zebrafeatherah - Network

Fediverse Q: I was gonna upload some GIFs I made to Giffy - is there any reason I shouldn't? I've had too many experiences joining a...

Fediverse Q: I was gonna upload some GIFs I made to Giffy - is there any reason I shouldn't? I've had too many experiences joining a platform and finding out it was problematic after the fact :(

#question #croudsourcing #gif #giffy

(3/3)EDIT: I've deleted the GIF I made - please see the original post for why :(~~~1. Learning. I only know a drop of what I feel I...

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EDIT: I've deleted the GIF I made - please see the original post for why :(

~~~

1. Learning. I only know a drop of what I feel I ought to know about all of this, so I'm trying to remedy that.

2. Making a switch. I'm making a conscious effort to only buy/consume coffee, chocolate, and tea that at least meets Fair Trade ethical guidelines (Equal Exchange is a favorite). That includes giving up the free coffee at work, which is largely sourced from Nescafé..... :(

3. Speaking of the free coffee at work... I've been working with my org's sustainability committee and procurement to see if we can switch to a Fair Trade supplier (Green Mountain). There hasn't been much movement yet, but it looks like we may be able to set up a "pilot" program.

4. Pestering others (sorry!). I think sometimes I annoy people, which is counter-productive, but I also know that it's easy to ignore stuff like this if people don't talk about it. That being said, I know that not everybody has the options or resources that I do, so my goal is to convince people to try and understand the importance and do what they can.

5. Making a GIF (attached). This was largely for fun, but who knows–maybe it'll nudge someone towards giving the issue some thought!

If anybody reading this decides to make a move toward Fair/Direct Trade products (even in a small way), I'd love to hear about it–solidarity feeds my motivation!

(2/3)Corporations like Nestlé and Starbucks are repeatedly called out for supporting practices as inhumane as child labor and slavery in...

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Corporations like Nestlé and Starbucks are repeatedly called out for supporting practices as inhumane as child labor and slavery in developing countries (at least as recent as The National Consumers League lawsuit against Starbucks in early 2024). These companies tout their human rights policies, but will go out of their way to avoid enforcing them (e.g. by announcing inspections and refusing to list specific co-ops/farms that supply them). Then–when called out–they (sometimes) punish the offending partners and go on making great claims about their ethical standing. It seems the only effective way to promote humane practices is to actually pay more so workers receive a living wage (surprise!), but these companies are unwilling to take that step.

Fair and Direct Trade are not perfect solutions (sadly, I'm not sure there is such a thing at this point in time), but they do seem to be well-intentioned, which is more than I can say about some of the other certification programs (e.g. C.A.F.E. and Rainforest Alliance).

So this is what I've been up to:

(1/3)EDIT: After posting all of this, I received an email from someone who is well-versed in worker-rights as they relate to chocolate...

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EDIT: After posting all of this, I received an email from someone who is well-versed in worker-rights as they relate to chocolate farming. Unfortunately they said that FairTrade is another one of the labels that does more harm than good. I believe direct trade can still be beneficial, but obviously need to get better informed about it all. For now I'll be leaving this post here, but deleting the GIF I made.

Being ethical in this world is hard.

~~~

Sometimes when the world is a mess my brain gets wrapped up in the cycle of wanting to do something about everything, getting overwhelmed, and doing nothing. In an attempt to derail that cycle, I’m trying to focus my frustration-energy on a specific ethical topic that I'm passionate about. My topic of choice (drumroll): Fair/Direct Trade! (esp. for chocolate, coffee, and tea)

I'm in the learning phase (and honestly probably always will be) and welcome any helpful insights or questions, but these are a few early thoughts:

#FairTrade #DirectTrade #coffee #chocolate #tea

Here's a dumb joke to start off your weekend (I put this together for a flyer for a community garden).#vegetable #veggie #vegan...

Here's a dumb joke to start off your weekend (I put this together for a flyer for a community garden).

#vegetable #veggie #vegan #vegetarian #radish #RadVegetables #rad #comic #pun #joke #CommunityGarden

The sustainability group at work is hosting a clothing swap at the end of April, so I did a fun promotional GIF!#clothingSwap #gif #MastoArt...

The sustainability group at work is hosting a clothing swap at the end of April, so I did a fun promotional GIF!

#clothingSwap #gif #MastoArt #sustainability #EarthDay

My partner got US citizenship yesterday. It's a relief, bc a green card doesn't feel as secure these days as it should be. It also...

My partner got US citizenship yesterday. It's a relief, bc a green card doesn't feel as secure these days as it should be.

It also seems a bit like getting a job at Blockbuster Video in 2012.

#ASinkingCitizenShip

I'm really bad about posting updates about King Fish, but today's page feels like a big one. A good time to jump in if you're...

I'm really bad about posting updates about King Fish, but today's page feels like a big one. A good time to jump in if you're interested 😁

https://kingfishofthecharles.thecomicseries.com/

#webcomic #WebComicTalk #IndieComics #comics #comic #Fantasy #FantasyComic #FantasyArt #KFotC #WebcomicUpdate

I'm playing around with some character dev for a future comic. This is Talia and her dad hanging out on a screened in porch in the...

