Aceh Indonesia - Children on the Edge

Pipecleaner glasses were a big hit with the Kindergarten kids!

Photo: Kerry Robinson

Children on the Edge are an amazing organisation (founded by The Body Shop founder Anita Roddick) that I am proud to have lent my time to for over four years now!

Usually participating in the East Timor Playscheme’s, it was really exciting for me to take part in my 6th Playscheme in Aceh, Indonesia!! The center is incredible! The teachers and are very organized and really focused on the needs of the kids. It was beautiful to witness the effect the centre has on so many people in a community severely affected by the Tsunami, and to see that even though it’s all about the kids it is also so much more!

This latest "Playscheme" involved volunteers from four different countries who came loaded with arts and crafts supplies to get involved in activities with both the kids and the teachers.

Watch this space for more stories on Children on the Edge in Aceh and East Timor!

Kerry Robinson - Playscheme Leader - Children on the Edge

Climate Change: the biggest corporate social responsibility

Photo: Clinton Steeds

Today I went to a breakfast hosted by the The Australian Centre for Corporate Social Responsibility (ACCSR) where keynote speaker Paul Hohnen talked about climate change and how businesses must become sustainable. He thinks the basic motivation will be either greed or creed.

"Climate change might be prevented as much by changes in technology and financial engineering as it will by changes in consumer habits. On both fronts, business must play a key role. In this regard, corporate responsibility has already played a pivotal role in putting these issues on the agenda, and bringing them to the point where leading companies like General Electric and Philips are integrating them into their core business."

I think most corporates are in a transition phase, just starting to work out how to be more sustainable. Even though The Body Shop has a proud history of environmental responsibility and activism we don't claim to be perfect, but we're trying. I think that's the key and I know all our staff are 100% committed to learning and trying new ways to reduce the size of our footprint.

Since starting at The Body Shop I've been researching about becoming carbon neutral. This means that we get an accredited measurement of our greenhouse gas emissions and offset them with carbon credits. We're not doing this to just to tick a box. Part of this process will be learning how to continually reduce our greenhouse gas emissions - long term through smarter, greener ways of operating.

I've been getting advice from the ACF, Origin Energy (our green energy suppliers), Sustainability Victoria, RMIT Global Sustainability Institute, Carbon Planet, Village Green and Neco. The process is quite perplexing because there are a whole lot of carbon auditors out there and they all offer different things.
I'll let you know how we go.

If you're wondering what our motivation for becoming sustainable is... well it's purely creed! We wouldn't be in business if the only reward was money. We believe we're here equally to make a difference to the social fabric and have a positive impact on our environment.

In Australia The Body Shop has been campaigning to "Protect our Planet" since 1986.

I'll leave you with Grist, a great environment blog and their How to Talk to a Climate Skeptic article and Planet Ark's Recycling Near You website - a great resource that helps you search for local recycling information either by Council Area or Product.


Adam Valvasori - Values Manager

Cleaning up Jells Park

It was a beautiful sunny day and the staff from The Body Shop were off to clean up Jells Park. We were armed with rubber gloves, tongs and our big white bags.

The morning shift set to task tidying up the car park where all manner of unsavory events appeared to occur. The afternoon shift were fortunate enough to have the tidier side of the park to clean, mainly focused on remnants of picnics passed.

At the end of the day we were dirty, but very pleased with the fantastic amount of rubbish collected. Certainly a job well done.

Anita in Memorium

We just had a really inspiring ceremony to celebrate the life of Anita Roddick. I feel an awesome responsibility to continue her legacy of mischief making for the global good and to help inspire as many people as possible to be great advocates for change.

It was great to see people from Amnesty International and The Big Issue could make it to share the great stories about Anita's life, wisdom and passion. The ceremony culminated in a tree planting ceremony and a couple of glasses of vino (Anita would have insisted).

I have been a fan of Anita's ever since doing a case study on The Body Shop in PR101. I was lucky enough to meet Anita in the early 2000s at a First Australian's Business workshop where she signed a plastic pineapple I "borrowed" from a centerpiece display.

What else can I say? Anita, I loved your work. I promise to do you proud.
Everyone else, watch this video:



Adam Valvasori - Values Manager

Children's Week

Children from Aceh, Indonesia enjoying a mask making workshop with The Body Shop Australia volunteers in the Children On The Edge Child Friendly Space.

Photo: Kerry Robinson / The Body Shop

Today marks the beginning of Children’s Week. One of its aims is to raise community awareness of children’s right to enjoy childhood.

This is a right we take for granted here in Australia. In developing countries, poverty forces kids to grow up far too quickly. Children simply don't have the luxury of playing or going to school, they have to work to survive.

