Los creadores de La Chiwinha han compartido con algunas de las comunidades y cooperativas de Comercio Justo en sus diferentes viajes,  Por ahora llevan 32 países.    ¿Los puedes reconocer?

Principios de La Chiwinha

Germinada del concepto de comercio justo y en nuestras creencias de evolución espiritual, La Chiwinha fue creada con los siguientes principios filosóficos.

1.Compromiso con el comercio justo. La Chiwinha procura en sus actividades comerciales y de consciencia influir positivamente en el bienestar social, económico y ambiental de los sectores marginados por el comercio convencional.  Por lo tanto, nuestras actividades promueven la equidad, la justicia, la diversidad y el respeto en todas las facetas de nuestras relacionas con los diferentes sectores de la cadena de intercambio: productores, suplidores, clientes y amigos.

2.Apertura. La Chiwinha tiene una cultura de transparencia fiscal, administrativa comercial que intensifica las relaciones con sus clientes, colaboradores y sobre todo con los productores. Confiamos que compartiendo nuestro conocimiento estamos provocando la evolución del mercado capitalista a uno con consciencia y justicia.  Preferimos colaborar a competir en desigualdad.

3.Ética de Calidad.  La estructura de la Chiwinha se sostiene con una ética de trabajo con igualdad de género que redunda en un respeto a la identidad cultural de los productores.  La calidad de nuestro ofrecimiento se refleja en la aplicación de las mejores prácticas de responsabilidad social, ambiental y espiritual que representen una evolución con consciencia en esta realidad social en que existimos.

El Concilio de Mentes ha declarado que La Chiwinha Inc.,  como parte de su Política de Responsabilidad Social, donará el 5% estimado de las ganancias a organizaciones sin fines de lucro dedicadas a promover la evolución de conciencia social y ambiental en Puerto Rico.  Recuerda que tus desiciones son importantes, cuando realizas una compra en La Chiwinha, estás aportando a muchas causas positivas.

En los pasados meses, varias organizaciones han sido beneficiadas por esta política: Asociación Puertorriqueña para la Educación de la Niñez en Edad Temprana (APENET), el Sierra Club de Puerto Rico, el Instituto para el Desarrollo Integral del Individuo, la Familia y la Comunidad (IDIIFCO), la Asociación de Acampadores de Puerto Rico (ADAPRI), Capítulo Metropolitano, Proyecto Caribeño de Justicia y Paz (PCJP), el Museo de Arte del Reciclaje, Taller Salud, Inc de Loiza, el proyecto de danza contemporánea “Soplo”, GAIA- una organización sin fines de lucro que se dedica a la educación ambiental y Boricuá - Asociación de agricultores orgánicos, MAM - Mujeres ayudando a Madres, Tierra de Luna, uniendo tierras y pueblos, Proyecto Matria, una organización de base comunitaria que ayuda a mujeres sobrevivientes de violencia doméstica.

Copia exacta de la solicitud para pertenecer al Green Business Network de Green America cuyo honor obtuvimos en el 2009.

Social Responsibility Profile

Step 1: General (All complete)

A: Permission

You have my permission to promote my company by publishing the information on this page.

• YES 

___ NO

B.  Basic Information

1. Describe your company’s social justice and/or environmental mission.

Created in 2007, La Chiwinha is the first Fair Trade store in Puerto Rico and an alternative space for consciousness.  “Chiwinha”, pronounce chi-wi-nya, is an Aymara word meaning “gathering place” and it is used in Bolivia to designate the homemade sun shelters women use at the open markets from where they sell their products.  That is what we are: a space for gathering, for trade, for ideas, and for new way of showing that another World is possible.

La Chiwinha sprouted from the fair trade concept and our beliefs in spiritual evolution.  We based it on the following principles:

✴ Commitment to Fair Trade.  La Chiwinha attempts in its commercial and conscious promoting activities to have a positive influence on the social, environmental, and economic well-being of people marginalized by conventional trade.  Thus, our activities promote equality, justice, diversity, and respect on all aspects of our relationships along the whole trading network from producers to consumers.

✴Openness.  La Chiwinha posses a culture of transparency which intensifies the relationship with our clients, collaborators, and above all, the producers.  We are confident that by sharing our knowledge we are sparking the evolution of the conventional capitalist market into one of consciousness and justice.  We prefer to collaborate rather than to compete.

✴Quality.  La Chiwinha’s structure is sustained with a work ethic based on gender equality, the respect of cultural identity, and environmental stewardship.  The quality of our offer is reflected on the application of the best practices of social, environmental, and spiritual responsibility representing our conscious evolution within the existing social reality.

