Meet Jackie Costello, Fair Trade Partner, fashionista, and fierce change-maker. She’s one of the winners of our Threads Family Values photo contest for capturing this shocking image on our recent trip to Bali to meet our Artisan Partners:
Winning photo for Right Now.
Jackie said this about her photo: “There were many beautiful things in Bali that we saw, but then there were many awful scenes as well, including this one. Right outside the village we were visiting was this garbage pile with dogs and chickens looking for food. It made me so sad. Our garbage just doesn’t disappear. The time to make changes about sustainability was yesterday, well ten years ago. But the next best thing is right now.”
Here’s what Jackie had to share about her experiences as a Threads Fair Trade Partner.
Where do you live?
Santee, California
How long have you been a Fair Trade Partner?
Almost 3 years
In addition to Threads, what else are you up to in life?
I own The Golden Rule Boutique, an all fair trade boutique in San Diego. We have been doing pop ups, showcases, and events for 3 years and we just opened up our first retail space in Westfield Mission Valley. I also just launched a podcast with fellow Fair Trade Partner, Jen Parlin. The podcast is called Fairlosophy and on it we will be talking about everything related to fair trade fashion.
What’s your favorite part of being a Fair Trade Partner?
My favorite part of being a Fair Trade Partner is the community. I love meeting other Fair Trade Partners who care about people and the world just as much as I do. I speak to someone from this tribe at least once a week and often it can be once a day. This is my tribe.
How do you live the Threads Family Value of “Right Now”?
I have taken a lot of risks for The Golden Rule and selling fair trade items because I know that this is important. I care about the fair trade movement and only want it to succeed. I know that we cannot go back in time and fix mistakes about how we, as a society, shop and how we affect other people but we can start to make changes right now. The time is now. And I think the point of this is not to be perfect, but to start making changes now. Fix it as you go. Progress over perfection.
How has your perspective in life changed since joining the Threads community?
I think the biggest thing would be that I have found my community. I felt very isolated before I joined Threads. I knew there were people that cared about the same things that I did but I wasn’t friends with them. This created a sisterhood and a safe haven for me. Friends that I could bounce ideas off of. I also know now that there are people across the country that care about the same things. I know that even if it isn’t right in front of me, I know my tribe is doing their part to spread fair trade awareness.
What do you now see is possible for you and for the world?
I know that the world can be a better place for all of us and that we can live together as one. I think that, of course, this is taking time but every year I look back and see how much fair trade has grown and how more and more people are becoming conscious about shopping and now know how they can vote with their dollar.
Interested in joining Jackie and other Fair Trade Partners in Guatemala next year?
