DO GOOD Forgiveness Day

Hi Beauties:

Have you ever had a conflict with someone that’s changed your relationship immediately? One that you just find it really hard to get over? I think we’ve all been there, and the worst part of it is, that the longer you hold on to your feelings of anger and bitterness, the longer it hurts YOU! So today, I want to focus on doing good for yourself. In honor of National Forgiveness Day, here are a few ways to keep your spirit bright and beautiful by practicing a little forgiveness.

Did you know forgiveness could help you achieve:

A healthier body: According to the Mayo Clinic, actively practicing forgiveness can have amazing health effects like lowering your chances for high blood pressure, depression, and even substance abuse! So while you’re eating your leafy greens, think about if you need to forgive anyone. And add that into your healthy green lifestyle!

Better relationships: Holding on to grudges or other baggage can actually affect the way you approach relationships with other people. Being open to new relationships greatly increases your chances of happiness—who doesn’t want to make new friends?

A Free Spirit: By withholding forgiveness and acceptance, we give a lot of control to the hurtful situation. We let it bring us down, influence our thoughts and feelings, and affect the way we act in the world. That’s a whole lot of power that we’re giving away! Through the process of acceptance and forgiveness, we release our spirit from these shackles, giving us greater opportunities to explore the capacity that our spirit has for freedom, love, and compassion.

I hope I’ve given you some food for thought! Now let’s go forgive, forgive, forgive!

With love, compassion, and beauty,

Josie

DO GOOD Earth Day

Happy Earth Day, everyone!

Today is one of my favorite holidays! I like to think of Earth Day as Mama Earth’s version of New Year’s Day. It’s a chance for all of us to resolve to do better for our planet at her creatures (including one another) in the upcoming year. Here are a few things you can do today that will continue to help Mama Earth for the rest of the year.

Switch Your Light Bulbs: Tonight, go home and switch our your lightbulbs for energy efficient ones. Your energy bill and the planet will thank you.

Pick Up Trash: We all see it—trash littering our home. Go outside and pick some up! Even if it’s just a few pieces, you ARE making a difference. What if everyone followed suit and picked up just a few pieces of trash? Imagine the effect we could have!

Plant Something: Of course, planting a tree is one of my favorite Earth Day activities because it is the gift that keeps on giving back. But even a small plant in your backyard or in a pot for your house will help. Plants improve the quality of our air, and having a little green around has been proven to improve your mood.

And, as always, I urge you to speak for the earth when she cannot speak for herself. Vote for laws and regulations that protect our wildlife, our waterways, and our forests. Support nonprofits and companies that fight for the planet. And tell you friends and neighbors about the importance of doing good for the earth.  If you are a good role model for the people in your life, chances are, they’ll want to follow your lead.

Peace on Earth,

Josie

P.S. This watercolor of our planet is one of my favorite new discoveries. Hope you love it as much as I do!

DO GOOD International Women's Day

I hope you’re doing something special today to celebrate the wonderful women in your life—including yourself!  On this day, I'm taking time to remember that even though we still have far to go here in the US, we enjoy many more rights than most women around the globe. Here are a few things we can all do to improve things locally and globally.

Be a Champion for Women: Let’s lift each other up! From supporting and empowering one another in the workplace, to protesting violence against women, there’s a lot you can do to be a champion for women’s rights. Don’t forget to let your voice be heard. If we don’t advocate for ourselves, who will?

Give Back: There’s a lot you can do to help women around the world even if you’re just sitting at your computer. Do a little research into nonprofits that focus on global female empowerment. One of my favorites is Women For Women International. If doing something local is a bit more your style, volunteer at a women’s shelter or a women’s health clinic.

Mentor and Empower: Like it or not, the upcoming generations of women are still going to encounter inequality. Do what you can to make sure that the girls in your life understand and utilize their own strength and power. Whether it’s telling your daughter that she is capable of accomplishing all of her dreams, or being a mentor for a young female entrepreneur, there’s a lot you can do to make sure the younger generations feel empowered to continue the good fight towards gender equality. And remember: how you treat and speak about yourself will affect how the girls in your life treat and speak about themselves. So be good to yourself!  You’re wonderful!