You may find all this information better expressed in Spanish on our website http://www.lachiwinha.com/Ayuntamiento

2. Name your company’s top three product(s):

The retail part or “physical” store of La Chiwinha is structured in three segments, in part because we like the number three (3) and because it is our strategy to balance our income as a new small business with a foreign concept for Puerto Rico.  Our top products for each segment are:

✴Fair Trade Certified segment: FTC chocolates from Divine Chocolates and Ithaca Fine Chocolates (ArtBars).

✴Fair Trade Crafts segment: Recycled Material jewelry from Global Crafts.

✴Vegetarian Tea Shop: Local, organic, and delicious cookies (vegan brownies are a close second) from Cooperativa Madre Tierra, a local organic farmers cooperative.

3. What is your company’s ownership structure (please check all that apply):

•Privately-held _____ micro-enterprise

Publicly-held  _____

Fully-owned subsidiary of __________________

Partially-owned subsidiary of ____________________

A division of a larger company ______________________

Union workplace (local _______________)

Cooperative  _____

Non-profit  _____

•Worker-owned  _____

Multi-level marketing company  _____

Other  _______________________________________

4.  Date Business started 31 January 2007

    Date Web site launched  February 2007

La Chiwinha started as a “virtual business” through its website and participating in fairs and expos for over a year.  On August 2008, it opened a physical space in downtown Río Piedras at the heart of the San Juan metropolitan area.

5. What is the greatest challenge you face currently in developing your business?

Right now the greatest challenge La Chiwinha face (apart from the global economic situation) is sourcing environmentally friendly products for office and operational purposes: toilet paper, biodegradable cleaners, etc.  There is no local distributor and shipping from the US is expensive for a small business.  Moreover, most wholesalers in the US are shipping through UPS which, for some reason, consider Puerto Rico as an international destination(when we have been part of the US since 1898!) making shipping costs impossible sometimes.

We are trying to start a Puerto-Rican Small Green Business network/association/cooperative to alleviate this issue and it will be great if you could help us out somehow.

Another challenge is that the environmental consciousness for products and services in Puerto Rico is incipient and we have to work extra hard on educating our customers about the reasons why La Chiwinha is environmentally and socially responsible.

C. Demographics

1. # of employees (including yourself): full-time 2    part-time __________

2. Annual Gross Revenue (used for screening purposes only):

•<$50,000_______

$50-100,000_______

      $100-250,000_______

$250-500,000_______

$500-1,000,000_______

$1-3 Million_______

$3-10 Million_______

$10-20 Million_______

$20-50 Million_______

over $50 Million_______

D. Environment

Environmental considerations reflected in your business’ daily operation.

•Use re-usable dishware AND COMPOSTABLES @ VEGGIE TEASHOP

•Recycle bottles, cans, glass, all paper TAKEN TO A LOCAL COMMUNITY WORKER’S OWNED RECYCLING FACILITY _____

•Compost in office/have garden AND SOON WILL TAKE ALL ORGANIC WASTE FROM THE VEGGIE TEASHOP TO A LOCAL URBAN AGRICULTURE PROJECT_____

•Use recycled paper in office_____ % PCW 30

Use recycled paper with soy inks for marketing_____   %PCW NOT AVAILABLE PR  

Use or purchase of renewable energy for office_____ NOT AVAILABLE IN PR

•Use web host utilizing renewable energy_____ THINKHOST.NET

Offer carbon-neutral shipping for products_____

Purchase of carbon offsets_____ for _____________

Office in green building_____

Remodeled office using green standards_____

•Furnished office using recycled materials_____

•Rideshare, commute by bike, use public transportationTHE STORE IS LOCATED ACROSS FROM A TRAIN STATION EXIT SO CUSTOMERS MAY USE PUBLIC TRANS AS WELL.

•Other_____

TREE-LESS PAPER FOR BUSINESS CARDS AND PRICE TAGS

BIODEGRADABLE CLEANERS FOR OFFICE AND STORE

E. Workers

Policies and benefits that apply to all of your business’ own employees.

•Equal opportunity employer_____

•Flexible schedules_____

Flexible spending or health savings accounts_____

•Health insurance_____   % covered by business 100

•Living wages per community standard_____   community _____________

Ratio between lowest and highest paid employee 1:1  

Paid vacation_____ SEE NARRATIVE

Paid sick _____ SEE NARRATIVE

Retirement program_____

Work hours_____ per week SEE NARRATIVE

Other_____ List ___________________

Narrative:

1.  Describe how workers in your company have a voice in the company’s operations and policies.

So far, the creators and owners of La Chiwinha are the only workers, so all decisions are made between the two of us. We envision that all future workers will be shareholders of the company.  We have yet to develop an employee’s manual but we will be basing our policies on Fair Trade Federation principles and worker’s owned company policies or best practices. 