Worst still, according to UNICEF, an estimated 1.2 million children are being trafficked every year. Because there is a demand for children as cheap labour or for sexual exploitation. Children and their families are often unaware of the dangers of trafficking, believing that better employment and lives lie in other cities or countries.

Defending children's rights is very close to our hearts. In 1990 our founder, Anita Roddick, founded a charity called Children on the Edge (COTE) in response to the Romanian orphanage crisis.

COTE exists for the most vulnerable and marginalised child worldwide, ensuring they are heard and are not invisible, are protected and have their needs met, advocating for all of their rights in accordance with the principles and provisions of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

The Body Shop Australia has been selling Tri-Massagers since 2003 and giving all proceeds to the COTE project in Viqueque, East Timor . The massagers have the added bonus of being made by one of our oldest Community Trade partners India.

To celebrate Children's Week I thought it would be great to get some of our amazing staff who have recently returned from volunteering at the COTE Child Friendly Space in Aceh, Indonesia to talk about their experiences, so stay tuned...

Learn More:

• Stop Child Trafficking
• UNICEF's Convention on the Rights of the Child Photo Essay Parts One & Two

Adam Valvasori - Values Manager - The Body Shop

Myanmar: blackouts, witchhunts and moustaches

From Avaaz.

The Blackouts
The Myanmar military has seen the power of global solidarity for the demonstrators--and has moved to shut down all communications with the outside world. As the images and stories have slowed, global media coverage of the Myanmar crisis has lost its urgency.

But people power can beat the blackout. Donate to send crucial technical support and equipment to Myanmarese civil society groups, and help return Myanmar's voice to its people. 100% of funds donated will go to Myanmar groups--Avaaz will keep no portion.

How you can help:

• Check out this great message Avaaz delivered to the Chinese government on behalf of the Myanmarese people via an Ad in the Financial times.
• Stand with the Myanmarese protesters by signing this petition.
• Help beat the blackout.
  
  

The Witchhunts
From Amnesty International.

Photo: Racoles

Yesterday, Amnesty International released proof of the brutal injustices going down in Myanmar. First hand accounts of ongoing night raids, arrests and appalling detention conditions in Myanmar have been captured on new video and audio commentary.

"The current arbitrary arrests, secret detention and widespread reports of ill-treatment and torture make a mockery of promises made by the Myanmar authorities to cooperate with the United Nations, when the Security Council last week called for early release of all political prisoners. The international community must act with greater urgency to increase the pressure on Myanmar's authorities to immediately halt arrests of peaceful protesters, open up detention centres to independent observers and release all prisoners of conscience," said Catherine Baber, Head of Amnesty International's Asia-Pacific Programme.

How you can help:

• Bring Myanmarese asylum seekers to Australia
• Email the Myanmar Ambassador in Australia to release Myanmar protesters

The Moustaches

Link: sevenload.com


According to an article in today's The Age, even comedians can't escape the tyranny of the junta regime in Myanmar at the moment. The Body Shop has been über successful in campaigning for justice in the past and with your help, we will again!

As one of Myanmar's most beloved comedy acts, the "Moustache Brothers" have made a living by risking prison every night with their biting parodies of the ruling junta.
But their luck ran out recently when the military clamped down on anti-government protests that posed the biggest challenge to the regime in nearly two decades.

Security forces swept into the ramshackle home where they perform in Mandalay and arrested Par Par Lay - the most outspoken of the trio, also known as Moustache Brother Number One.

"They said nothing," his younger brother and fellow performer Lu Maw said of the raid on their home.

During his last detention, he was sent to a labour camp where he was forced to work with iron bars across his legs, the group said. Imprisoning Par Par Law and Lu Zaw turned out to be a public relations disaster for the junta. The Moustache Brothers became a cause celebre for famous Western comedians and actors, even earning fleeting reference in a one-liner in the hit Hugh Grant movie, About a Boy.

According to my sources, The Body Shop International also joined in. We ran a campaign in '98 called Make Your Mark with Amnesty International to highlight the plight of human rights defenders around the world. It was to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Body Shop encouraged customers to ‘Make their Mark’ for human rights. The launch was supported by His Holiness the Dalai Lama. This successful campaign saw three million people sign up in 34 countries in support of 12 human rights campaigners who defend fundamental human rights. The Body Shop stores generated so many letters that 17 out of the 30 prisoners of conscience were allocated were released one of the prisoners was Par Par Lay.

By taking part in one of the above campaigns you can help break a Moustache Brother out of unfair imprisonment...again!


