We vote with our dollars.  Every time we spend our money, we aren’t just getting a hamburger or pretty new sweater.  We’re saying, “I support the way this product was made.  I support the way the animals and humans involved in the production of this thing were treated.”  Each dollar is a nod of approval to the practices that go into the production of these items.

I know we don’t really think this way when we’re doing our shopping.  But as we turn more and more to cheaper products as the economy worsens, now is really the time to be thinking of where our dollars are going.

A few easy adjustments in the way we shop could make a few small strides. 

First, consider buying locally made foods at your grocery store.  If your grocery store doesn’t offer local products, ask them why.  Why, for example, can’t I buy tortillas made at a small local business but I can get tortillas from huge factories thousands of miles away?  Or why can’t I get handmade ice cream made in the next town over, but I can get fifty selections from the other side of the country?  I try to make an effort to ask these questions.  If businesses don’t know what the customers want, they won’t change.

Second, you may consider some Christmas shopping at these sites where individuals sell their homemade products.  I was recently given an apron here.  It cost the same as the apron I would have chosen from my favorite purse maker except it was made by an indiviual.  I knew that the profits were going to her and not a CEO who doesn’t even touch the sewing machine.  There are prints, sculptures, holiday cards, decor, clothing, gifts…  

• etsy.com  “Your place to buy and sell all things handmade”
• dawanda.com  “Products with love” and “DaWanda is the place for unique and individual products and people. Buy handmade and hard to find goods, share your discoveries with your friends and create your own collections.”