Kelly speaks with Jane Mosbacher Morris whose company connects consumers to ethically-made products. Her new book is called "Buy The Change You Want To See."

Your company, To The Market, and this book speak to how we as individuals can make a difference in this world simply by deciding who to spend our money with.

“What my work at To The Market and building this business has taught me is that we have as individuals and as people working within businesses or nonprofits, so much more power than we realize to make a difference both for other people and or for the planet by thinking about who we spend our money with and how that money is spent. And it doesn't always have to be this idea of ‘I want to support a cooperative in India that's producing bags.’ That might work for one person, but another person might feel strongly about supporting the mom and pop grocery in their neighborhood or buying made in the USA apparel or some other value set that's important to them. And that's the thesis of the book that we can align our purchasing decisions with our values.”

I’ve talked on this podcast before about how Second City’s for-profit status can actually position us better to do a kind of good normally associated with not for profits. Your company is also for profit.

“What's interesting is that some of our suppliers are for profit, some are not for profit, but almost all of our clients were producing products for are unquestionably for profit. And so we're able to leverage these big for profit dollars, these procurement budgets that will have a huge impact on the lives of other people. Far more from a scale of influence than if I was in a position where I was trying to apply for grants to run some sort of capacity building program in a different community.”

Tell us what you mean when you talk about mounting a ‘buycott?’

“I do think that as a consumer in having an opportunity to reward brands and retailers who are investing in better supply chain practices - what we describe as a ‘buycott.’ So the opposite of a boycott, meaning I choose to support these brands, even though it might cost me a little bit more to have that organic cotton or to have that fair trade certification or to see the programs that a brand is running. I want to be a part of that because nobody should have to die for me to have a cute shirt.”

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