Samantha Morshed Interview (Part Four)

Samantha Morshed Interview (Part Four)

By Ariana

In this forth and final installment of our interview with Samantha Morshed, founder of Pebble Child and Hathay Bunano, we learn more about what drives her success. 

Last week, I had the privilege of interviewing the empowering Samantha Morshed, the founder of “Pebble Child”, who holds a list of accomplishments that many people would consider extremely difficult to achieve. Although it was only 7 AM in Kuala Lumpar, where she was located during our interview, the time by no means hampered her enthusiasm! Giving us detailed descriptions of the nitty gritty of rural and city life, Samantha proved her passion for changing the artisans’ living conditions. I felt like I was being read a fun history book. A fun history book? No way! But, Samantha definitely deserved the title; we found her enthusiasm and stories so entertaining!

"According to your website, one of the goals of your organization is to provide employment that fits in with rural life and prevents migration to the cities. What benefits do you perceive in rural vs city life?”

To my surprise, Samantha’s explanation was quite simple. “You’re talking about really difficult living conditions here. Dhaka is one of the most dense cities in the world. It’s competing with places like China and India with much better infrastructure.” While living conditions in Dhaka have been steadily improving, diseases like cholera and typhoid are still common because of the water contamination and the poor sanitation. “My own son even had [cholera]”, she emphasized. Although the city life is “good”, it isn’t necessarily “easy”. While the conditions in both prove to be unsatisfactory, Dhaka can be considered to be

Pebble's adorable Monster Rattle.

just a step above the rural areas. “The problem is, though, that in Dacca, the population is so dense that is simply does not have the infrastructure to manage the people it has anymore,” Samantha explains. She envisions an effective, though difficult, solution - “Let’s create economic opportunity in the rural areas”. If the population of Dhaka thins out into the rural areas, overall living conditions would have a higher chance of improving in Dhaka and the rural areas. With less people packed into Dhaka, the government would have more reasonable numbers to work with in executing an efficient city improvement plan. On the other hand, a growing population in the rural area would serve as a motivation to improve conditions in a growing area. 

Because she seemed to have a goal in mind, I asked Samantha to elaborate a little bit more. She added,“Pebble continues to grow, and as it does grow, it is really beginning to demonstrate the value of alternative productive methods.” “Alternative production methods”, I thought to myself. When expanding, she referred back to the 2013 Savar Building Collapse in Bangladesh that killed nearly 1,129 people due to poor factory conditions in Dhaka. As a response to the tragedy, she noted that “we assume that these [Pebble] items need to be made in large factory buildings, but you CAN separate the production process.” From this interview, I discovered that Samantha is passionate about changing the norm from working in factories into more rural areas, which she said that “Pebble is really starting to demonstrate.” To me, her goal appears to be an extremely responsible one, illustrating the extent of her passion of her artisans’ safety and well-being. 

With the main questions aside, I decided to switch gears into Samantha’s personal experiences with Pebble...until our Skype call broke up.

As soon as we reconnected,  I asked Samantha about her favorite memories. The question got everybody laughing, as Samantha quickly blurted, “brand new babies!”. She always loved when new babies were born in the artisan communities. With all that Samantha has experienced and achieved, it’s hard to imagine she could top what we had already learned about her, but “in 2009 I went to Buckingham palace to receive the Members of the Order of the British Empire Award from the Queen, that was pretty special,” she recalled. Whattt, the Queen? ...Pretty special indeed!

As the conversation came to an end, we were all stirred by her poise and knowledge. Samantha, you have served as an inspiration to us all!

Hi all! I’m Ariana. Apart from being a junior in highschool, I am also an intern at Shopping for a Change this summer. I’ve learned so much about the marketing world and I look forward to the rest of the summer with Stacey and the rest of the interns. I love multicultural food, playing different instruments, and pretty much anything and everything Nintendo! I hope you enjoy reading our blog posts, we’ve definitely enjoyed writing them.