With lots of love,

Josie

Image via

DO GOOD The Girl Effect

Hi Beauties!

As a female entrepreneur, empowering other women is something that I consider a duty and a calling. I mean, if we can’t count on our sisters to lift us up, who can we count on? I’ll be sharing some of the empowerment causes that are close to my heart so that together we can be catalysts for change.

Have you heard about The Girl Effect? It’s an organization centered on the idea that if we simply empowered and educated the adolescent girls of the world and gave them the resources they deserve, we would see a decrease in poverty, HIV, and suffering in developing countries. How, you ask? By investing in the economic potential of women through education and delaying child marriage, issues such as HIV and poverty are significantly decreased. Here are some stats from The Girl Effect’s site that will blow your mind:

• Half of all first births in the developing world are to adolescent girls. Medical complications from pregnancy and childbirth are the leading cause of death among girls 15-19 worldwide.
• Worldwide, nearly 50% of all sexual assaults are against girls 15 and younger.
• Girls who stay in school during adolescence…are less likely to be subjected to forced sex and…more likely to use contraception.
• Closing the joblessness gap between girls and their male counterparts would yield an increase of GDP of up to 1.2 percent in a single year.
• Giving women the same access to…resources and services as men…raises total agricultural output in developing countries by up to 4% and could reduce the number of hungry people in the world by 100-150 million.

The Girl Effect website has a wealth of information if you want to learn more. You can check out some of the organizations they partner with to help make the movement a reality. And tell me, have you ever seen The Girl Effect in action?

With love and power to you!

Josie

DO GOOD Adopt a Friend

Hi Lovelies!

I have to tell you, this weekend was a blast! I had a super secret photo shoot for an upcoming collection (details to come, I promise), and got to meet and play with a bunch of furry friends from Much Love Animal Rescue. These dogs were just the sweetest—everyone at the shoot was snuggling and getting some very slobbery kisses all day. Meeting these extraordinary animals made me realize even more how beautiful it is to give an animal in need the loving and safe home that they crave. If you’re ready to give an animal a forever home, consider rescuing! The compassion that you show will be repaid tenfold with the unconditional love of a loyal companion.

With love for second chances,

Josie

DO GOOD Movember

November might be a cold month, weather-wise, but spirit-wise, it's toasty warm. We gather with families and friends, share rituals old and new, and focus on who and what we're grateful for. November is also "Movember" (for "Mustache November"), a time to show support for the millions of American men—one in six—who are diagnosed each year with prostate and testicular cancers. The folks at Movember and Sons have found a creative way to raise funds to fight these diseases: Grow a mustache! Bros begin November first clean-shaven and spend the rest of the month crafting a most impressive ‘stache, seeking out sponsorship for their efforts—the funds from which are donated to male cancer research. For lovely ladies who can’t sport a 'stache, you can make a donation to the Prostate Cancer Foundation or the LIVESTRONG Foundation to do your part.

DO GOOD Breast Cancer Awareness

Hearing that you or someone you love has cancer is life-changing. It's more common than any of us would hope; nearly 40,000 American women die annually from breast cancer alone.  It seems that everyone here at JMC has been touched by cancer in some way—including our founder herself. Josie's grandmother, Rita Maran, is 35-year survivor of the disease. In her honor and in honor of all the Argan beauties battling the disease, Josie put together a special collection of "Think Pink" JMC products. Fifteen percent of sales from each of these products will be donated to City of Hope to support those battling breast cancer. We sat down with Grandma Rita—who at a very young 83 still plays tennis every day to keep herself healthy and fit—to learn about her experience as a breast cancer survivor. 

When were you diagnosed with breast cancer?

My first bout with cancer was way back in 1972, when a hysterectomy was necessary to remove a cancerous uterus. Five years later, a large cancerous tumor in my left breast led to surgery - what was then called a 'radical mastectomy.' That in turn called for chemotherapy for half-a-year, plus a dedicated daily routine of physical exercise to get back into physical - and mental – shape.

What was it like to go through your fight against breast cancer?