Adam Valvasori - Values Manager - The Body Shop

This post has wind

A windfarm, on the western highway someplace this side of Ararat.
Photo: Leon Sammartino

Today I found out this website, this computer, this office and infact every single The Body Shop store in Australia, is powered by 100% wind power - cool!

This summer we're going to try and reduce the amount of energy we need to cool our office. It's pretty simple, the people sitting near East-facing windows just need to remember to close the blinds before they go home so the office doesn't warm up in the morning.

In other environews: today I spoke with and am excited about meeting the folks at the Australian Conservation Foundation. I'd like to see how The Body Shop can help promote their brilliant Who On Earth Cares campaign. At the time of writing this post, only 9,111 Australians have said they care (!!) I'm sure we can help boost these numbers. If the environment is an election issue for you, have a read of their Election Scorecard to see exactly how green your party really is.

Finally, I'm a big fan of Desert Cubes for saving water in the gents'. Did you know the average urinal uses 151,000 litres of water per year?

I'll be trying to get them for The Body Shop ASAP!


Adam Valvasori - Values Manager - The Body Shop

Sustainability: in the palm oil of our hands

Aerial photo of a palm oil plantation in the middle of a natural forest in Sumatra, Indonesia. Photo: Flims4Conservation

Yesterday I found myself at a meeting convened by World Vision and attended by several giants of the retail world like the Coles Group, Independent Grocers Association, Unilever, The Australian Food Grocery Council as well as an advocate from Friends Of the Earth. Sounds weird but the group had actually come together to hear from us, or more specifically: Rikke Netterstrom, The Body Shop International’s Ethical Policy Manager and a member of the international Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). We were discussing ways to bring sustainable palm oil to the Australian marketplace.

As the second most used vegetable oil in the world, palm oil is responsible for the livelihood of millions of people, however it’s a crop that’s being blamed for:

• massive deforestation
• destroying fragile ecosystems
• threatening the extinction of wildlife like orangutans, asian elephants, sun bears, clouded leopards, Sumatran tigers and hornbills
• sever human rights and worker abuses of indigenous people living in poverty
• conflict over land rights disputes in Indonesia

Vanilla is a rescued Bornean orangutan. Her mother was killed and her forest habitat is now replaced by palm oil. Photo: Flims4Conservation

The Minister for the Environment, Malcolm Turnbull, has being looking at palm oil as a possible alternate energy source in Australia. In a media statement released 8/10/07 he warned:

“If palm oil is produced in areas which had previously been cleared for agriculture, biodiesel based on that palm oil does have a considerable reduction in CO2 emissions compared to petroleum. However if the land is cleared of rainforest or, worse still, forested peatland is cleared, the CO2 emissions attributed to that palm oil are in fact greater than petroleum.”

He also stated the Government is looking at local measures to ensure our palm oil imports are sustainable, including requiring certification with the RSO. Mr Turnbull also said co-ordinated international action is essential. Maybe that's why all those big players were at the table?

Pursuing sustainable palm oil would mean win:win:win for the farmers, the environment and the companies that use it. The limited size of the world's sustainable palm oil supply creates an added complexity, however I'm sure that where there's demand, supply will follow.

The great news is we have already changed our entire soap range to be manufactured using palm oil from one of the world’s leading sustainable, organic and fair trade certified plantations, owned by Daabon Organic in Colombia.

This is a really important global issue that’s flying under the radar at the moment even though it has the potential to devastate unique ecosystems in our own region. The Body Shop Australia is proud to continue championing the sustainable palm oil issue locally and play its part to help bring all sectors of the Australian community together to achieve the best outcome for our planet.

More:

• WWF: The Heart of Borneo presentation
• WWF: Heart of Borneo at risk from massive palm oil plantation
• Greenpeace: Choose the right bio-fuel or the orang-utan gets it video (or watch it on green.tv)
• Films4Conservation: Palm Oil images from Borneo and Sumatra (2005-2007)
• Palm Oil Action Group
• Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil

Polly Caldow – Chief Executive – The Body Shop

Domestic Violence & Culture Seminar

Jayalakshmi was burned by her husband who claimed she was cheating on him with another man. The acid thrown on her has ruined her life. Now she is a leading activist in the Campaign and Struggle Against Acid Attacks on Women (CSAAAW) in Bangalore. Photo: Scott Carney.

The Body Shop Values Team (Deb and I) were fortunate enough to attend a national seminar yesterday called Blaming & Reclaiming Culture:

The Role of Culture in Responding to Domestic and Family Violence.
It was a really great opportunity to learn about the role people's culture plays in domestic violence. The take home lesson is that domestic violence is a breach in people's universal human right to peace and security and so no matter where in the world you are or come from it's still WRONG!
However, a person's culture is the lens through which we see and live our life, so it's vitally important to consider it when designing education, prevention or shelter programs. We have to be careful not stereotype cultures and remember other contributing factors like class, wealth (or lack of wealth), religion, disability or geographical isolation.