I'm playing around with some character dev for a future comic. This is Talia and her dad hanging out on a screened in porch in the evening.

#comic #webcomic #MastoArt #DigitalArt #JurassicPark #CharacterDesign #CharacterDev

I'm enjoying playing around with style some. Still feeling tropical scenery these days 🏝️ #DigitalArt #MastoArt #Comic #comics...

I'm enjoying playing around with style some. Still feeling tropical scenery these days 🏝️

#DigitalArt #MastoArt #Comic #comics #WebComics #tropical

This is about the time of year I get sick of the cold and my mind goes to the tropics.This one took me all of Sunday, but I enjoyed it a lot...

This is about the time of year I get sick of the cold and my mind goes to the tropics.

This one took me all of Sunday, but I enjoyed it a lot :)

#MastoArt #DigitalArt #Tropical

I tasked myself with designing a kind of mystical gate. It took me some time, but was pretty fun! The large creature there is Jeri, a big...

I tasked myself with designing a kind of mystical gate. It took me some time, but was pretty fun!

The large creature there is Jeri, a big magical ape (I posted a drawing of him yesterday).

#gate #MastoArt #Fantasy #fantasyArt #Mystical #DigitalArt

eye contactMeet Jeri: a giant, angry, magical, floral ape. It took me awhile to come up with this design, but I'm happy with how it came...

eye contact

Meet Jeri: a giant, angry, magical, floral ape. It took me awhile to come up with this design, but I'm happy with how it came out!

#fantasy #fantasyart #monster #monsterart #ape #DigitalArt #MastoArt #CharacterDesign

grumblingsThe past weeks have been busy. My field is one of the many that is under siege by the US government. One of the most frustrating...

grumblings

The past weeks have been busy.

My field is one of the many that is under siege by the US government. One of the most frustrating things to me, though, is how higher-ups send messages like "we'll handle this, you just keep doing what you're doing."

Their goal is to keep things running, *not* to protect individual workers. That means their "handling" it leaves us huge workloads to absorb cost-cutting measures and bracing for a major round of layoffs. (Note: I don't think my job is in danger, but it has already gotten much harder and I worry for some of my coworkers.)

I wish I had the energy, know-how, and nerve to effectively push back, but for now I'll drop my thoughts here in case anybody is in need of commiseration.

Happy Thursday! I've posted another page of King Fish in celebration 👑 🐟 https://kingfishofthecharles.thecomicseries.com/#webcomic...

Happy Thursday! I've posted another page of King Fish in celebration 👑 🐟

https://kingfishofthecharles.thecomicseries.com/

#webcomic #webcomics #WebcomicTalk #indiecomics #comics #comic #KFotC #webcomicUpdate #FantasyComic #FantasyArt

Another bird! This is a Eurasian Hoopoe - I've never seen one before, so hopefully I did it justice 😅 If you like this one, you...

Another bird! This is a Eurasian Hoopoe - I've never seen one before, so hopefully I did it justice 😅

If you like this one, you should also check out @cookiesdf's art! The hashed bg was inspired by some of her gorgeous drawings :)

#bird #birdsofmastodon #birds #MastoArt #Hoopoe #EurasianHoopoe #BirdArt #TraditionalArt

Glossy Ibis - my dad really likes these birds and I can see why! #bird #birdsofmastodon #birds #MastoArt #GlossyIbis #Ibis #BirdArt...

Glossy Ibis - my dad really likes these birds and I can see why!

#bird #birdsofmastodon #birds #MastoArt #GlossyIbis #Ibis #BirdArt #TraditionalArt

I applied for an account on pixelfed.art ~10 days ago, but still haven't heard anything. Do any of you know if this is the normal wait...

I applied for an account on pixelfed.art ~10 days ago, but still haven't heard anything. Do any of you know if this is the normal wait time? I thought they said something like ~48hrs is usual, but could be misremembering.

I certainly don't mind waiting, but I want to make sure my application went through. Also, if you happen to know another instance that might be better suited to me, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Thanks! :)

#fediverse #FediverseTips #Pixelfed #pixelfedart

One of my endeavors of late has been to only consume fair trade coffee/chocolate/tea. Mostly this has been on a personal scale, but I also...

One of my endeavors of late has been to only consume fair trade coffee/chocolate/tea.

Mostly this has been on a personal scale, but I also brought it up with the sustainability group at work, and they made some headway w/ the procurement office! I really hope we can get them to make the switch - getting a reasonably large org to switch to fair trade coffee would feel like a big win!

🌱 ☕ 🍫

#FairTrade #Coffee

Back to bird drawings :) "Piping plover" always sounds like an exclamation, à la "Piping Plover, Batman!" to...

Back to bird drawings :)

"Piping plover" always sounds like an exclamation, à la "Piping Plover, Batman!" to me.

#PipingPlover #bird #birds #BirdArt #TraditionalArt #MastoArt