I was determined to combine mind (reason) and body (exercise). My attitude was: first came cancer, now comes recovery. I was living in London but had terrific support from family, all of them three thousand miles away in California, and from circles of women- and men-friends in England. I jumped headfirst into a new job doing human rights campaigning work with nonviolent grassroots groups in a dozen European countries. That in turn led to "going back to school" at the London School of Economics, to understand how international human rights law could help accomplish nonviolent social change. I just plugged away at staying healthy and learning what I needed to know about human rights.

As a survivor, what words of advice and support would you give to those affected by breast cancer?

 It's a bummer - no doubt about it. Breast cancer represents a huge challenge to your mind, your body, and your self-image. That's a fact - get used to it. For me, it was a call to pull up my socks, get full command of all my resources, and get to work. 

What does it mean to you to have your granddaughter, Josie, raising money for breast cancer? 

Josie was born first of my four grandchildren. I remember her at three months, when she was still my only grandchild and I was still undergoing chemotherapy. We were lying in bed early one morning, playing and laughing, when the thought suddenly hit me: "It doesn't matter to this darling little girl that I have only one breast. She can only know me as I am." Once that realization was out of the way, I could enjoy my granddaughter - and the three grandsons that followed, and now Josie's two daughters - Rumi Joon and Indi Joon- and her cousin Peter's son - Axel, without cancer getting in the way. Josie's nature is to look at a problem - in this case breast cancer - and dig in to do something positive and life-affirming. I couldn't be more proud or more happy that she is that way and that she and Ali are surrounding their two girls with that sense of respect and compassion for others with whom we share this planet.

DO GOOD World Rivers Day

“The land is our mother, the rivers our blood.” –Mary Brave Bird

This Sunday is World Rivers Day, a global event dedicated to celebrating and protecting the world’s beautiful waterways. The event brings attention to a wide array of issues surrounding rivers, including the decline of fish population and the construction of dams that harm wildlife.

DO GOOD

Volunteer or donate this Sunday! There are great organizations that support rivers in the U.S. such as the American River Conservancy and the Western Rivers Conservancy. No pennies to spare? There’s a ton that you can do to protect your local rivers. For starters, avoid washing your car near storm drains or pouring any kind of chemical or pollutant into the drains. If you live near a river, organize a cleanup crew for its banks, or work with a local group to plant vegetation to avoid erosion.

DO GOOD World Arbor Day

We've all said it. "Hey, I should volunteer to plant some trees sometime."

Well guess what? This weekend is your chance. In celebration of World Arbor Day, you can find plenty of opportunities to green the world by volunteering to plant in your city. The day was first observed in Nebraska in 1872 when it is estimated that a million trees were planted! And now, it's celebrated globally. How can you help?

DO GOOD

Volunteer with organizations dedicated to tree planting. You can find opportunities here: 

Arbor Day Now is a website dedicated to connecting willing tree planters with opportunities to plant in any corner of the U.S. 

At the very least, if you can't make it out in your community to plant a tree, why not plant one in your backyard? Any greening is good greening! 

DO GOOD World Forestry Day

Woods

I part the out thrusting branches
and come in beneath
the blessed and the blessing trees.
Though I am silent
there is singing around me.
Though I am dark
there is vision around me.
Though I am heavy
there is flight around me.

-Wendell Barry

It's a big week in the world of environmental causes. Today is World Forestry Day and tomorrow is World Water Day. No matter who you are, trees and water affect your life. 

World Forestry Day took root in 1971 at the 23rd General Assembly of the European Confederation of Agriculture. Gaining traction, it became recognized as a day to spread the awareness of the importance of the Earth's forests, the need for sustainable solutions and to advocate on behalf of preservation. 

DO GOOD
Volunteer or donate to organizations dedicated to protecting forests. I suggest:

American Forests, the oldest national nonprofit conservation organization in the United States that advocates for the protection and expansion of forests.

Plant A Billion Trees, an organization that helps protect the Amazonian rainforest. 

Tree People, a nonprofit working to make Los Angeles greener one tree at a time.

Million Trees NYC, a citywide initiative that greens New York by planting trees. 

If you have a chance this weekend, take a hike and sit among the trees! Not only will it remind you of the beauty of the world, but it will remind you how fragile the planet is and how we must do our part.