Fair trade hardware

We're subjected to non-stop advertising everywhere we go:

It's less than x days for Christmas! Buy now or regret later!

Or maybe we're already salivating at the thought of new shiny gadgets for Christmas. The Kinect, which was recently hacked? Or maybe a new phone? Or...

It's amazing that even in these times of gloom and doom, we can always make room in our budget and houses for another new device. After all, they aren't that expensive, aren't them? And how fun they are!

But is that right? Ethically, economically, environmentally, humanly right?

I wrote about this matter a few months ago, when I realised that pretty much all hardware we own comes from China and nearby countries. A friend, Zarate, got equally concerned, and wondered: Can we do something? Surely we can do something?

I'm glad to say we finally did: Fair trade hardware.

There's already Fair Trade food, clothes, and furniture, so why isn't anyone promoting fair trade hardware yet? As an IT professional I'd like to be able to work in my field without feeling guilty of promoting and funding slavery, and I guess you'd like too.

I know it's a little, tiny, almost insignificant start, but hopefully it will help people become aware of what's behind the devices we interact with every day.