Dec 17, 2018 | Blog, News From the Frontlines, Thailand, Uncategorized
Last December, a rock musician named Toon in Thailand announced that he was raising money for public healthcare, undertaking a 1,300 mile run over 55 days to gain interest in the cause. Toon asked every Thai person to give 10 baht (about a quarter) which, when pooled together, would be more than enough to meet his goal. The children of Not For Sale Thailand were inspired to help Toon reach his goal, and starting scraping together coins to donate. They realized that their collection was meager, so they decided to go to the local market and ask for donations toward Toon’s cause. Their hard work paid off and their donation of around $3 turned into over $500! Kru Nam, Not For Sale Thailand director, was excited to see the dedication the children had, even as they themselves had little to give. Because the children had been helped by others, they felt the duty to also be in service of others. The gift of giving inspired the children to themselves be givers, to those who need help. Toon’s goal was to raise $20 million. He raised $33 million. If you’re inspired by this story like we are, help us tell another story of generosity, hope, and change by giving to Not For Sale this holiday season. Will you inspire by joining the cycle of generosity?
Dec 1, 2018 | Blog, News From the Frontlines
From establishing his own non-profit in El Salvador, to being a venture capitalist in Silicon Valley, teaching at the University of San Francisco, creating global charity ‘Not For Sale’ and social enterprises Z Shoes and Rebbl, David Batstone has done it all. But no matter where he has gone, success has followed.
Why? Batstone believes it’s his acceptance of failure and constant desire to learn. But we wanted to delve a little deeper. So we asked him to complete the Red Bull Wingfinder test. Here’s what we discovered.
With confidence you have the self-belief to take the lead, try new things and meet challenges head-on. And that’s exactly what Batstone has done throughout his long and varied career. After starting a non-profit in conflict-ridden El Salvador in the 1980s, he became a tech journalist, before switching again to a venture capital firm in Silicon Valley. A few years there gave him the business acumen to co-found Business 2.0 magazine.
But then, just as that adventure began to take off, Batstone read an article on human trafficking and felt compelled to take action. He downed tools to travel the world and investigate. Five years later, Batstone has created ‘Not For Sale’, and is changing lives in Thailand, Peru and Romania by providing housing for those in need. His life has been defined by self-belief, so it’s no surprise that Red Bull Wingfinder has highly confident as one of his main strengths. And Batstone’s approach to failure is what truly solidifies that.
Nov 26, 2018 | Blog, News From the Frontlines
REBBL is a company that was born from a cause, rather than a company that went out looking for a cause to support. In 2000, ethics professor David Batstone discovered a human trafficking ring at a restaurant in his San Francisco neighborhood. He and photojournalist Mark Wexler went on to start the nonprofit Not For Sale (NFS) to raise money to build housing for children who had survived trafficking in Thailand. Eventually, as the organization’s outreach expanded, they realized that the standard nonprofit loop of fundraising and donating just wasn’t working, and that they needed to find something self-sustaining to solve this complicated social and ecological problem.
REBBL’s organic plant-based super-herb protein drinks and elixirs are that sustainable solution. They are a market-based way to prevent exploitation in vulnerable countries across the globe, by supporting growers to earn a living wage, have access to health care, water, and education, uphold their labor rights, and pursue regenerative agriculture to keep their land healthy. We started with one grower community to develop a line of beverages using local plants and herbs—we now work with growers in 39 countries.
Read more about REBBL’s CEO and Not For Sale’s impact here: https://underdog.nyc/sheryl-oloughlin
Nov 21, 2018 | Blog, News From the Frontlines
REBBL launched a new integrated marketing campaign titled What’s Your Elixir? that connects consumers to the transformational power of super herbs and adaptogens, the company says. As the brand continues to expand into targeted conventional retail stores across the country, the new campaign aims to reach a wider audience, allow REBBL to get to know its REBBL community on a deeper level and help consumers better understand how super herbs benefit the body, it adds. The campaign features multiple waves. The first wave focused on the taste and packaging design of each of the company’s 14 offerings. The second wave introduced consumers to the functional benefits of REBBL’s products. Lastly, as the campaign progresses, REBBL’s messaging will strive to educate consumers about the larger impact story that is at the company’s core, it says.
Read more about REBBL here: https://www.bevindustry.com/articles/91610-beverage-brands-continusously-roll-out-new-campaigns-to-coincide-with-sports-holidays
Nov 19, 2018 | Uncategorized
As the food industry increasingly adopts greater health and wellness trends, once wholly unknown categories are now becoming more mainstream. That means Kellogg’s now sells a probiotic cereal and Coca-Cola is potentially contemplating CBD beverages.
Whole Foods, a leading retailer in the healthy foods space, just announced the emerging trends creeping into your shopping cart. Some seem thoroughly expected (faux meat), while others sound rather novel (Pacific Rim flavors). Will these categories fare as well as predicted? In years past, Whole Foods pretty much hit the mark: In 2016, it was “coconut everything” and wellness tonics, while 2017 marked plant-based diets and sparkling water.
Read more about Square Organics here: https://www.fastcompany.com/90269435/whole-foods-just-named-the-top-10-healthy-food-trends-for-2019
