urban reusable shopping bags that support a good cause

Every year at NYIGF here in New York I browse the sustainability display to find new eco-chic products. This year there were a lot of great eco-friendly, fair-trade and sustainable designs but what really got my attention were the Homeboy Tote Bags. These cool reusable shopping bags launched last year and are designed by Studio Artecnica and NYC-based designer Alex Lin in collaboration with Homeboy Industries in LA. I had written about Artecnica’s Design w/Conscience program before which creates contemporary products rooted in humanitarian and eco-friendly principles. Their eco-modern designs are mostly produced in developing countries but lately Artecnica seems to be more involved with local initiatives like Homeboy Industries. The Homeboy Tote Bags are reusable and keep plastic or paper bags out of landfills. But these urban-chic shopping bags do so much more since they were designed in collaboration with artists at Homeboy Industries who were formerly gang members. They are screen-printed by the Homeboy Industries screen-printing shop with provocative slogans by the organization’s founder and Jesuit priest Father Greg Boyle. All designs feature cool calligraphy with messages like “nothing stops a bullet like a job”, “hard work is easier than hard time”, and “if you hang around the barbershop you’ll wind up with a haircut”. What I love about the collaboration is that it draws attention to the gang intervention program, creates income for Homeboy Silkscreen and provides ex-gang members the opportunity to engage in a local business. A portion of the proceeds of each canvas tote goes to support Homeboy Industries.