F. Community

Checklist:

1.Ways contribute to community:

•Contribute financially to community organizations 5% GROSS PROFITS

Every 4 to 8 weeks we add up our sales and take 5% of our gross profits (which is about 1% of the sales) and give it to a local non-profit organization.  Since January 2009 we have been asking our customers to vote for the non-profit to whom they would like for us to give the donation.

    Name(s):

✴Asociación de Acampadores de Puerto Rico (environmental) www.adapri.org

✴Asociación Puertorriqueña para la Educación de la Niñez en Edad Temprana (education) www.apenetpr.org

✴Grupos Ambientales Interdisciplinarios Aliados (environmental) www.ciudadesgaia.org

✴LACTA (women’s health) www.prlacta.org

✴Mujeres ayudando Madres (women’s health) www.mujeresayudandomadres.com

✴Organización de Talleres Boricuá (organic agriculture) Organizacion Boricuá

✴Proyecto Caribeño de Justicia y Paz (social) pcjp.blogspot.com

✴Taller Salud (social) www.tallersalud.com

✴Sierra Club Puerto Rico Chapter (environmental) puertorico.sierraclub.org

✴SOPLO (cultural) www.soplo.org

✴Tierra de Luna (cultural/spiritual) www.tierradeluna.com

•Contribute time to community organizations_____

    Name(s):

✴Amnisty International Puerto Rico Section www.amnistiapr.org

✴Sacred Heart University’s Women Business Institute www.mujeryempresas.org

✴Sierra Club Puerto Rico Chapter puertorico.sierraclub.org

✴University of Puerto Rico’s Institute of Cooperativism sociales.uprrp.edu

✴University of Puerto Rico’s Centro de Acción Urbana, Comunitaria y Empresarial project cauce.uprrp.edu

•In-Kind contributions_____

•Provide work time for staff to volunteer _____

•Offer store space as gathering spot_____

•Other_____

✴Sigend collaboration agreements with Sierra Club Puerto Rico Chapter and Amnisty International Puerto Rico Section’s Gender Issues Committee.

✴Support University of Puerto Rico’s Colectivo Universitario pro Comercio Justo, a Student-run Fair Trade iniciative, in collaboration with UPR’s Cooperativism Institute.

✴Offer space for a diversity of activities from different groups and individuals: presentations, talks, documentaries, meetings,

Narrative:

1.  Describe how your company educates the community about your business and its social justice and environmental commitments.

We, as creators of La Chiwinha, use the Fair Trade idea to educate people on what we call evolution of consciousness.  Our business is but a reflection of our passions and beliefs, making our main goal this social and cultural revolution: the foundation of a new paradigm that proves that “another World is possible” as stated by the World Social Forum.  These are but a few of the things we do to educate the community about our business, social justice, and the environment:

✴Give presentations to student, community, and business groups or participate on panels about fair trade, green business, and on being a conscious consumer.

✴Collaborate with student courses who use our business as case-study for their projects (business adminsitration, cooperativism, architecture, marketing)

✴Organize fair trade fairs and events, environmentally-friendly gift fairs, and fair trade month celebration in collaboration with a variety of businesses, non-profits, and community organizations.

✴Write articles for local magazines and newspapers on organic food, fair trade, green business, and environmental issues.

✴Mantain an active virtual presence on the Internet with our newsletter (http://groups.google.com/group/la-chiwinha), website (http://www.lachiwinha.com/La_Placita.html), facebook group (http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=10829225726), myspace profile (http://www.myspace.com/comerciojustopr), and blog (http://comerciojustopr.blogspot.com/).

Step 2: If a business/organization OFFERS SERVICES

Does no apply

Step 3: If a business/organization OFFERS PRODUCTS

A. Environment

Certifications, memberships, signatories, MSDS, etc. (Fax relevant verification to 202/822-8471.)

Campaign for Safe Cosmetics signatory _____

Fair Trade Federation membership _____ IN PROCESS

Forest Stewardship Council _____

Green Seal _____

International Organization for Standardization _____  ISO ______________________

Leaping Bunny _____

Marine Stewardship Council _____

Material Safety Data Sheets_____

Organic certification _____  from ______________________

Organics Trade Association membership _____

Other_____  from ______________________

Narrative:

1.How is the product being offered by your company environmentally preferable to others on the market (i.e., takes place of disposables, reduces emissions, recyclable or compostable, organic, etc.)?

