PACT, EarthSpark and Citizen Effect Help Bring Light to Haiti With Holiday Campaign

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 18, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- PACT, an underwear brand that blends design and sustainability with support for powerful social and environmental causes, today announced the launch of a unique holiday collection in partnership with EarthSpark and Citizen Effect's Lighting Hope for Haiti program, designed to give light to Haitians in need.

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20101118/SF04387)

(Photo:  http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20101118/SF04387)

The collection, which debuts today, includes three original underwear prints created by Yves Behar and his team at fuseproject. The prints represent colorful plays of light and celebrate the nostalgia and festiveness of holiday lights.

The campaign's goal is to light up a community in Port-au-Prince this holiday season with clean, renewable and safety-providing light. PACT will donate one handheld solar lantern to women and families in Port-au-Prince, Haiti for every customer who purchases from the holiday collection.

"We could not imagine a more worthwhile cause this holiday season than helping provide access to a basic resource – like light – to people in Haiti," said Jason Kibbey, CEO of PACT. "The fact that a PACT underwear purchase can directly provide a family in Haiti with a solar lantern, and all the benefits light provides, is an honor."

The PACT holiday collection represents a partnership with EarthSpark International [www.earthsparkinternational.org] and Citizen Effect's [www.citizeneffect.org] Lighting Hope for Haiti program, a collaboration that empowers individuals to provide Haitian families with durable and easy-to-use solar LED lanterns. EarthSpark and Citizen Effect aim to supply solar-powered lighting to women in vulnerable areas of Port-au-Prince. These lamps provide a public safety benefit as well as ensure that everyday Haitians have access to a clean and efficient source of light. Together, PACT, EarthSpark and Citizen Effect have joined forces to light up the homes of Haitian families this holiday season, providing them with the comfort and security that only light can provide.

"The feedback we've received from women using our solar lanterns has been incredible," said Dan Schnitzer, founder and director of EarthSpark. "Women are organizing themselves into night patrols and hanging the lamps outside their tents to light public walkways. It's heartwarming to see our distribution efforts providing a direct and visible difference in communities made vulnerable by the earthquake."

About PACT:

Launched in 2009 by Jason Kibbey and Jeff Denby, PACT is an apparel company offering premium organic underwear inspired by powerful social and environmental causes. PACT creates partnerships with nonprofits and donates a portion of each underwear purchase to support these organizations' work.  PACT underwear is made of responsibly grown and manufactured organic cotton, transported in zero-waste packaging and delivered with a minimized carbon footprint, demonstrating the company's ongoing commitment to style, sustainability and social consciousness. For more information, email us at [email protected]. 

About Citizen Effect:

Citizen Effect is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that empowers anyone to become a philanthropist and have a direct impact on a community in need. To learn more or become a Citizen Philanthropist yourself, please visit www.citizeneffect.org.

About EarthSpark:

EarthSpark International is a 501(c)3 nonprofit that works to eradicate energy poverty in Haiti. They achieve this by partnering with entrepreneurs and local organizations to develop businesses and supply chains for clean and efficient energy technologies. To learn more, please visit www.earthsparkinternational.org.

SOURCE PACT