Kwytza Kraft a Sacramento, CA based company produces a variety of products ranging from bowls to lamps to handbags. They are all made primarily from recycled "throwaway" bamboo chopsticks. The recycling and production takes place in China. I had a chance to speak with the founder and head designer, Bryan Parks, in his booth at the SF Green Festival 2006.

In talking with him, one thing stood out as particularly interesting; in order to ensure good working environment and fair wages, he is moving away from having any of his products made by large manufacturers. He said he chooses his workers, pays them well, and makes sure they have good living conditions. His business model marks a slight departure from most Fair Trade businesses, in that he designed the product, rather than it being designed locally as more of a traditional handicraft. This model raises the question, "Wouldn't it be great if companies like Nike, Apple, and Wal-Mart would take care of their employees by paying them more and resultantly making a smaller profit?"

On a different note, what I find more interesting about Parks' products is that they present the consumer with function and beauty, and they objectively allow the buyer to contemplate the entire meaning of the product i.e., that really great products can be made from something we typically discard as trash. What Parks is doing with products is not dissimilar from what Edward Burtynsky is doing with photography. They both provide the consumer with something beautiful and functional and allow them to explore the full impacts of the products/art in their own minds, in their own way, on their own time. This is potentially a much more effective way of raising environmental awareness than telling people something very directly and outright. I find it very inspiring, and I hope to soon see many more things like them.