liveeco loves Vivienne Westwood and now with her newly expanded line of shopper totes, Africa loves her too. The Ethical Fashion Africa Project originally launched in January 2010 with all bags being handmade in Nairobi from recycled materials.
In conjunction with the United Nations and World Trade Organization, the expanded line now includes carriers for men, clutches, iPad and laptop cases and weekenders. The project is also helping to create jobs for some of Africa’s most impoverished women such as single mothers, widows and HIV/AIDS victims. Items can be purchased through the acclaimed eco-friendly online retailer Yoox.
“It gives people control over the lives,” Westwood says of the project. “Charity doesn’t give them control. It’s the opposite; it makes them dependent.”
As a climate-change campaigner, Westwood believes in creating options that don’t exploit the environment. “It’s quite incredible to think we might save the world through fashion,” she adds.
The liveeco team
