Wyclef Jean and The Timberland Co. will use shoes, songs and social media to support reforestation in the singer’s native Haiti and sell eco-friendly footwear.
Jean, who achieved fame with The Fugees before going solo, collaborated with the New Hampshire-based footwear and apparel company on a 16-boot collection going on sale in November.
Timberland also will sell T-shirts designed by Haitian art students, and a new line of organic shirts and hats will be sold at Jean’s concerts.
A cut of the profits of both the boots and clothing will go to Yele Haiti, a charitable foundation Jean started in 2005 to support education, health, the environment and community development in the impoverished Caribbean nation.
Timberland and Jean also plan to combine their social media networks — Jean has nearly 1 million followers on Twitter — and will offer downloadable playlists created by Jean, with all proceeds going to Yele Haiti.
In an interview with The Associated Press, Jean said he hopes the partnership will help put a new face on his homeland.
“These are the kinds of things I think can help re-brand the country and start to inspire kids,” he said.
“My idea for Haiti ever since I came to America was watching how Bob Marley showed another face to his country — it was important that I do that,” he said. “Beyond music, it’s important that you have brand partnerships with brands that … have similar ideas to what you’re trying to do.”
The partnership, which will be announced Thursday night in New York, is part of Timberland’s Earthkeepers program to promote environmental and social activism. The Earthkeepers line of footwear is made from recycled and organic materials, and the company has planted more than 1 million trees around the world.
“We’re going to dig the holes, we’re going to plant the trees, because reforestation in Haiti is a social issue, it’s an environmental issue, and for Wyclef, it’s a personal issue,” Timberland CEO Jeff Swartz said in an interview Wednesday. “It’s not about being hip. It’s about — in hockey terms — throwing a hip. I want to bang into some of these problems.”
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