’ve got a sweet treat for you today! Hear from Abby Noel Davison at Tony’s Chocolonely about the company’s fair trade chocolate journey. She shares with Elisha how storytelling and raising awareness about human rights issues in the chocolate industry is baked into their branding and production decisions. They also talk about how addressing child labor directly and compassionately with producer groups leads to stronger supply chain relationships. Finally, Noel shares some encouraging and system...
Oct 25, 2023•48 min•Ep 26•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode, Elisha talks with Jenny McGee about her journey from a small town in Indiana to launching a nonprofit to support survivors of human trafficking in Southeast Asia. She talks about the importance of developing survivor leadership in all areas of their business, not just production, to foster a different future for themselves. Jenny also shares how the Starfish Project builds a culture of trust across cultural differences and emphasizes the need for a team-oriented mindset that pri...
Oct 04, 2023•44 min•Ep 25•Transcript available on Metacast Welcome back to another season of the Fair Talks podcast! Today’s guest, Manish Gupta, shares his journey from majoring in chemical engineering to co-founding a powerhouse global fair trade brand - Matr Boomie. He tells Elisha about the companies’ commitment to partnering with at-risk communities and how those artisan groups have evolved since working with fair trade. They dissect the importance of quality control, why emphasizing artisan’s artistry matters for high-quality products, and how to ...
Sep 20, 2023•56 min•Transcript available on Metacast Ever wondered what a typical day is like for someone who benefits from a fair trade enterprise? Join Elisha for a special episode with Daniel Sainnatus, a local leader in Haiti working to foster change. He shares how education has impacted what he believes is possible and the lessons he’s learned from starting a business, while also highlighting the ways that fair trade businesses have given him opportunities that wouldn’t otherwise be available to him. He describes what an average day in a loca...
Jun 07, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Ep 23•Transcript available on Metacast Enjoy this insightful conversation with Olowo-n’djo Tchala, founder and CEO of Alaffia! He shares with Elisha the process of how he started fair trade cooperatives to support farmers & makers to employ their vast knowledge to create excellent products while protecting the power of collective bargaining. He shares the process of bringing traditional African values and knowledge to fair trade and why it’s important to consider the production structure of our goods, not just the materials. Learn ho...
May 17, 2023•57 min•Transcript available on Metacast We are pulling back the curtains to give you a behind-the-scenes look at running Fair Trade LA! In this intimate episode, Elisha chats with four Fair Trade LA board members about their paths towards fair trade. They share creative tips for finding like-minded folks passionate about social & environmental justice in your local community and how to build a fair trade community from the ground up. Plus, hear step by step tips for creating and promoting events and how to share sobering information w...
May 03, 2023•48 min•Ep 21•Transcript available on Metacast Continue learning about fair trade fashion in honor of Fashion Revolution Month! Elisha chats with Jessica Ray, Executive Director at GOEX Apparel, a fair trade apparel manufacturer in Haiti, about her journey from high-end luxury retail to ethical fashion. Jessica shares how the fair trade community fosters an abundance mindset and specific lessons the fair trade world can apply to scale our businesses and impact. She details how GOEX Apparel has transformed from its early days into a factory t...
Apr 19, 2023•55 min•Transcript available on Metacast This week we’re diving into the world of sustainable fashion! Join Elisha as she learns about the power of clothing swaps from Nicole Robertson, founder of Swap Society. Nicole shares the pitfalls of fast fashion, what it actually means to ‘swap clothing’, and why she believes it’s a game changer for your closet. She shares some practical tips for hosting your own clothing swap and envisions what the future of conscious fashion might become. Visit fairtradela.org/podcast for show notes and exclu...
Apr 05, 2023•44 min•Transcript available on Metacast Stop and smell the fair trade roses! This week’s conversation goes behind the scenes of Florecal, an established fair trade flower producer. Our guest, Jaime, shares why Florecal’s location in Ecuador is perfectly situated for growing flowers and how the government works with producers to create a healthy, equitable working environment. He describes the different kinds of programs that support their employee’s holistic wellbeing and how shifting mindsets helped their employees embrace fair trade...
Mar 22, 2023•33 min•Ep 18•Transcript available on Metacast How can fair trade economically empower women and communities? In so many ways! Join Elisha as she chats with Joy McBrien, founder of the social enterprise Fair Anita, about her path towards entrepreneurship and the powerhouse women she met along the way. Joy shares the sobering connection between financial insecurity and domestic abuse, how Fair Anita incorporates women’s empowerment into their business model & reporting structures, and the importance of centering their makers in the design pro...
