Indosole Blog & News

Whether you choose to trek through Mount Shasta’s latest snow fall, ride a Gold Coast wave, or sip a brew walking over River Thames the following Spring travel items from respective companies are sustaining art, quality and community through their fashion journey. | TRAVEL PACK | The details, function and burly features of the Raja Pack, Ethnotek’s longest standing heritage bag combines ethically sourced handmade textiles with high-quality features and is ideal for today’s digital nomad! Purpose-built for the daily commute, a weekend camping trip, and the occasional cross-continental journey of self-discovery, the 840 denier water-resistant backpack is for your unique travel exhibition. The Raja Backpack is laptop compatible and fits 15” + 17” MacBook Pro & most 15” PC Laptops. The giant roll top main compartment gives substantial internal storage access and has an extra layer of water-resistant rip-stop nylon on either a 30 or 40 Liter backpack. What makes the Raja unique is its interchangeable front panel called a Thread! Each Thread is created from handmade textiles that are sourced in person and purchased directly from our partnering artisans in Ghana, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, and Vietnam. | DOPP KITT | Rethinking materials and responding to feedback procures the travel accessory to hold your little essentials. The All In bag by MAFIA has a slim profile and can hang handsfree by attaching a shoulder strap or stand alone as a 10” x 2” toiletry bag. A lifetime warranty comes with each design made of repurposed kitesurf and sailboat sails. “When you get a MAFIA Bag you are also getting  piece of the ocean, supporting local community and sustainable practices.” - MAFIA | SUNGLASSES | Natural wood and stone sunglasses makes each reclaimed Bambusee design unique. Teak and rosewood are reclaimed from demolished buildings and handmade by artisans. Both polarised and non polarised lenses are available in select finely polished styles. The innovative environmentalism prevents deforestation and directly supports a series of local charities in Indonesia. | SHOES | The new look and improved fit of our own Pantai Travel Shoes are ideal for a plethora of dry conditions. Hand crafted with 100% repurposed tire soles, the EVA foam insole with arch support is machine washable. The durable custom dyed canvas shoe is made free of animal and fuel powered machinery to generate a lifestyle of resourceful creation. | WATCH | “Keeping forests healthy and happy, keeps us healthy and happy and we like to keep this reminder on our wrists” - WeWood A pioneer in stylish natural wood watches that reflect culture and artistic heritage of Florence, WeWood designs at the helm of luxury and eco-conscious mind. Thus far, 604,475 trees have been planted across the globe since the year 2010. You have a choice to do this or support an initiative when you purchase one of the completely toxic and artificial free watches. An option to customize engravings on your extremely lightweight timepiece designed with exotic remnants and hardwoods is also available.

“Welcome to Bali, do you have any plastic bags to declare?” After a year of campaigning, Pastika, the Governor of Bali, has met 12 and 13 year olds Isabel and Melati Wijsen from the Green School in Bali. Finally he has signed the Memorandum of Understanding to take measures that will see the use of plastic bags minimised on Bali by January 1st, 2016. Pastika said he was touched by the social initiative of the “child led action” that had gained such attention on Bali and around the world, following their recent talk at INK India. “I am not a hero, it is part of my job,” replied Mangku Pastika. He said he not only sympathized with the project, he loved it and wanted to support it. The Bye Bye Plastic Bags campaign began in 2013 when the two Green School students attended the GIN conference and decided to follow their role models to take action to make a change in the world. Since then, the girls have gathered a team of kids from local and international schools around the island to support them and have managed to collect over 60,000 signatures for a petition [www.avaaz.org/en/bye_bye_plastic_bags_on_bali/?rc=fb] to ban the use of plastic bags on Bali by 2016. At the meeting today, Melati told the Governor of their dream that one day all those visiting Bali would be greeted at the airport with the words: “Welcome to Bali, do you have any plastic bags to declare?” “It won’t be easy” said Isabel,“ but together, working with the Governor, and all the kids from Bali, we can return this island to the beautiful paradise it was.”

The Bye Bye Plastic Bags Girls, Isabel and Melati Wijsen, are putting plastic where their mouths are in a bid to force a meeting with the governor of Bali to highlight the plight of their campaign to rid the island of plastic bags. On November 24, the girls will begin a food strike as added leverage to get the governor, I Made Mangku Pastika, to meet with them and put a timeline on a law that will ban the use of plastic bags on Bali. The girls, who have just returned from India where they were met with standing ovations at the INK Conference in Mumbai, have been gathering widespread support for their campaign in a bid to ramp up more support for the Bye Bye Plastic Bags (BBPB) petition to raise a million signatures. "It is now time for Pastika to meet with us," says Isobel. "We and the team have done a lot of hard work to get our campaign noticed and it is only fair that Pastika takes the time, like many prominent people have now done, to talk to us about how we are going to stamp out the problem of plastic bags in Bali," says Melati. "If we have to go on hunger strike to get his attention, then so be it," says Isobel. BBPB is a social initiative driven by children, local and international, living in Bali between 10 and 15 years old who are committed to preserving the beauty of Bali by banning plastic bag use. The initiative was founded by Green School students, Melati and Isabel Wijsen, in late 2013 and is now made up of a dedicated team of 25 children, with more joining from around the world every day. So far BBPB have raised nearly 65.000 signatures for their petition through AVAAZ, spoken to more than 3500 students across the world in three different languages and is running a plastic bag-free program in a pilot village on Bali, with local authority’s approval, as well as raising general awareness at markets, events and festivals. The group have already garnered significant support for their lobbying of national and international media and have met and received the support of Jane Goodall and her Roots and Shoots program as well as the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki moon. This week the team won Bali Yak Awards and received a nomination by The Role Foundation for Green School to become a role model high school for 2014. The BBPB team have sent many letters to the government and Governor but he has still not made any effort to respond. With all the publicity surrounding the campaign the girls have decided to act now to speed up the process. They will NOT stop drinking but WILL refuse solid food from sunrise to sunset from November 24 until they have this meeting. On November 28, the girls are asking their school and all those on Bali aware of their campaign, to join them. For more information contact; byebyeplasticbag@gmail.com sign their petition here https://secure.avaaz.org/en/petition/Byebye_Plastic_Bags_On_Bali/?aDjcKgb