Chicken and Beef Satay

     Chicken and Beef Satay
(Balinese Cuisine)
By Jessica

 Ingredients:

• 3 shallots
• 3 or 4 garlic cloves
• 25g root ginger, peeled
• 2 small red or 1 large plump red chili
• 1 tbsp vegetable or groundnut oil
• ½ tsp each: ground turmeric, ground white pepper and ground coriander
• ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
• pinch ground cloves
• 1 pound minced chicken
• 1 pound beef, sliced
• 2 fresh (or freeze dried) lime leaves, cut into fine strips with scissors
• 1 tbsp unsweetened desiccated coconut or 25g/1oz block creamed coconut, grated                                   

1. Thinly slice then finely chop the shallots, garlic, and ginger. Finely chop the chili, including the seeds. The chili gives a spicy but not too fiery kick to the chicken and beef satay.
2. Heat the oil in a frying pan over a low heat. Add the shallots, garlic, ginger, and chilies, and fry for 1-2 minutes. Pour in a couple of tablespoons of water to soften, then stir in the spices and fry for a minute.
3. Remove the pan from the heat, let the mixture cool down, and then blend to a paste with a pestle and mortar, using an up-and-down motion with the pestle. It will take several minutes to make a soft paste.
4. Mix the spice paste and the coconut with the minced chicken and beef.  Season with salt.
5. Break off pieces of the mixture the size of a large walnut. For each, flatten into a round and lay a wooden skewer in the center. Mold around the bulbous end of the skewer, working it so it goes about 8cm up it.
6. Rough up the surface a little with your fingers so that the meat is not completely smooth and has some texture, then set aside while you shape the rest of the skewers. Brush each skewer with extra oil.
7. Cook the skewers on a preheated BBQ, griddle pan or grill for 8-10 minutes, turning several times. When done, garnish the dish with cucumbers and red onion as desired.
8. Serve with peanut or chili sauce.

Samantha Morshed Interview (Part Three)

Samantha Morshed Interview (Part Three)

by Eleanor

In the third installment of our interview with Samantha Morshed, founder of Pebble Child, Samantha outlines all the work that goes into her typical day and describes the system that determines pay for the artisans.

Since Samantha Morshed’s move to Bangladesh in 2002, her love of crafts and her feeling of moral imperative led to the creation of Hathay Bunano and later Pebble Child. Her organizations have grown dramatically since then--helping more than five thousand women in the sixty-four centers they created throughout Bangladesh.

While today Samantha’s typical day consists of working in her home office in Dhaka, this was not always the case: “When I started all of this ten years ago, I did everything.” Samantha would pack boxes and label and send products, in addition to managing the office. Over the years as Hathay Bunano grew, Samantha set up systems to spread the workload throughout the office as “it was necessary that we make the head office run successfully without me.” Now she is able go into the office “very infrequently” and works mainly at home, on the computer. After handling the “one hundred and fifty to two hundred emails” she receives daily, Samantha continues the development of new products.

One of Pebble's best selling products,
the Octopus Rattle.

In addition to the creative, Samantha and Pebble must also factor in the business side when creating products. Product decisions were especially impacted during when the economic downturn struck in 2009: “at the time our bestselling product was the octopus rattle and so we made a positive decision to really stick at the price point.” The octopus rattle was priced at £10 (sold on SFAC for $14) and greatly influenced Pebble’s strategy: “the business decision at the time was to focus on products that came in at less than £10 and not to focus on the larger products because of the economic situation.” Now, as economic conditions are improving Pebble has “brought back a range of larger animals.”

As Pebble continues to add products, Samantha notes that it is important for them to “keep the range balanced so there is something for everyone.” For example, the latest catalog has been split into two: products made with non-organic or organic cotton as there are many stores that carry exclusively organic cotton products.

Another important step in the process of adding new products is determining how the artisans will be paid for creating the product. Pebble pays its artisans using a piece rate system, meaning each artisan is paid based on the number of products they make. After a new product is developed, the wage is calculated by “work[ing] out how long it takes to make [the] product. [...] From

One of Pebble's larger animals,
the Green Dragon.

that we then multiply it by the hourly rate, which is about 25 percent above minimum wage in Bangladesh. And then that becomes the piece rate.”

Samantha went on to explain the difficulties that arise when setting the pay: “within the village environment, whilst we can pay more than any other handicrafts are paying, it becomes very difficult when you get to a position where women are earning more than men. You can’t necessarily pay as much as you might want to pay because you need to balance with what’s going on in that community so that it becomes a gradual process of improvements and increases.” In order to ensure this “process of improvements” the wages of the Pebble artisans have  “an annual increase of either inflation or 10 percent, whichever is the higher.” This way both the prices of Pebble’s products and the wages of the artisans are steadily rising to match the world economy.

