Women & Work

Many of us that grew up in the 60's thought the fight for women's rights was won; current political events have indicated that it is still ongoing. The presidential campaign has brought-front-and-center issues such as birth control, working mothers, and abortion. These topics greatly affect women's intimate personal lives, the choices they make, and their future.

This month, we have gathered information to inspire you to keep the fires burning both in the political, public realm and in your individual heart for personal freedom and empowerment. Linda Harmon states her case for an International Women's Day which contrary to what you would think, has not yet been established! Close to home, we found a "Millennial Woman," Shelly Gottschamer, who walks the walk and rides a bike to work when she is not traveling the globe sourcing raw materials for the eco-conscious company Patagonia. Sharon Hall discovered that The Whole Planet Foundation is on a mission to foster economic and social growth through microcredit loans to women. It turns out that women are more likely than men to pay back the loans. Communities all over the world are reaping the benefits of this program as women become self-sufficient.

We worked hard to bring you these stories, all of which are written by women, with the exception of our lone male contributor, Randy Arnowitz, who has his own take on the role of the female in nature in his monthly Garden column.

Here's to all Millennial women. Enjoy the fruits of your labor this month.

— The Whole Person Team

May: A Traditional Month to Celebrate Women and Politics

by Linda Harmon

As a mother, a grandmother, and a woman, there are things I can't help but think about as we move into May. Traditionally, it opens up the season of birth and rebirth, a time associated with women and nature. It is also a political month worldwide, home to May Day, the International Worker's Day.

May Day traditions celebrating rebirth go back to the ancients. Recently commandeered by western society in the modern-day concept of "Mother's Day," the practice of honoring of motherhood is rooted in antiquity. Participants in older cultures celebrated goddesses and symbols rather than actual individual mothers. Both the Celtic festival of Beltane, in the British Isles, and the Germanic festival of Walpurgis Night celebrated magical forces beyond human control, an attempt to merge the human and supernatural worlds into one, if even only for one night, honoring the power of fertility.

Later, when many of our ancestors moved to cities and took up commerce, mass industrialization began to take place. Many people no longer had direct ties to the land, and the social change and unrest which followed led to a whole new incarnation of May Day...

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Seeding Prosperity

by Sharon Hall

Why is a Fortune 500 Company such as Whole Foods Market on a global mission to create seeds of prosperity through supporting micro-lending programs?

It's the right thing to do, and it's working to change lives, all over the world.

When Muhammad Yunus received the Nobel Prize in 2006, the idea of changing lives with very small loans to the poor at low or zero interest rates, was a startling, even revolutionary concept.

In 2012, with the financial crisis hitting the 99% worldwide, there's never been a better time to help. Better than welfare, micro-lending gives people who would never qualify for credit cards or bank loans a real chance at entrepreneurship. By lending small sums and not making it impossible to do what most honest people want to do anyway—pay them back—this simple idea has spread like wildfire; offering hope and a new life to those most in need.

My interest in the Whole Foods Market's micro-lending program and their non-profit, The Whole Planet Foundation, began at the checkout line. The nice young woman at the register asked if I'd like to donate to their prosperity campaign...

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Following the Thread of a Millennial Woman

by Tree Bernstein

At least twice a week Shelly Gottschamer hops on her super light, sleek road bike and rides down the bike path from Ojai to Ventura to her office at Patagonia in less than an hour. It's a 17-mile trip. Sometimes she rides the bus (with her bike on the rack) back up the hill for the return. When she's not commuting to work by bike, she travels the world sourcing factories to make apparel for Patagonia, the eco-conscious corporation and purveyor of fine sportswear based in Ventura County.

Gottschamer is a Millennial Woman who talks the talk and rides a bike.

Trained in the art of couture tailoring, Gottschamer knows the business inside and out, from sourcing raw materials for Patagonia's well-made clothing line, to how each item actually gets made, from thread to cloth to manufacturing. Recently, she has focused her considerable skills in management on sourcing organic cotton. American and Mexican "Legacy Mills" —reliable companies that Patagonia has been doing business with for decades—provide some of the organic cotton required, but most of the resources must be culled globally. In March of this year, her travels took her to China, Thailand, India, and Mexico, where she assessed factories and supply chains. Then she puzzles the information into the grand scheme of making something as useful—and ubiquitous—as a simple t-shirt...

To Read More: Download the PDF Article