Mar 08, 2023•43 min•Transcript available on Metacast It’s time for a bonus episode! Join us as we reflect on the last five years of the fair trade movement, both here in Los Angeles and around the world. Elisha shares some incredible highlights from Fair Trade LA’s five-year report and the growth of consumer demand for fairly made products. Plus, stay tuned to the end of the episode for a big announcement about Fair Trade LA’s future projects! Visit fairtradela.org/podcast for show notes and exclusive discounts....
Mar 01, 2023•19 min•Transcript available on Metacast From managing a travel agency to building a global fair trade business, this week’s guest will inspire and empower you to build a better world! Vik Giri from Gallant International shares why he chose to invest the profits from his family business in scaling their fair trade impact and how consumer demand for ethical & organic products directly impacts fair wages for producers. Specializing in certified organic & regenerative organic cotton products made in Fair Trade Certified™ factories in Indi...
Dec 14, 2022•1 hr•Ep 15•Transcript available on Metacast Friendship, fair trade, and freedom for trafficking survivors?! Yes please! Join us for a conversation with the founders of The Tote Project as they share their journey to launching an anti-trafficking business while maintaining a strong friendship. Fay and Michelle share how they’ve grown their business on fair trade principles, streamlined how they educate customers about human trafficking, and how they keep going on tough days. Finally, they share poignant advice for running a business with a...
Nov 30, 2022•50 min•Transcript available on Metacast How can every-day citizens support human trafficking survivors around the world? This week’s episode shares a place to start. Elisha chats with Blythe Hill, the founder of the Dressember movement to raise awareness and funding for anti-trafficking programs across the world. They dive into Dressember’s history, the four foundational pillars of their anti-trafficking work, and why effective solutions must be survivor-led. Finally, Blythe shares tangible actions that anyone can take to support heal...
Nov 09, 2022•39 min•Transcript available on Metacast Have you ever wondered how fair trade programs measure their success and impact? If so, join Elisha and this week’s guest on a deep dive into data analytics, key performance indicators, and robust measurement systems. Andrea Bassetti, Impact Research and Analysis Manager at Fair Trade USA guides us through the definition of greenwashing and how to avoid the companies’ engaging in these practices, what makes the Fair Trade certification stand out, and one qualitative data point from a recent stud...
Oct 26, 2022•36 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode, Elisha chats with Dr. Janette Habashi who shares her journey from growing up in Jerusalem to founding a nonprofit providing refugee and low-income artisans training and job opportunities to create lasting economic growth for Palestinian women. She shares some joys and challenges in creating a worker training program and shipping products around the world, and why it’s important for the artisans to feel a strong sense of ownership in the production process. Finally, Dr. Habashi n...
Oct 12, 2022•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast Pour yourself a warm beverage and settle in for this conversation with Sara Delaney, founder of Sarilla. She and Elisha discuss Sarilla’s evolution from equipping social service workers to provide healing & resiliency training models drawn from Rwandan culture to the development of the social impact business and why they chose tea over coffee as their hero product. Sara shares why loose leaf tea is better quality and better for the environment. Their conversation ends with the ways product certi...
Sep 28, 2022•52 min•Transcript available on Metacast This week Elisha chats with Joe Altepeter and Alexandria Pineda from the Downtown Women’s Center, the only organization in Los Angeles exclusively serving and empowering women experiencing homelessness. Learn more about this incredible organization from its audacious inception to their vision to see every woman housed and on a path to personal stability. Alex shares her journey from bartending and serving in the Air Force to her current role as lead trainer in the transitional jobs program and h...
Sep 14, 2022•54 min•Ep 9•Transcript available on Metacast Join us for a special bonus episode before our fall season! Listen as our Executive Director and host of this podcast, Elisha share her personal journey with fair trade - from her first trip to Haiti during college to building a social enterprise aimed at eliminating poverty that’s given away over 345 scholarships to send children to school. She recounts powerful stories of the impact of ethical employment and teases about big changes to come for her business! Visit fairtradela.org/podcast for s...
Aug 31, 2022•18 min•Transcript available on Metacast This week Elisha talks with Mary Lampmann about the collaboration between Ten Thousand Villages and Jurassic World: Dominion. They discuss the crossover of themes like preservation of culture, sustainability, and women’s empowerment. Mary also shares how the artisan partners have scaled their operations and market reach with this partnership, and the ways that will impact these communities for years to come. Finally, she shares the one thing that citizens can do that mean the most to any fair tr...
Jun 22, 2022•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