La Chiwinha is the first Fair Trade store in Puerto Rico (which we find ironic since fair trade started in the 40’s with puertorican products…).  Moreover, we make all efforts to operate as a small green business and hope to validate this through this application.  Most of our products are Fair Trade Certified or fair trade produced which, as you know, are environmentally and socially resposible.  It is this certification that makes our products different in the PuertoRican market.

At the Vegeterian TeaShop segment, about 80% of the products offered are either local or organic; a third of that is both local AND organic.  All tea, chocolate, and sugar are Fair Trade Certified and everything is vegetarian with 5 vegan entries.  Just to get you into context, there are about a dozen vegetarian restaurants in the whole island and probably even less businesses which could be considered environmentally conscious in their operations as prescribed on this application. We were hoping to be the first Green Business Network memeber for Puerto Rico but I guess Consultiva got that honor.  However, we still are the first fair trade store and one of the few trully sustainable small business here.

2.What types of packaging do you use for your products (including information about the amount of recycled materials used and how packaging is minimized)? Please explain fully the basis for these decisions and any future plans.

Since we do not produce most of what we sell, most products come already packaged.  We recycle or reuse everything (we only throw away one 13gal bag of trash per week).  Thankfully, most of our suppliers are using environmentally responsible best practices for shipping and packaging.

Only at customer’s request we offer 100% recycled non-chlorinated reusable paper bags and compostable or biodegradable take-out containers.

3.   From what countries do you source ingredients and/or products?

United States, Puerto Rico, Bolivia, India, and Guatemala. 

Because of the strange political relationship Puerto Rico has with the US, international sourcing is difficult for a small business here.  All international products come from projects we have visited and have established a long-term relationship with them.

4.   Describe the environmental considerations reflected in the sourcing of any ingredients or products. This should include a list of specific criteria you apply and how you verify these.

We rely on environmentally concerned certifications for sourcing all ingredients and products for our business: Fair Trade Certified, Fair Trade Federation membership, IFAT membership, USDA organic, GreenSeal, and GreenAmerica GreenPages membership.

We make an effort to buy local and organic products but it is extremely difficult in Puerto Rico to find environmentally certified businesses or products.  So we go to the next best thing. Following our commitmet with fair trade we buy from a local organic farmers cooperative, other cooperatives, community projects, local food markets, or locally owned microenterprises.  They may not be completely “green” in their operations but at least they are local (Puerto Rico is no that big) and we can at least balance the transportation costs to the environment.  Between 15 and 20% of our products are locally sourced.

B. Workers

Certifications, memberships, signatories, etc. (Fax relevant verification to 202/822-8471.)

Fair Trade Federation membership_____ IN PROCESS

Fairtrade Labelling Organizations (FLO)_____ FUTURE POSSIBILITY

Rugmark _____

Social Accountability International_____  Standard __________________________

TransFair_____

Unionized_____

VeriFlor_____

Other_____   List ______________________________

Narrative:

1. Describe the labor considerations reflected in the sourcing of your company’s ingredients and/or products. This should include a list of specific criteria you apply (including work hours, wages, health benefits, worker voice, paid leave, etc) for suppliers. This information is vital for any product, even when sourcing in the US.

Since we are a Fair Trade store, we rely almost exclusively on cerfitications to source our products. About 85% of our offer are Fair Trade Certified products or from member companies of the Fair Trade Federation. The rest are locally sourced from cooperatives, community projects or microenterprises which are sold exclusively at the Vegetarian TeaShop segment of our business.  A very small percentage is not sourced locally but we try to get them USDA Organic and use them as ingredients for the shakes, soups and other food items we prepare instore.

Since there are no local certifications, it is difficult for us to offer food and drinks with reliable labor criteria.  Puerto Rico produces most comestibles available for FT certification: bananas, coffee, mangos, etc.  We prefer to buy these from local sources than try to import them because of their costs and customs paperwork.  Think global, act local.  That is why we look first for local coops and comunity projects who can supply the products before buying them from other sources.   Even if they may not be “hard core” on their labor and environmental criteria, at least they support a different vision of what capitalism should be.  Those products which we can not source locally we buy from Costco, which we have read have better labor and community practices than other big box stores.

Moreover, most operational materials, equipment, and services we try to source from Green Business Network members which are screened for better environmental and social practices.

2. Provide a complete list of the countries in which your product(s) is produced and list the specific labor criteria you use in choosing manufacturers (including work hours, wages, safety, health benefits, worker voice, paid leave, ongoing verification, etc.).