What I found interesting is this problem of domestic violence in our society seems to be left up to women to fix. There were only a few men in the room. Danny Blay, Manager of No To Violence, the Male Family Violence Prevention Association which has a specific focus of working with men to assist them to change and end their violent behaviour. Danny said the rates of violence by men towards women is the same in Australia as in other countries.

Because culture is so integral to one's identity it seems to be good advice to challenge the behaviour not the man. Never justify violence - a behaviour- for an emotion (anger, stress etc). Finally, as the keynote speaker, Leti Volpp (Washington University) said: "They burn their women over there (referring to Bride Burning in India), well we shoot our women over here!" They're both shocking domestic violence related crimes and we should continue to campaign to end it no matter what the cultural background.

More:

• BBC Report on India's Dowry Deaths
• Islamic Women's Welfare Council of Victoria
• The Domestic Violence & Incest Resource Centre (DVIRC)
• The Immigrant Women's Domestic Violence Service (IWDVS)
  

- Adam Valvasori - Values Manager - The Body Shop

And the winners are...

Stop Violence in the Home is The Body Shop's international campaign to guide and support customers and employees to get active against domestic violence. We want to tell the world about this human rights scandal and work with governments to take action. We're proud to announce that over $100,000 is being granted by The Body Shop to the following organisations to help them fight domestic violence:

• Women's Council for Domestic & Family Services (WA)
  - Through Young People's Eyes: Photovoice project providing insight into young people's experiences of domestic violence.
• Australian - Arabic Palestinian Support Assoc (NSW)
  - Youth empowerment program aimed at at those of newly arrived / refugee backgrounds in Western Sydney.
• Carrie's Place Women & Children's Crisis Service (NSW)
  - Children & mother's healing camp.
• Traveller's Aid Society (Vic)
  - "Sanctuary" program service meeting the needs of young people escaping real or threatened abuse.
• Domestic Violence & Incest Resource Centre (Vic)
  - Funding survivors of domestic violence to attend and present at conferences, educating professionals on how to better identify and respond to victims.
• Immigrant Women's Domestic Violence Service (Vic)
  - A series of focus groups held in children's own language to talk about violence within the family and a multicultural publication based on findings of the group.
• Nardine's Wimmin's Refuge (WA)
  - Residential camp for women and children.
• Linking Women with Safety Across the Community (NSW)
  - Life sized silhouettes representing a homicide either directly or indirectly related to domestic / family violence.
• Hobart Women's Shelter (Tas)
  - Information & resources for children and young people staying at the shelter who have experienced Domestic Violence.
• Windermere Child & Family Services (Vic)
  - Program to take a high risk child (victim or perpetrator) through long-term support, enhancing opportunities to become a successful contributing member of society.
• Western Women's Domestic Violence Support Network (Vic)
  - Second and third stage of family violence project aimed at young people.
• Mount Isa Combined Action Team (Qld)
  - Educate young indigenous Australians about domestic and family violence.
• McCombe House (Tas)
  - Upgrading library resources for children and mums. Development of outdoor play area for children.

We're really looking forward to hearing how these grants have made a direct impact on the lives of young people affected by domestic violence. We'll publish photos, stories, drawings or anything here so you can actually see the difference our campaign has made.

Adam Valvasori - Values Manager - The Body Shop

Soap Stops Violence

In Fight Club they made soap to finance violence and mayhem. Today I had the privilege to observe the opposite - a dedicated panel deciding how the proceeds of 30,816 Daisy Soaps* will be used to prevent Domestic Violence.

The panel included: passionate staff from The Body Shop, experts from Domestic Violence community organisations such as C.A.S.A House and WESNET, and Angela Barker, herself a survivor of domestic violence. Angela's story has helped warn thousands of students through the government's 'Australia Says No' campaign documentary.

The Body Shop was thrilled to receive over 90 applications. In the end, twelve different organisations around Australia were selected to receive grants of between $1,000 and $10,000, each had great ideas to raise awareness to prevent domestic violence or help victims.

So if you're interested in how your soap has helped protect young Australians from domestic violence stay tuned... and the winning organisations and their proposals will be published here soon.

* The Daisy Soaps had the added benefit of containing our Community Trade ingredient - Shea Butter which is fairly traded from the Tungteiya Women’s Group in Ghana.

- Adam Valvasori - Values Manager - The Body Shop