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Catholic Ethical Purchasing Alliance

You are here: Home1 / Catholic Ethical Purchasing Alliance

Supporting Catholic institutions in making ethical and sustainable purchasing choices 

Catholic communities are called to use their talents to build a more just society by actively integrating the principles of Catholic Social Teaching into the purchasing decisions of their church, school, college or university. 

The Catholic Ethical Purchasing Alliance (CEPA) is a project of the Ignatian Solidarity Network, EthixMerch, Equal Exchange, and COLLECTION. The Alliance provides support to institutions seeking to integrate these values into their purchasing through educational resources, immersive formational opportunities, networking, and mentorship.

Sign-Up to Learn More About the Catholic Ethical Purchasing Alliance

RESOURCES

CEPA Catalog

Explore the Catholic Ethical Purchasing Alliance catalog to learn more about current product options, and get started on your ethical purchasing journey!

View the Catalog
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Catholic Social Thought and Consumerism

2022-03-02/by interns

The True Cost Documentary Guide

2022-03-02/by interns

Catholic Ethical Consumerism Quotes

2022-03-02/by kxmiller

Prayer on Consumerism

2022-03-02/by kxmiller

Advent Prayer on Consumerism

2022-03-02/by kxmiller

CURRENT VENDOR PARTNERS

TS Designs

The Homegrown tee is a super-soft, long-lasting, and meticulously constructed classic shirt you’ll want to wear daily. This T-shirt is made with 100% cotton grown in the USA, cut and sewn in North Carolina, and dyed at Carolina Textile District member TS Designs in Burlington, NC. Their dedication to sourcing and producing locally creates a low carbon footprint. TS Designs’ unique water-based dying process is better for the environment than traditional dye processes. Under the leadership of CEO and President Eric Henry, TS Designs sets the bar for corporate responsibility by cultivating responsible clothing with completely transparent supply chains. Eric Henry is recognized widely for championing sustainability and supporting local farmers and mill workers. Eric says, “We have set out to make the highest quality and most sustainable t-shirts in the marketplace.”

Opportunity Threads

Worker-owned cut and sew factory Opportunity Threads (OT)  is a partner of the Carolina Textile District in Morganton, North Carolina. They produce our light weight, durable, and 100% cotton tote bag. Many of OT’s workers are from the Guatemalan Mayan immigrant community, possessing a wealth of experience in sewing and weaving that’s characteristic of the people from that region.  OT specializes in upcycled and sustainable production for clients from across the United States.

Bayside

The Bayside hoodie is union-made in the USA with American-grown cotton. Workers are represented by Teamsters to ensure safe working conditions and fair wages. Bayside knits, dyes, finishes, cuts, and sews all products in house at their facility in southern California, ensuring the highest levels of consistency, sustainability, and quality.

Unionwear

Unionwear is the leading manufacturer of union made in USA hats, bags and binders for the promotional, fashion and uniform markets. CEPA’s caps and fanny packs are made by Unionwear. True to their “Made Right Here” slogan, they employ 175 workers at their 70,000 square foot facility in Newark, NJ. Unionwear’s employees are represented by Workers United, Local 155, and earn health insurance, pension, vacation days, and holidays. When workers earn a living wage and health benefits, turnover is low, morale is high, and they have a stake in the company’s success and identify with its clients.

Equal Exchange

Equal Exchange provides CEPA’s coffee and chocolate. Their mission is to build long-term trade partnerships that are economically just and environmentally sound, to foster mutually beneficial relationships between farmers and consumers and to demonstrate, through our success, the contribution of worker co-operatives and Fair Trade to a more equitable, democratic and sustainable world. They only partner with farmer cooperatives who are democratically organized, sharing resources and decision-making among their members. Equal Exchange themselves, organized as a worker co-op, an alternative business model based on democratic principles. Each worker-owner gets one vote, has access to shared financial information, and invests an equal share in the business.

