Contributed by: Mary Donovan
Human Rights are the basic ones you think of when someone says that you should TREAT OTHERS AS YOU WOULD WANT TO BE TREATED.
(Or, the old-fashioned version: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”)
On the pH scale, 7 is the number that is perfectly balanced between being acidic or basic. And we aim to be balanced in everything we do at p.h. balanced films, most especially in the information we provide to you. We recognize the issues we address are complex – so we aim to give you a balanced view, based on reliable sources. What can YOU then do? Continue the Power of 7 by sharing what you read with 7 people… and if they each spread the word to another 7 people, who in turn share with another 7, before long, we’ll all see real change – and it starts with YOU.
Next up in our series of definitions – a common term that is harder to define than you might think…. Contributed by: Mary Donovan What are “human rights?” This seemingly simple question is surprisingly complicated. “Human rights” is a term we hear every day, but it has a different meaning for different people. As we discuss more below, there are many definitions, and many of them are very complicated! Here at p.h. balanced films, we base our definition on the Golden Rule: Human Rights are the basic ones you think of when someone says that you should TREAT OTHERS AS YOU WOULD WANT TO BE TREATED. (Or, the old-fashioned version: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”)
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While at times you may seem small and the world seems so large – keep fighting for the change you want to see! American cultural anthropologist and writer Margaret Mead (1901-1978) encourages us to believe in the power of a few like-minded, determined people (see some great examples here and here): “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” ― Margaret Mead Our series of definitions of words we use in our work continues with the term “conscious consumer.” It could be you! (And we hope it is!) From carlsvilleproject.blogspot.com Contributed by: Mary Donovan A conscious consumer is someone who – like you – understands that what we buy connects us to the rest of the world and wants to be sure that their purchases don’t contribute to human rights violations elsewhere on the planet. Or, using a few more words: “Socially conscious consumerism can be defined as consumers ‘voting with their dollars’ by purchasing products and services produced responsibly. Responsible production can encompass a range of social and environmental factors, such as ensuring labour practices are fair or that products are produced with the aim of minimizing environmental impacts. Consumers reward socially responsible firms through higher sales and punish other firms through boycotts and protests.” Is our current generation made up of more conscious consumers than the generation before? This article and this one discuss the contrast between the 90s and today. In the 90s, few people knew or cared about sweatshops in China or worried about eating products with toxins. Today, with movements like Fair Trade and Organic becoming trendy, it appears that Gen X is more concerned with the origin of their products than their parents were. Nielsen (a research company) did a survey about the demographics of the conscious consumer and found that most conscious consumers are under 40. What’s more, it looks like their concern actually changes the way customers are buying – that’s good news. To read more on this, check out this blog by Allison McGuire at Network for Good debunking myths about Millennials and discussing how they “rally around causes that have a global impact…top cause interests include education, poverty, the environment and health and disease.”
We at p.h. balanced films salute this group of conscious consumers – and everyone of every age who would like to join them! Want to learn more? Our “How to be a Conscious Consumer” series of films will illustrate how U.S. consumers’ purchases are linked to the daily life of humans thousands of miles away around the world. Stay tuned for these in the months ahead! So are you a conscious consumer? Want to know how to become one? Let us know here, on our Facebook page, or on twitter @phbalancedfilms. Earlier this year, after touring the United States Memorial Holocaust Museum with Holocaust survivor, Elie Wiesel, President Obama commented on how often nations do not take enough action to prevent horrors (like the Holocaust) from happening elsewhere in the World. While he was focused on nations, we believe the same is true for everyone, people, too: “Awareness without action changes nothing.” - President Obama You can watch his speech here. As you start your weekend, we encourage you to think about the actions you can be taking to make the world a better place!
Contributed by: Mary Donovan Another key term in our work is “supply chain.” To be clear, we’re not talking about linking together all the paper clips that you can find in your office supply closet. What we are talking about is how the products you buy connect YOU to every other person in the world that was part of making that product. Think about the clothes you are wearing right now – let’s assume you are wearing a shirt made with cotton… before that shirt got to you, someone in the world picked that cotton. Someone else wove it into thread. Someone else designed the pattern of the cloth. Another person sewed the shirt. Yet another person (probably lots of people) were involved in delivering the shirt from the place where it was made to the store where you bought it, where an employee unpacked and displayed that very shirt before you came in and decided to buy it! That’s a lot of people involved in getting that shirt on your back. Who doesn’t love a president who ends slavery, appreciates the importance of an ice-cold beer, and believes in the power of the people to create social change? The answer: no one (except maybe King George III). Check out this week’s favorite quote from honest Abe: “I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts, and beer.” ― Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States To all of our fine readers, have a great weekend! As we noted last week, we’re taking a few blog entries to “translate” the terms and acronyms you’ll encounter in our work and in being a conscious consumer. Today’s term: Corporate Accountability. At first glance, it may appear that “Corporate Accountability” is the same as an earlier term, “Corporate Social Responsibility,” and, in fact, you can find websites that give them almost the same definition. Nevertheless, there is a difference between these terms. The difference lies, in simple terms, between action and reaction. “Corporate Social Responsibility” means the ethical obligations that corporations should uphold when determining business practices. “Corporate Accountability,” on the other hand, is the obligation corporations have to let the public know what they are doing and to suffer consequences if they violate social responsibility standards. Who doesn’t love a win-win situation? We sure do. So this Friday, we’re bringing you a quote from someone who believes that businesses win when they are socially responsible. We already know that the communities where businesses operate benefit from good CSR (corporate social responsibility) practices as do the consumers who buy their products. So let’s make that a win-win-win (perfect during this Olympic season!). I think that today, more so than ever, corporate responsibility is the best strategic as well as financial path that most businesses can follow. For most businesses there are both compelling reasons to be responsible and compelling statistics that validate that responsible businesses do better according to traditional financial metrics. Of course, how you define “responsible” is somewhat of a conundrum. -Jeffrey Hollender, Founder of Seventh Generation (who has since moved on to work on other public policy issues) (Funny he should mention the question of defining “responsible”… stay tuned to this blog for more on that in the weeks ahead!) |
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