As stated above we rely on Fair Trade Certified, Fair Trade Federation membership and Green Business Network membership for most of our products. We source everything through US based companies and organizations except:

✴Agbanga Karite www.agbangakarite.com - Togo

✴ComArt Tukuypaj www.comart-tukuypaj.com - Bolivia

✴E.N.D. Stevia www.end-stevia.com - Bolivia

✴Ethaan Crafts www.ethaan.com - India

✴Naturaleza, S.A. www.frutte.bo - Bolivia

All five organizations work directly with small farmers or artisans through community projects based on fair trade principles.  Even if they are not FTC or FTF members we have met with them and know their commitment to socially and environmentally responsible practices.

Other Fair Trade craft products come from different countries but we source through US based companies:

✴Global Crafts: Kenya, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Haiti, Chile, Mexico

✴Global Exchange: Cambodia, Kenya, India, South Africa

✴SERRV: Vietnam, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Ecuador, Cambodia, China, Guatemala, Kenya, Peru, Philippines, Bangladesh

✴UPAVIM Crafts: Guatemala

All Fair Trade Certified products offered come from these US based companies:

✴Beeceuticals Organics

✴Frontier Natural Products Coop

✴Ithaca Fine Chocolates

✴Larabar

✴SERRV: Divine Chocolates, EQUO teas, Nepalese teas

✴Sweet Earth Organic Chocolates

✴Theo Chocolates

✴QueenHelen Naturals

✴Wholesome Sweeteners

Other Fair Trade Federation member companies from which we source are:

✴Guayaki yerba mate: Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil,

✴Sambazon Acai products: Brazil

3. For both the sourcing of ingredients and/or products and production, what verifications do you rely on to ensure fair labor standards (i.e., third party verification, regular visits, company staff in country or on site)? Please provide specifics.

see above… third party verification mostly.

4. If you use independent contractors, describe how you choose these individuals.

We do not use independent contractors.

C. Customers

Checklist:

Steps you take on behalf of the customer:

•Appropriate disclaimers on Web site_____

Disclosure of all ingredients on Web site_____

Disclosure of all ingredients on packaging_____

Money-back guarantees_____

•Recycling of packaging or products from customers_____

Service or maintenance after purchase_____

Verified health and safety of products_____

Verified health and safety of products on Web site_____

Narrative:

1. Describe your complaint process.

Thankfully, so far we have not had any complatins from our customers.  Even if we do not have a written process to handle complaints, this is what we would do:

1. One of the partners receive the complaint from customers through a call, an email or present at the physical store.

2. Both partners discuss the complaint and agree on a cause of action taking in consideration our commitment to fairness from the Fair Trade movement.

3. The customer and the partner negociate the decided course of action with transparency.

2. Describe how you use your Web site as an educational tool.

We have set up our website to function metaphorically as a traditional Latin American urban town: a central plaza La_Placita.html from where you can get to all other “spaces” or locations.  We support traditional urbanism over postmodernist suburbanism as THE environmentally and socially friendly lifestyle.  From La Placita you can get to:

✴la Teteria.html (tea shop) and el Mercado.html (marketplace) where you can find how to get to our physical store and what kind of products you can get from us.

✴througout el Mercado.html (marketplace) you can find information on some of the community projects or coops that we support like the Guatemalan women artisans of UPAVIM.html

✴la Casa_Cultural.html (cultural center) has information on the Fair Trade movement and links to the organizations responsible for certification.

✴el Instituto.html (institute) has links to organizations that are working with communities, cooperatives, and the solidarity economy in Puerto Rico with the hopes that we can establish a Puerto Rican Fair Trade Network in the future.

✴el Ayuntamiento.html (town/city hall) provides a summary of all La Chiwinha’s business and Socially Responsible policies and practices.

✴la Fondita.html (cafeteria) includes an archive of vegetarian recipes you can prepare using fair trade ingredients like chocolates and quinoa.

✴el Club_Social.html (club house) reviews what our customers have said about La Chiwinha, its products, and iniciatives.

✴la Biblioteca.html (library) archives all press documents and articles about La Chiwinha published in local newspapers, e-papers, and magazines.

✴el Hostal.html gathers the links to other cultural creatives and initiatives that La Chiwinha supports.

✴el Santuario.html (shrine) collects bits of spiritual wisdom from our favorite thinkers and movers.

✴el Teatro.html (theater) shows the monthly calendar of activities planned for our physical space and other events where La Chiwinha is going to participate.

✴finally, el Colectivo.html pages which is one way La Chiwinha supports the local student-run Colectivo Universitario pro Comercio Justo.

3. Please provide details on any lawsuits or complaints to the Better Business Bureau in the past or currently active?

No lawsuits of complaints.