Tag Archive for 'lausanne'

Eventually found my fairtrade shoes!

Published on February 17, 2008 in considerations. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

My brand new fairtrade shoes: the Ethletic RunnersRemember my very first post on this blog? I was looking for fairtrade shoes in Lausanne… I’ve found them at last! (Though not in Lausanne… I’ve heard that the “Soeurs Boa” in Lausanne sell the whole range of BlackSpot models every spring, but it’s not spring yet).

Instead, Anto brought them back from her trip to Paris: The Ethletic Sneakers. These shoes don’t just look cool, they are great in several aspects:

Environmental

The natural rubber sole of our ETHLETIC sneakers is sourced from a plantation in Sri Lanka, where rubber is produced in a sustainable and responsible manner.

Environmental protection and social requirements for the workers are equal concerns of the management, in both the harvesting and the manufacturing process.

For this reason ETHLETIC sneakers carry the logo of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC © 1996, Cert.-Nr. IMO-COC 25582) on the sole.

Social

World Premiere in Fair Trade

For the first time anywhere in the world rubber has been sourced in line with Fair Trade criteria. A Fair Trade premium is paid for the soles of the ETHLETIC sneakers, which is used to finance measures on the plantation, which in turn help improve the living and working conditions of the workers and their families.

Fair Trade in Production, too

Fair Trade criteria are also applied in the production unit in Sialkot/Pakistan, where the sneakers are manufactured. They contribute to the workers receiving a better pay deal.

(Quotes from http://www.ethletic.com)

So… Finally, I’m very happy that I did eventually get shoes corresponding to criteria I consider important, even though I seem to be the only one around for the time being.

Précipitez-vous chez D’Fleurs à  Lausanne

Published on February 2, 2008 in misc. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

Je fais suivre un message de ma copine Marilin:

Merci de faire passer…

Nouveau – D’Fleur, un nouvel espace floral à  Montoie
Il aime rencontrer les gens, leur parler, leur faire plaisir, il est
parfois rêveur, silencieux et concentré!
il est déjà  le fleuriste de ces dames!

La suite sur le site…

http://www.dfleurs.com/

Achetez éthique les 15 et 16 décembre prochains à  l’Arsenic!

Published on December 3, 2007 in misc. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

Je fais suivre un message de Nina Raeber (la conceptrice des sacs équitables et écolo coll.part):

Bonjour!
Avant, pendant ou après Noà«l, autant dépenser ses sous de façon éthique. Isabelle Boucharlat a le projet d’ouvrir une boutique de vêtements et accessoires ethiques à  Lausanne. Ethique et sympa, si si, c’est possible!
Il ne manque que le local!! Venez déjà  découvrir les collections d’hiver lors de la vente du 15-16 décembre!
Si en plus vous pouvez faire un peu de pub autour de vous…
Bisous.
Nina

» Flyer de la vente des 15 et 16 décembre 07 à  l’Arsenic (pdf, 31Ko)

Boris Cyrulnik in Lausanne

Published on November 12, 2007 in considerations. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

The famous French ethologist, neurologist and psychoanalyst, Boris Cyrulnik was giving a public lecture, in Lausanne, last Friday evening (Nov. 9, 07) on behalf of the Eben-Hezer Foundation.
First of all I was quite impressed with the queue of people who booked too late and came nevertheless just in case some seats would turn out free at the last minute. I knew the guy was popular, but this was beyond imagination.
I was even more impressed when the talk actually began. Boris Cyrulnik is a brilliant popularizer, which is really not a common feature amongst French scientists. The theme was “Le souci de l’autre”, literally ‘The concern for the Other’.

Does the Concern for the Other exist amongst other living creature than humans? Why does it not exist amongst all individuals within the human species? How can morals be so simply switched off during wars and back on when peace returns?

I’m definitely not going to sum anything up here. First because even though I felt very clever during the lecture (I was indeed under the impression that I understood everything he said ;-) , I feel far less clever now, trying to remember what was actually said. And because I have tons of stuff to do this afternoon.

The one thing that really struck me was the demonstration of the 3 causes that can lead to serious issues in the constitution of the individual’s ‘sensory envelop’ (actually leading to sadism or masochism in the best case and autism in the worst with a huge variety of psychopathic intermediate possibilities) :
1. A shock regarding a close relative during the early childhood (illness or death of a parent for instance);
2. Too much love and affection; too big expectations for a single child to cope with;
3. Too many people around for a constructive relationship to actually take place.
(All this was, of course, supported by various samples of scientific evidence)
If the first argument seemed quite obvious before the talk, I could only vaguely suspect the two latter points. Definitely worth the short trip!
I shall probably attend whatever lecture Boris Cyrulnik gives in the neighbourhood, and I might even read a couple of his books.

