thoughts on more direct benefit

The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee is a personal favorite of mine when I can find a buck or two to share with our animal cousins and they have a fine gift shop. Actually visiting gift shops on non-profits and animal sanctuaries is a great way to find a special something for the birthday kid.

This occurs to me because of a recent story on npr about how many traditional African artists and crafts folks are ripped off by companies mass producing supposed handmade crafts and art pieces from Africa. I know, not the same thing except you do know who benefits.

Ten Thousand Villages is a fair trade source. They have a nice shop in Houston. The Fair Trade Federation is another source of information.