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Give a man a T-shirt and you clothe him for a day. Teach a man to make a T-shirt and he's clothed for a lifetime.

Alison E. Peters

College kids buy a lot of T-shirts.

People in Africa need jobs.

Put the two ideas together and you get EDUN Live on Campus (ELOC), a socially conscious T-shirt distribution company that was started through Miami University's Center for Social Entrepreneurship.

In September 2006, 15 students under the guidance of Brett Smith, professor of marketing, created ELOC, an offshoot company of EDUN Apparel Ltd.

EDUN Apparel, founded by U2 frontman Bono and his wife, Ali Hewin, employs workers in sub-Saharan Africa.

Each part of the EDUN T-shirt production process-from the growing of cotton to the sewing of shirts-is done solely in Africa, providing workers with sustainable employment opportunities.

As one of the original 15 students and former president of ELOC, Jacque Rupert, a senior political science and sociology major, said EDUN's mission is "trade, not aid."

"Aid is good when something like (Hurricane) Katrina happens," Rupert said. "EDUN is providing a long-term solution to a persistent social problem-poverty."

ELOC's current president, Ali Tanker, a junior interdisciplinary studies major, said it can be difficult to grasp the idea that many people in Africa live off of $2 a day.

"The simple action of buying a T-shirt and changing your spending habits can make a direct effect on someone's life," Tanker said. "Because of EDUN, these people can not only bring food home to their families at night, but it also gives them a sense of integrity. We take all these things for granted."

Socially conscious shirts

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Since its start in 2006, ELOC's 30 members and street team have sold more than 20,000 T-shirts to Miami organizations.

According to Rupert, ELOC has expanded to four other locations, all within the past year, including Gonzaga University, Tufts University,

Simmons College and The Ohio State University. Rupert said ELOC plans to continue expanding to more colleges and universities in upcoming years.

While Rupert said one T-shirt makes a difference to the people of Africa, it is ELOC's collective effort that is making the biggest impact worldwide.

"You're changing a life every time you buy a T-shirt," Rupert said. "Take the 20,000 shirts we've sold at Miami and multiply that by establishing ELOC on 100 different college campuses. That's when EDUN is really making an impact."

As a company, ELOC has a unique situation: one-quarter of consumers are lost each year as seniors graduate.

According to Tanker, in order to continue its sustainability on campus, ELOC's new slogan is "Print with us."

"We want to take EDUN's awareness on campus to the next level," Tanker said. "The 'Print with us' slogan is our way of telling our socially conscious consumers to not just buy one order of our T-shirts and be done but to consistently print with us."

As the very first customer of ELOC, St. Mary's Church has served as a consistent supporter.

Senior Amanda Beckham, a student leader at St. Mary's, said there are multiple reasons why St. Mary's continues to buy from EDUN.

"We've always gone to them for what EDUN Live stands for-helping those in need," Beckham said. "Of course, there are other superficial reasons, too. The T-shirts look and feel great."

To ensure the T-shirts are graphically appealing, ELOC uses the expertise of student graphic designers.

One such graphic design major, senior Annie Kim said it's easy to rally behind EDUN because everyone involved is passionate about the cause.

"I'm not getting paid and my work is not for a grade, but EDUN is still high on my priority list because I really like having a social cause behind my work," Kim said. "Knowing that I'm helping create trade in a third world country is enlightening."

As vice president of social responsibilities for Pi Sigma Epsilon, a business fraternity, senior Jason Toth said he supports ELOC because of the opportunity not only to give back to Africa but also to Miami students.

According to Toth, Pi Sigma Epsilon created a Bicentennial T-shirt through ELOC. Proceeds from the T-shirt sales will go toward the Bicentennial Scholarship, which will award $1,809 to a Miami first-year, sophomore and junior.

"We based the scholarship off Miami's mission: to give back to a student who not only excels academically, but who gives back and is involved in activities outside of the classroom," Toth said. "It's been great working with EDUN, and we're proud to have their name on the shirt."

From village to college town

As the backbone behind ELOC, Rupert said she is ecstatic with everything EDUN has achieved since its start two years ago.

"EDUN is my baby," Rupert said. "Even though my day could go from great to awful due to something going on with EDUN-like I'll be sitting in class and someone will be calling me saying our T-shirts are stuck in customs and an organization on campus needs them the next day-it's all worth it, and it usually all works out in the end."

After graduation in May, Rupert said she plans to work for a consulting firm in Cleveland, yet she said she won't forget what her experience with ELOC has taught her.

"I'm a completely different person than I was two years ago because of EDUN," Rupert said. "I had no business skills and dreaded speaking in front of people. Now I know how to manage a whole team of people."

Rupert said she wouldn't be surprised if she chose to come back to EDUN later in life, but for now, Tanker plans to keep ELOC up and running.

"It's exciting to be part of a business that makes a difference on a greater level and that the difference is tangible to me," Tanker said. "EDUN gave us a vehicle to make social change and truly impact people's lives-right here on Miami's campus."


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