On the growth of Hathay Bunano and Pebble over the past ten years Samantha noted that Hathay Bunano, which handles artisan training and product creation, now runs without her. “In the early days, I taught every course [to the artisans] myself,” Samantha reflected, “I used to go out three times a week and sit cross legged on the floor and teach them how to knit while they were teaching me to speak Bangla.” Over the years, Samantha’s presence in the centers became “less and less necessary.” Samantha attributes Hathay Bunano’s success to the artisans’ feeling of dominion: “One of the reasons I think our handicraft model has worked so well is because the artisans have taken ownership of their production center and their work.” Samantha is still in charge of the design and marketing, or the “Pebble side,” but has “let go and let things happen as they should happen” for the artisans.

Hi! I’m Eleanor and I am a rising high school junior. I have two cats, I love drinking tea, and I’m obsessed with all the jewelry on Shopping for a Change (too bad I can’t afford it all). Interning with Shopping for a Change is an amazing experience filled with inspiring stories, great opportunities, and lots and lots of cheese provided by the founder Stacey. Cheers!

The Perfect Accompaniment

Today, Shopping for a Change is featuring our new MEND Laptop Sleeve.  MEND is a nonprofit organization established to help bring an end to LRA (Lord’s Resistance Army) atrocities in Uganda.  Skilled in the production of fair trade accessories, MEND is also a social enterprise designed to better the lives of women affected by the LRA conflict. The majority of seamstresses supported by MEND were abducted and forced to become child soldiers or wives of the commanders. After being fortunate to escape alive, these women were given counseling and taught how to sew. Excluded because of their former affiliation with the LRA, the already inundated market left them unable to provide for their children through the seamstress profession.

MEND's durable and functional 13” and 15” Laptop Sleeves are available in both navy and cement. Handcrafted in Northern Uganda, the sleeves feature 100% duck canvas exterior, padded diamond-stitched micro-suede interior, and a genuine terracotta leather band--branded with signature of the name and story of the artisan that made it. Slide this sleek sleeve easily into your briefcase, backpack, tote or other bag--with its simple, yet elegant styling this laptop sleeve is perfect for on-the-go travel.

Tasha’s Thailand Travel Tales

Tasha’s Thailand Travel Tales

by Tasha 

Our tour guide, Lee, greeted us with a large smile, a bow with hands clasped in a praying position, and a sawadee krap (meaning good morning, hello, good afternoon [ect.] in Thai). You later become accustom to this cordial salutation, for every person you meet in Thailand will address you in a similar way. By the end of our two-week trip I greeted everybody in this manner. It is through these small mannerisms, like the unique style of greeting, that you begin to understand the people who live in Thailand.

Some gorgeous, colorful flowers at the Flower Market.

In Bangkok, we went around the Grand Palace with its elaborate rainbow-tiled roofs; we visited the giant gold covered Buddha that fills a massive hall; we even went to see the emerald Buddha (actually made of jade). All of these sites were incredible, and incredibly ornate. Apart from the “must sees of Bangkok,” Lee took us around three amazing markets that truly embodied the people living in the city that was teeming with life. It was in these markets that we got to experience the real vibrancy of Bangkok. One of the markets was designated specifically for flowers. You walk down what seems like a never-ending street of flowers. Flowers on the left, flowers on the right, flowers hanging from above. Yellow, white, red, purple, and any color flower you can imagine. The flowers are brought to the market fresh every single day, and the locals consistently come here to buy every morning. We also visited the less stunning and less fragrant, but extremely fresh, fish market. Seemingly unsanitary, whole fish of every type are laid on huge blocks of ice. There were dried, fresh and fried fish ranging from puny to massive. Crabs, scallops, even sharks were available to purchase! Some people may be disturbed at the site of whole animals lying out in the open air, but it is part of their culture and was amazing to witness first hand.

When walking through the market, we never got glares from the people for being tourist, intruding on their everyday activities, rather we got entreaties to try their products, and of course the bow of the head and the usual sawadee krap!

The view of the floating market from the canal. 

The last market that we got to float around was an hour outside of Bangkok. This market, unlike theothers, cannot be visited by foot; instead one takes a long tail boat ride through tight canals. In the floating market you go from store to store where women offer you their hand made goods or food that is made on the boats right in front of you. It was there that we tasted all of the unique Thai street, or should is say canal, food. We tried a fried coconut cupcake, the best spring rolls in the world, the smallest, sweetest pineapples, taro and sticky rice wrapped in banana leaves, and mini banana with palm sugar. The markets we perused around truly captured the people of the city. They were colorful, kind, unique, confident, generous, and appreciative of even the smallest gestures.