Francioli & Bourquin: les nouveaux monstres

Published on October 20, 2007 in music. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

If you’re in Lausanne and want to hear something really special, amazing sounds and effects, a string bass that sometimes sounds like Dave Gilmour‘s guitar, all this performed by two crazy old musicians whose imagination and youth has got nothing to envy from the younger generations, then I highly recommend a short-stop at theater 2.21 for little-over-an-hour of pure wonder by Léon Francioli and Daniel Bourquin, aka “Les nouveaux monstres“.

These guys are mad. In the same minute, they take you from horrific experimental squeaking attempts of sounds to the most lyrical melody with the magical sound of a – brilliantly played by Daniel Bourquin- tenor sax and the smooth accompaniment, with  a very round and colourful sound, of Léon Francioli’s grand piano.

That music, composed and arranged by Léon Francioli, enters no category I’ve known so far, unless something like psycho-experimental-jazz-somewhat-pink-floydish-somewhat-astor-piazzolish exists ;)

They’re still on until tomorrow evening.

Fairtrade shoes in Lausanne

Published on October 12, 2007 in considerations. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

I have definitely got fed up with my old tennis shoes.

In fact, I never actually liked them at all. I found them in Borsec in 2004. They were the only pair in the only shop and were supposed to be original Pumas though they only costed about 6€. They were also designed for larger and longer feet than mine. I wear 42 (UK 9) and they reach the incredible length of 46 (UK 11). A mere detail.

One might think I’m not that fussy when it comes to buying shoes… As a matter of fact, I am.

When I got those in Romania, it was either that or happily strolling down in mud with flat shoes. I had no other choice, and blaming myself for always forgetting to pack important stuff -such as walking shoes- when I travel wouldn’t help.

Procrastinating, as often, behind my laptop in Lausanne, I decided I would get a new pair of sneakers before I went home. That’s when I thought of the poor slave kids in Asia and decided I wouldn’t go for international brands. I was done with procrastinating, I had a challenge: find fair trade sport shoes in Lausanne for a decent price.

In fact, that was too much of a challenge. The start wasn’t bad: the web first revealed that they are a few makes of ethical shoes but that the trend is really recent. But I had to shift the threshold of what I consider a reasonable price, upwards, needless to say.

After a very active 2-hours surfing I now know all this on the topic:

Nosweat is an alter-globalization activist American brand. The shoes look great, very Converse-like, but will definitely not be acquired by Nike that soon. It looks like they’ve been victims of their success, my size is out of stock, I’m not going for a 46 again, and anyway you can’t find them in Lausanne, not even in Switzerland.

New Balance don’t surf on the bio/fairtrade wave but are nevertheless manufactured by adults in the US and the UK. You can even find them in Lausanne, but the price is a little over my budget. Nothing to do with urban sport shoes though, these are real sports shoes I could really do with (as my actual goal is to avoid blisters when I go jogging).

Veja is a Franco-Brazilian make. Really 100% green and Fair Trade, they are probably going to be my new jogging parters before long. A little expensive though… And I hate the luxury shop which is their only retailer in Lausanne… And there are no high-top models in the current collection… Not to mention the price… We’ll see.

Eventually the Ethletic sneakers and the Canadian Adbuster’s vegan Blackspot Sneakers also seemed quite cool, but there’s obviously definitely no way of getting them in Lausanne without paying an extra 50% of the price on shipping fees…

So… I’m not quite happy with what I have found so far on the web… I shall have to go and see for myself in the local shops…

I never imagined that finding sport shoes that don’t imply ill-treating of the kids and of the planet could be that tedious… The conclusion is so alarming that I’d rather not write it down. Let’s see the bright side: there is an offer! It is just beginning, but it exists: if you really want sport shoes you can be proud of, you can. And this simple fact is great! Even though it’s a little more true if you live in London or Paris than if you live in Lausanne.

Updating soon, hopefully…

Oct. 19 2007 update:

I’ve tried 4 shoe shops in town today, none of these brands is available! And “Bon Génie”, which supposedly sold “Veja” in Lausanne, has only got the line for women.I did find the New Balance in one of the shops, and they are really cool. But the first price starts at 190 CHF, and I’ve eventually found out that they are not quite as perfect as I would have liked them to be, for that price, since they are criticized by Oxfam for their lack of transparency in labour policies and for not publishing factory and supplier addresses online. (Source: The Green Guide). Isn’t it appalling that you can’t find sport shoes made in decent human conditions in one of the wealthiest places in the world?

Feb. 17 2008 update:

Eventually found them! Though not in Lausanne… Read more…