CURRENT COMMUNITY PARTNERS

FIND THE COLLECTION BRAND IN BOOKSTORES

Support the rights of workers and the planet by purchasing COLLECTION brand clothing from our university partners. Looking for the full catalog for bulk purchasing?
View Catalog.

Xavier University Collection Shirt
View In Store
Xavier University Collection Shirt
View In Store
John Carroll University Collection Socks
View In Store
John Carroll University Collection Shirt
View In Store

When social pressure affects their earnings, businesses clearly have to find ways to produce differently. This shows us the great need for a sense of social responsibility on the part of consumers. ‘Purchasing is always a moral – and not simply economic – act’. Today, in a word, ‘the issue of environmental degradation challenges us to examine our lifestyle.’

Pope Francis, Laudato Si’

ETHICAL PURCHASING NEWS

Xavier Becomes a CEPA Partner
2023-05-08/by ISN Staff

Xavier University Joins the Catholic Ethical Purchasing Alliance, Prioritizing People and Planet

Xavier University becomes the ninth CEPA (Catholic Ethical Purchasing Alliance) partner, carrying sustainable spirit wear that prioritizes both planet and people.

John Carroll University and the Campus Effort Toward Ethical Purchasing

2022-09-21 3:29 pm

Through an immersion trip and a new ethically-made t-shirt in the campus bookstore, John Carroll University is promoting ethical purchasing on campus.

University of Dayton Integrates Catholic Mission Through Ethical Purchasing

2022-08-09 3:59 pm

The University of Dayton, long committed to ethical sourcing, has deepened this commitment through partnership with ISN's Catholic Ethical Purchasing Alliance—putting the school's Catholic mission further into action on campus.

John Carroll University: CEPA’s First Immersion Experience Delegation

2022-05-04 12:01 pm

John Carroll University (OH) and Fordham University (NY) participated in...

MISSION

The Catholic Ethical Purchasing Alliance (CEPA) provides support to institutions seeking to integrate Catholic Social Teaching values into their purchasing through:

  • Educational resources and immersive formational opportunities to deepen institutional knowledge of and commitment to ethical purchasing.
  • Organizing and advocacy training to enable individuals and groups to implement ethical purchasing policies in their Catholic community.
  • Networking and mentorship to support the ongoing work happening in Catholic communities across the country.
  • Establishing ethical purchasing values and expectations in partnership with Catholic communities as well as recognizing institutions that integrate these practices into their communities.
  • Increasing ethical purchasing in Catholic communities by creating effective purchasing platforms for ethical wholesale and retail purchasing.

CORE VALUES

  • Catholic Social Teaching – Providing a platform for the integration of Catholic Social Teaching, particularly the “dignity of work” and “care for creation” with Catholic institutional and individual consumer actions.
  • Worker-Led – Rooting the values of ethical purchasing in the needs identified by workers throughout the supply chain including producers, transit workers, and retail workers.
  • Every Purchase Matters – From individual purchases to institutional contracts, every ethical purchasing choice contributes to a sustainable and just economy.
  • Sustainable Consumption – Cultivating a culture of consumer practices that decrease carbon emissions and care for the health of air, water, and land.
  • Systemic Change – Catholic institutions are called to drastically change their practices to be a positive force in building more just economic and ecological systems.

The Catholic Ethical Purchasing Alliance is a Project of:

View our full collection of ethically-sourced resources
for justice work year-round.

STAY CONNECTED:

Sign up now to connect with the Jesuit network and learn how you can learn, educate, pray, and advocate for justice year-round.

Contact:

T: (855) 789-2004
E: info@ignatiansolidarity.net

Ignatian Solidarity Network
1 John Carroll Blvd.
University Heights, OH 44118

About:

The Ignatian Solidarity Network (ISN) is a national social justice network inspired by the spirituality of St. Ignatius of Loyola. ISN was founded in 2004 and is a lay-led 501(c)3 organization working in partnership with Jesuit universities, high schools, and parishes, along with many other Catholic institutions and social justice partners.

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