Made in Ethiopia: Sole Rebels Wins Eco-Bold Green Award

Above: Sole Rebels, Ethiopia’s first fair trade fashion company,
has won this year’s Eco-Bold Green Award. (Exclusive photo)

Tadias Magazine
By Tadias Staff

Published: Sunday, August 15, 2010

New York (Tadias) – EcoBold, the Silicon Valley-based provider of online video reviews of green and eco-friendly products, has named Sole Rebels, Ethiopia’s environmentally-sensible footwear brand, as winner of its first Annual Green Awards under “Best Shoes” category.

According to the company: “The award recipients represent an array of green companies…judged on a series of ‘green qualifications,’ which scrutinized their product and examined company-wide practices such as promoting green initiatives to employees, packaging footprint, and social causes impacting the environment.”

Bethlehem Tilahun Alemu, Co-founder and Managing Director of Sole Rebels, said her team welcomes the news. “We are really honored and excited. When I told the team here, they were sort of in shock,” she told Tadias via email. “Then, big smiles, lots of them!”

According to EcoBold’s Chief Executive, contestants were primarily considered on the basis of the greenness of their products as well as eco-sensible business practices. “The contributions made by these green companies make a tremendous difference in how people produce, consume, and think about the environment,” Steffany Boldrini, EcoBold’s CEO and Founder, said in a statement. “Their level of commitment and dedication to making a difference with sustainable and eco-friendly products are reflections of company-wide green initiatives towards a greener future.”

Bethlehem said her company accepts the accolade as a recognition of the brand’s message that organic living is part of the nation’s way of life. “It affirms our belief that we are green by heritage,” she said. “We utilize Ethiopia’s immense, diverse, sustainable and eco-friendly materials and cultural arts to craft amazing footwear for the global market.”

EcoBold is a California based e-commerce company that “creates awareness of sustainable and green products by providing online video reviews of various green and eco-friendly household products.”

Images: Exclusive photos from Sole Rebel’s spring 2011 collection provided to Tadias by the company.


Photo courtesy of Sole Rebels (Spring 2011 collection)

Photo courtesy of Sole Rebels (Spring 2011 collection)

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Related story:
CNN’s African Voices features Bethlehem Tilahun Alemu

Watch: Turning old tires into shoes (7:10)

Video: Young SoleRebel (8:07)

Video: Creating window to world market (7:24)

8 Responses to “Made in Ethiopia: Sole Rebels Wins Eco-Bold Green Award”


  1. 1 wow Aug 15th, 2010 at 1:05 pm

    What an inspiration even for us the diaspora in the West! Keep up the good work. Wish every Ethiopian success like Betty!

  2. 2 Sun Rise - Jember Sitwota Aug 15th, 2010 at 3:06 pm

    Well done Sole Rebels, Beth and her team! Congratulations! I have been following your endeavor for some time now and I must say that I am beyond impressed. You are already doing a magnificent work not only through effective and targeted branding, but also in delivering high-end and durable goods, while at same time maintaining Ethiopia’s cultural heritage based on closeness to nature! Kudos!

  3. 3 Sahelu Aug 16th, 2010 at 12:41 am

    A classic example showing to the world and to fellow citizens that we Ethiopians, no matter how poor we are as a nation now, can be as creative and rich as any person in the developed part of the world.

    Congratulations!

  4. 4 Rahel Alemu Aug 16th, 2010 at 1:39 am

    Well done! Fab!

  5. 5 Samuel Ephrem Aug 16th, 2010 at 10:46 pm

    This is just one of the many products that is made in Ethiopia that is not only functional and has some appeal to the western world,but also is manufactured with minimal impact to the environment. Necessity is the mother of inventions. To some degree, the so called third world has no other options but to produce goods in a sustainable way – for the most part. For that reason, most of the consumer goods produced and will be produced are classified as eco-friendly. There is no doubt in my mind that provided the right socio-economic & political atmosphere, more and more of these types of products will come to surface. Way to go Ethiopia!

  6. 6 lula Jul 4th, 2012 at 3:17 am

    Congratulations! you are such an inspiration. By the way, are the products available in the Ethiopian market? if so, where can we get them?

    I just want to know you better because you are an inspiration for a lot of us.

  7. 7 Rahim Jul 27th, 2012 at 11:25 am

    Great job, putting the stare back in Africa. These are the kind of people that we as Africans need. Re-branding Africa is a major even and job and she is doing it well, in Africa we no longer need the Hippo generation. We need the cheetah generation, FASTER to react and execute, see it chase catch it. We are doing the same with our company http://www.africandreamhomes.com

    Thanks keep up the work African Branding.

    Rahim

  1. 1 Bethlehem Tilahun Alemu Named Young Global Leader by World Economic Forum at Tadias Magazine Pingback on Mar 9th, 2011 at 10:49 am
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