Star Tribune from Minneapolis, Minnesota • E10

STYLEPOINTS CALENDAR Debut: Shop for Kindness continues through Sept. 10 at the Mall of America. Fourteen brands, some of which are available only online or in other markets, will be for sale on Level 1 of the north side of the mall. mallofamerica.com. A trunk show featuring jewelry from artist Jovy Rockey of Winona, will be held 5-7 p.m.

Sat. at Showroom spring collection includes brass necklaces accented with sterling silver wire, brass, gold and more. 615 W. Lake Mpls. showroommpls.com.

612-345-7391. Select jewelry will be marked down 50 percent June 1-30 at the Walker Shop at the Walker Art Center, 725 Vineland Place, Mpls. and online at tinyurl.com/walker shop. 612-375-7633. HAVE AN EVENT? Send items to be considered for the style calendar at least two weeks before the publication date to com.

Canoe Area Wilderness conservation efforts. Debut: Shop for Kindness opens as tectonic shifts on the political stage not to mention the accompanying cuts in domestic and global aid programs have led to renewed interest in activism of all kinds. That includes a focus on the power of consumer spending to support worthy causes. And a focus on the powers of keeping pocketbooks sealed when a politics align with personal values. Donating money to charitable organizations has (one hopes) a direct impact on the causes we care about.

But the benefits of buying handwoven baskets and BWCA baseball caps from cause-related brands? The effect is more opaque. How much money is reaching the worthy cause depicted lovingly on the label? How many people benefit from our purchase How much waste is generated getting the product to store shelves? And does the mission outweigh the environmental costs of creating it? In most cases, experts say, the answer is pretty simple. Companies that promise to do good are probably doing some good, said Lisa Ann Richey, director of the doctoral school of social sciences and business at Roskilde University in Denmark and co-author of Shopping Well to Save the (University of Minnesota, 2011). But the equation gets tricky when it comes to traceability. do you know if is asked Richey, referring to exaggera- tions about a charitable impact.

actually have to travel to the village to A company might claim to create widespread change across the globe with the sale of its products, for example, but the actual impact is far smaller. may be working with 40 women in Richey said. 40 women are probably happy to be involved in the project, but the claims widespread match Retail homework The compassionate consumer faces an even bigger quandary since the most humane purchase is often no purchase at all. best thing to buy is no Richey said. the money you were going to use to buy something and donate to an initiative you care Experts add that cause-related shopping may be raising another problem: Research suggests that folks who engage in compassionate consumerism are less likely to donate directly to causes they believe in, Richey said.

The transaction fools them into thinking done their part. Of course, some shopping is a necessity. are times and situations when we need what we said Michal Jemma Carrington, a professor of ethical consumption and consumer culture at the University of Melbourne in Australia. In these situations, she said, ethical consumers should do their research when they buy and, ultimately, strive to consume less. Short of booking a trip to that African village, ethics-minded consumers can get started by asking questions of the cause-related brands they like.

Who are their nonprofit partners? How much money did they donate last year? the retail equivalent of getting to know your farmer at the farmers market. important to bring a critical eye to the shopping Carrington said. This is no easy task. can be hard to come by, and life can be just too busy to track down and assess all of the needed she said. companies often make this task any If doing this extra, retail-related homework feels overwhelming, know that the intent to buy with compassion can make a difference.

Even ethical boycotts contribute to the greater good. the 1930s, there were important boycotts of German goods in the United States long before the U.S. thought of entering the said Tracey Deutsch a University of Minnesota history professor and contributor to the forthcoming essay collection for Change: Consumer Activism and the Possibilities of Purchasing (Cornell University Press, 2017). that stop the Nazis? No. Did it create support for American intervention against fascism? Yes, absolutely it Americans have a long history of trying to create change through shopping.

It starts with protesting the monarchy before the Revolutionary War. Abolitionists organized campaigns to boycott cotton picked by slaves, which strengthened th at movement before the Civil War. Activism at lunch counters played a part in the civil rights movement. think there has ever been a moment in history when consumption has been apart from Deutsch said. Consumption is one aspect of the landscape of change.

Shopping a cure-all but it can be a cure-some. buy Deutsch said. shopping reminds consumers of their own political commitments. What you consume is one of a number of choices that you make about how you engage with the Laine Bergeson is a Minneapolis-based health and style writer. Can new store change shopping for good? SHOPPING from E1 Photos by REN JONES SCHNEIDER renee.jones@startribune.com Debut: Shop for Kindness is a Mall of America pop-up store featuring 14 cause-related brands that support philanthropic efforts worldwide.

Find it on Level 1 of the north wing until Sept. 10. E10 STAR TRIBUNE VARIETY THURSDAY, MAY 25, 2017 (SW) RemarkableSpecialPricing Selectfromourexquisite one-of-a-kind EstateJewelsCollection. FineEstateJewelry sjewelers.com•952-926-2455 Wegotthis. Whattoorder? FREE APP.