Daniel's Story Part I: Bizactivism

About a year before I became a merchant adventurer (this would have been about 2006), I had a "light bulb" moment that changed the way I understand the words business and activism.

A child of protest-era parents with government jobs, I grew up harboring a profound distrust of business and businesspeople, a distrust that grew into disgust during my undergraduate years at Berkeley. For me, business meant corporations, and corporations meant bad things like the abuse and exploitation of workers and the environment, and a single-minded, ruthless pursuit of profit.

The "light bulb" moment came after I stumbled upon the concept of the triple bottom line and came to three inter-related realizations. First, not all businesses are out to maximize profit at all costs. Second, ethical businesses are necessary in order to make the vision of social and economic justice a reality. And third, ethical businesses are equal partners with non-profit organizations in the global movement for justice.

In short, the realization was that for-profit activism is not a contradiction in terms, and that this "profit" doesn’t have to line the pockets of executives and shareholders. Profit can be invested back into the movement.

Shortly thereafter I decided to become a "bizactivist" myself, to help weed out sweatshop abuse and environmental destruction from the global garment industry. Armed to the teeth with enthusiasm, but lacking in  experience, I began looking for an entry point into ethical business.

That was when I met Kevin O’Brien, the founder of Ethix Ventures and the Solidarity eXchange program. Here, in the flesh, was an example of a bona fide activist who had incorporated the values of the anti-sweatshop movement into his business model.

Kevin invited me to be the first "Merchant Adventurer" in the brand new Solidarity eXchange program, and a few short months later I was making commission on sales to nonprofits and union locals in my personal network and beyond.

         

   
Daniel Cardozo is a member of the Ethix Ventures, Inc. team.