Aketsun Loveable, our artist in residence, is collecting money for our favourite charity,The Environmental Justice Foundation.
EJF highten the awareness of the true cost of cotton."More than 3/4 of cotton output is accounted for by developing countries" - John Baffes, Senior economist at the World Bank.
Those countries are forced to live with deadly chemicals on the fields, which cause serious illnesses and birth defects. Child labor is common. Water is short.
Cotton fields drink loads of water and in Uzbekistan the Aral Sea has been drained to 15% of its former volume. The draining has uncovered 40,000Km square of the sea floor. An area the equivalent to 6 million soccer pitches. The area now takes the form of dry mud flats, contaminated with salt and pesticide residues. The winds carry huge dust clouds to poison the neighbouring regions, and the local climate has changed.
The true cost of cotton is too high to explain here, but it might be worth noting that North America and Europe account for 45% of global cotton product consumption, despite being home to just 13% of the world population.
Our Christmas tree is decorated in pictures from the EJF literature, and Katherine E Hamnett postcards saying 'SAVE THE FUTURE'. Aketsun Loveable is offering little wind up and whistling plastic toys, (great for bath time) for which we suggest a donation of £2.
We have collected over £50 already, but there are enough plastic toys to hit our target of £100.
Please donate generously next time you visit!
Thanks!
Thanks to EJF for the photos.
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