While on the trip we saw many stunning temples, ate the most delicious Thai food (Pad Thai and sticky rice & mangoes included), went on long winding boat trips through the rainforest, and even got to ride elephants through the towns of the Karen hill tribe people. Apart from Bangkok, we got to visit Chang Rai and Chang Mai. In these locations we visited more markets, saw more things that I have never seen before, tried more food, and met more people.

The thing that I will truly cherish and remember about my trip is the people. It is always said that the Thai people are extremely kind and hospitable. But it is not until I went there that I came to appreciate

their gracious, almost unrivaled, manner.

Thai Cuisine

Pad Thai & Mango with Sticky Rice

By Tasha

Pad Thai 

Ingredients

• 80 g of rice noodles
• 1 cup of bean sprouts
• 1 tbsp of tofu, cut into small pieces (or small sliced pieces of chicken and pork)
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp. of chopped pickled white radish
• 1 tbsp. of crushed roasted peanuts
• 1/3 cup juice of ripe tamarind (or 2 tbsp. of white vinegar, mixed with 3 tbsp. of water)
• 1 1/2 tsp. of sugar
• 1 tsp. of fish sauce or soya sauce
• 1 tsp. of chopped Chinese leek (or spring onion)
• 1 tbsp. of dried shrimps
• a pinch of chili powder
• tbsp. of oil
• a pinch of salt
• 3 cloves of crushed garlic

Preparation

heat up the oil in the wok on medium heat. Place tofu and fry until crunchy. Then turn the heat down to low. Add garlic, pickled radish  dried shrimps, chili powder and stir until fragrant. Add tamarind juice (or vinegar) and noodles and turn the heat up to medium. Stir fry until the noodles are soft. Turn the heat down to low. Make place by moving the noddles to another side of the wok. Add the egg and scramble. Add fish sauce, sugar, salt, crushed peanuts, bean sprouts, and Chinese leeks and turn the heat up to high. Stir fry thoroughly until well mixed. Serve with a piece of lemon and fresh salad.

Mango with Sticky Rice

Ingredients

• 1 cup of steamed sticky rice
• 1/2 cup of coconut milk
• 1 ripe mango (peel, remove the seed and slice into pieces)
• 1-2 tbsp. of sugar
• 1/4 tsp. of salt
• 1 tbsp. of roasted mung beans

Preparation

Put coconut milk, sugar and salt in a pot. Heat until boiling. Turn the heat off. Add steamed sticky rice. Mix together well. Let it cool. Serve with mango and top sticky rice with mung beans. 

Samantha Morshed Interview (Part Two)

Samantha Morshed Interview(Part Two)
by Jessica

This is the second part of Shopping for a Change’s interview with the lovely Samantha Morshed, founder of Pebble Child.

Seeing two octopus toys give each other high-fives on the cover page of the Pebble Child website was already too cute to handle. After scrolling through pictures of various food-shaped rattles and animal-themed toys, I was almost ready to buy all of them for myself. When I finally had the chance to talk to Samantha, it was no surprise that I found her to be a funny and an all-around kind person. Her passion for helping out the women of Bangladesh was evident and her charming British accent was enough to win us over completely. During the interview, we learned a lot about Samantha’s past and her inspiration to start Pebble Child. In 1992, Samantha was first introduced to Bangladesh by her future husband Morshed, who wanted to show her where he had grown up. It was in her return trip of 2002 that Samantha started up Pebble Child to help out the women living there and improve their lifestyles. Though Samantha was faced with a daunting task, she was lucky to have her entire family supporting her. “My husband helps me – we work together as partners.” When she first started setting up centers, Samantha did not have the language skill to communicate with people, so Morshed stepped in to assist her. In addition, Samantha’s children (2 boys, 11 and 13 years old) are also involved in the process - I was surprised to discover that oldest son had even independently designed some of the products, including the Chubby monster toy.

Pebble's precious duo of boy and girl bunnies.

