Textile Exchange

Written by: Prabha Nagarajan - Regional Director for India, Textile Exchange

Indian Organic Cotton… Integrity Guaranteed

By: Liesl Truscott - Farm Engagement Director, Textile Exchange

What do we want to be able to look back on this time next year and feel a sense of satisfaction... of purpose... of really making a difference?  We saw 2010 begin to send ripples of uncertainty down many people’s spine... Come 2011, some might say our bubble had burst.. What now for 2012? ...Read More...

By Liesl Truscott, Director Farm Engagement, Textile Exchange

It’s a sad situation when ‘doing the right thing’places an organization at risk. Yet, we saw just recently how true this can be when the company Victoria’s Secret, and the NGOs Fairtrade International and Helvetas, were accused by Bloomberg Press of not ‘getting it right’ in Burkina Faso.

As 2011 comes to a close and we look forward to 2012 for its new opportunities, new challenges, and new achievements, it’s a good time to go back over some of the year’s headlines.

Also click on the image below for a visual account of 2011 (click will take you to the TE Farm Hub homepage where album is located).

By: Liesl Truscott; Director of Farm Engagement, Textile Exchange

Water is high on the agenda for Textile Exchange. Earlier we talked about how population and consumption levels around the world continue to grow, and how access to sufficient clean water is declining—especially for the poorest among us. We all know that the poorest among us include farmers in developing countries. To continue the water theme, let’s take a closer look at water footprinting, and how small scale organic cotton production can help address large scale water issues.

My recent trip to India proved just how rewarding organic cotton farm ‘projects’ can be. I saw and learnt many things during this short trip but one of the biggest impressions must have been the smiles on the faces of the school children I met. Lives were being transformed in remote rural villages, where formal education has been introduced for the first time. It’s also evident that investment in a child’s education goes way beyond the classroom, having a ripple effect throughout the entire community.

Agriculture is as much about the social, political, cultural, and economic systems

A new report from consultants PwC, shows that for the first time in a decade

Having recently returned from a meeting of the Roundtable on Organic Agriculture and Climate Change (RTOACC) led by Andreas Gattinger (FiBL) and then discovering that the New Scientist has just released a special report on the definite effects of climate change it is clear that we know a whole lot more about both. Organic agriculture has a significant role to play in an ‘age of climate change’.