Social and Environmental Responsibility of Small Businesses

For a year now, we have been operating the Wert&Voll online shop. Almost overnight and without preparation, we decided to embark on the adventure of self-employment. We really enjoy the daily challenges and diverse contacts. In the meantime, we can no longer imagine our lives without the shop.

Now, in this blog post, we want to focus on an issue that is very important to us. We are talking about the social and ecological responsibility of small businesses. We believe that owning a business offers a great opportunity to give back to society and Mother Earth. Our manufacturers themselves already ensure that higher than usual standards are met during production and invest a portion of their turnover in social and/or sustainable ecological projects. For example, Klean Kanteen is a member of 1% for the Planet and Qwetch supports projects in France, as well as in China, where the products are manufactured.

Many online shops that sell sustainable products plant a tree for every product sold. We think that is a great development and a way to give back directly to the Earth. For the future of our society, we wish that we could go one step further. The current situation (Corona crisis 2020) clearly shows how our system is structured. Where money can be made, investments are made and expanded. The less lucrative areas, such as our healthcare system or social institutions, usually only get what is absolutely necessary. Yet they combat diseases and social injustices. Healthy and inwardly content people form the basis for a life in harmony with nature. However, our economic system exploits both people and nature. Therefore, we have decided to donate a portion of Wert&Voll's turnover to social organizations that, in our opinion, make an important contribution to a fair and just world.

Firstly, from 2020, the charitable foundation Kinderschutz Schweiz will be supported with one percent of our annual turnover. We are parents ourselves and cannot comprehend how many children suffer daily from physical, psychological, and sexual violence. Even here in Switzerland. These traumatic experiences are passed down through generations and lay the foundation for a society in which exploitation and oppression are considered legitimate. The expression of violence in families is only a reflection of the violence exerted by large corporations and the arms industry worldwide. By protecting the weakest, we protect the planet.

To strengthen the rights of children worldwide, we will donate another one percent of our annual turnover to the charitable organization Humanium from Geneva. With projects worldwide, Humanium supports the fundamental rights of children. Only when all children can grow up fairly and with dignity will we live in a world where nature is respected and all living beings are honored.

Our hope is that we will inspire even more small shops and businesses to get involved socially. Every contribution makes a difference. The primary focus should not be on what customers like, but on which causes you genuinely want to support. By running a business, you bear responsibility for what our world will look like in the future.

Thank you for taking the time to read this article!

Your Wert&Voll family