In the interview, Samantha filled me in on the significant changes Pebble Child has made in the artisan’s lifestyles. Normally, people in Bangladesh do not have many options when it comes to employment opportunities. Working in the season field, which is work usually done by the men anyways, is the only other job open to the women in Bangladesh. Samantha described some areas as “so poor that the women don’t even have a sari blouse -it's undignified for women not to have a sari blouse because it's like not having underwear.” Working for Pebble Child not only gave the women an opportunity to earn their own income, but also gave them the liberty to invest the money however they pleased. Many of the development aid programs had dictated how the women spent their money, stripping them of their freedom of choice. To Samantha, it is important that “when we start to help people, we are not disempowering them by making decisions for them - something that is overlooked in many large development aid programs that go on…” 

Fortunately, Pebble Child operates on better standards. “We don’t assume ourselves to be the experts in what the women need. These women have lived lives that have required enormous resilience and they’ve learned a great deal from that. While they might be illiterate, they are certainly not stupid and they know what’s required and what’s best for their family.” When given the ability to spend, women knew what they wanted.  Samantha notices huge changes in their lifestyles. First, the women started to buy additional protein for the family. They made improvements to their living conditions. A concrete floor took the place of the mud floor, making their houses more stable and resilient to floods and the harsh weather in Bangladesh. In addition, the women replaced the matted roof with a tin one and bought televisions for their houses. Then, the women started to make bigger changes in their lives. “Over time women make the decision not to give birth at home but rather go to the clinic to give birth” While schooling in Bangladesh is free, families need to ensure their children have uniforms and second hand books, so “we start to see that the women are able to afford these items and send their children to school.”

I had questioned Samantha about what inspired her to start the organization. She had graduated in physics from Oxford University, worked at BBC as a researcher, earned a postgrad diploma in financial economics, and spent eight years working in investment banking. It struck me as odd that she didn’t have a background that really connected her with her work in Bangladesh. Seeing my confusion, Samantha answered with:

"You haven’t been to Bangladesh. It's impossible to go to Bangladesh as an educated person feeling that you have some skills, and not get involved... to be honest with you. The need is all around you even if you live in the smartest area, in the capital city you step out of your house and there are beggars, there are people with real needs, there are people living in the streets....it's impossible just to turn your head away and not to try and do something... you can’t sleep at night feeling like you're not do something when in actual fact you do have some skills that maybe would enable you to do something… it’s compulsory, really. There is no choice in it--you just get on with it.”

Hey guys, my name is Jessica. I'm 16 and an upcoming senior at high school. I really loved talking to Samantha Morshed, and this Pebble Child blog was probably my favorite one to write...so I hope you guys enjoy this article as much as I did!

 Duck Mustard Wraps

Courtesy of Tammy Huynh, Executive Chef -- Tamarine Restaurant & Gallery

This month we will be serving up a variety of recipes based on the countries where some of our products are made. Tamarine Restaurant in Palo Alto has generously shared with us their delicious duck mustard wrap recipe, which serves eight people. To make a reservation at Tamarine Restaurant, call (650) 325- 8500 , or visit http://www.tamarinerestaurant.com/. 

For Confit:

4 ea. Duck legs

12 oz. Rendered Duck fat

2 T. salt

1 T. ground black pepper

1 T. Chinese five spice

For Roll:

1 ea. Ripe mango julienned

16 ea. Cilantro sprigs picked

2 ea. Green onions julienned

2 oz. Hoisin sauce (bottled)

1 ea. English cucumber julienned

16 ea. Mustard leaves (large)

16 ea. Chives blanched

For Sauce

4 oz. Hoisin Sauce

1 oz. Peanut butter

1 oz. rice wine vinegar

1 oz. water

Method

Season the duck legs with salt, pepper and Chinese five-spice. Allow to sit for 2-3 hours. In a small baking pan place the seasoned duck legs and the rendered duck fat making sure the legs are fully submerged. Place the legs in a preheated 300 degree oven for 3 hours or until the legs are “fall off the bone” tender. Take legs out of fat and allow to cool. This step can be done up to 3 days in advance.

Remove the meat from the duck leg and shred with a fork. Wash the mustard leaves and dry with a salad spinner.

In a small sauce pan, combine all ingredients for the sauce and bring to a simmer. Turn off and allow to cool. Cut mustard leaves in 4”x 4” squares and lay flat. In each leaf put in approximately half and ounce of duck meat, followed by the hoisin, green onions cilantro, mango, and the cucumber. Roll each one so all ingredients are enclosed and tie around with the wilted chive. Use the sauce to dip and enjoy.