DisCOSWAG.
Get swanky! When we decided to offer DisCO-themed merch, it was very important for us to stay true to DisCO’s mission and our 7 Principles, number 4 in particular: Rethinking Global/Local Economics. This means sharing resources such as design, code or methodologies globally and for free, while keeping physical production and labour as localized as possible.
By purchasing DisCO Swag, you’re supporting both DisCO.coop as well as DNA Merch, Humana Nova, Printex, Panda Commerce and WD Textil. All designs are Peer Production Licensed and ripe for building solidarity-based production networks.
We are proud to be working with DNA Merch, a proto-DisCO based in Berlin. DNA Merch produces their swag in partnership with Humana Nova, a self-organized women’s cooperative in Croatia. Printex, also from Croatia, specializes in non-toxic, water-based screen printing. The 100% organic cotton used to produce the T-shirts is sourced from WD Textil in Zagreb and Panda Commerce, who are based in Samobor. Together they use part of the income to support garment workers’ unions in South Asia. Production is demand-based and shipping is handled by an anarchist mail order collective based in Flenburg. In 2016 Guerrilla Media Collective, the OG DisCO prototyped with our Think Global/Print Local Campaign, where we translated David Bollier’s book of the same name into Spanish, shared the translation for free online, and then partnered with local book printers and distributors to release the translated book had the book printed in Perú, Argentina, México, Columbia and Spain with local partners who also took care of the distribution.
For 2023 and beyond, we are following suit by establishing relationships and building a worldwide partner network with partners all over the world who want to materialize our creations and bring them to your door in future proof ways.
For this initial run of DisCO Swag, DNA Merch will ship worldwide. Our mid-term vision is to find other producers, first at the continental, then national, then bioregional level. This network will not be limited to DisCO Swag, but can serve to prototype localized DisCO production for other goods. Please, get in touch with us if you want to be a partner in our network or know of groups we ought to know about to take it to the next level and beyond.