Revive Eco-Fashion Show at Ingenuity 2009

The photos are up!

Lisa Dunn, of Revive in Cleveland Heights, really knows how to put on a show. Check out the slideshow of gorgeous clothes and accessories - all fair trade and some also eco-friendly. I'm in the line-up - sporting a tiered yellow organic cotton dress from the Maharastra region of India. You can buy it all here, including the One Mango Tree weekender bag featured on one of the models:

www.revivestore.com

Or, if you live in Cleveland, stop by their shop, which is brimming with awesome products.

I couldn't leave without this dress.

Sankofa Fundraiser

One Mango Tree is part of the party in Pasadena this Saturday, July 11th, 1-6 pm, to raise money for the Sankofa Center for African Dance & Culture. The Sankofa Center utilizes traditional African dance, music, and drama to educate youth and adults about HIV/AIDS, and provides free counseling, rapid HIV/AIDS testing, and life-saving drugs for people living with HIV/AIDS in Ghana. One Mango Tree's product line will be a part of the auction, with the proceeds going to fund The Sankofa Center's activities.

Check out their website to learn more about their work and partnership with UCLA.

One Mango Tree in Cleveland

July 10-12, 2009 ingenuityfest in Cleveland

See One Mango Tree Director, Halle Butvin in the Revive Fair Trade Eco-Fashion Show, Friday, July 10 at 9 pm at the Tech Center (Halle Building). The show will feature fair trade apparel and accessories from all over the world - and you can shop these products at Revive's street booth all weekend long.

If you can't make it over the weekend, stop by Revive's store in Cleveland Heights for the One Mango Tree Trunk Sale on Tuesday, July 14, 3:00 - 5:00 pm. Halle will be at the shop selling lots of One Mango Tree goods with cool new designs (like laptop bags, Obama BBQ aprons and yummy scented eye pillows!) straight from Uganda - this stuff isn't even on the site yet. Hope to see you there!

Put this address into Google maps for directions:
Revive Store
2248 Lee Road (2 blocks south of Cedar Lee Theater)
Cleveland Heights, OH 44118
216-371-2778

Movin on up

It was over some caffeine at Good African Coffee that I hashed out the final details of the lease and signed off, passing the thick document back to Norbert, my new landlord. He was heading off to Gulu that afternoon with a truck full of tile to get working on finishing up the building in time for our move-in date - July 1.

I came across this compound last year while working on a consulting assignment - back then it was broken down and a different shade of Easter egg - bright blue - with lots of stains from the rainy season. I never forgot the place, and while working on another consultancy this year, I stopped by again. It's just outside town, and totally spacious, and Norbert was making great strides in the renovation. The modernist building was constructed during the 70s, and sits between ACDI/VOCA's food security program office and a bombed out building that housed a soldiers mess hall during Amin's regime.

It's about a 20 minute walk from downtown Gulu, but just far enough outside the hustle and bustle that there's a definitive peacefulness in the air - a noisy quiet that is so seldom found, combined with a golden hue from the setting sun and the whispering breeze through the leafy trees in the back. The place just has something about it...what a magical place to work. We have some big plans for the space, so stay tuned.

Greater Good is providing support on the rent, and coinciding with the move in, we're starting up training and production of an exlusive line of organic cotton knit apparel for Global Girlfriend.

Check out the photos! We move in early next week.

One Mango Tree in the blogosphere

Lucy and Halle eating mangoes in Gulu

Santa Clara University student Mariam Mostamandy writes about One Mango Tree's social business approach on her blog.

Julie of Makezen's Reflections features One Mango Tree in her writing about sustainable business.

One Mango Tree featured in Issue 26 of Revive eNews, a fair trade shop carrying our products in Cleveland Heights, Ohio.