Recently a company that had trained with the Center for Babywearing Studies, CBWS, was charged with cultural appropriation when attempting to patent a commonly used method of wearing a baby. This company had planned to patent the design, and several people called attention to the fact that this was not new and it was appropriation. 

The issue of cultural appropriation is not new to babywearing; in fact, this has been addressed many times over the years. The community origins of the particular carrying method and overall issues of appropriation of cultural carrying traditions are both things we address in our training courses. Additionally, it's the subject of frequent discussion in our online space for CBWS trained graduates. Had Solly Baby been active participants in this space, I believe they would have found themselves better positioned to understand and positively engage with the feedback they received. 

It is disappointing, therefore, that Solly Baby has named CBWS...

Joanna was featured in an article with fellow babywearing consultant Adrianne Stare in a pretty good article at fatherly. You can access the full article here. (This will open up a new browser window) 

Or you can download and read it in pdf format. 

We are thrilled to announce that Center for Babywearing Studies now offers credited continuing education units for Lamaze International!

The Online Foundations course will cover 30 credit hours of continuing education and 2021 classes are open for signup. Find a time schedule that suits your needs and head over to the link in our bio to sign up for this opportunity asap!

But wait, there’s more!

DONA and CAPPA are in the queue for 2021 as well, so stay tuned for the upcoming announcements!

We look forward to seeing you all in 2021

Some retro CBWS here. Coffee with Joanna was a series where Joanna would interview cool people in the babywearing industry. Those videos were made before the explosion of video on social media so please forgive lower production quality. Still adding to the list (don't upload videos to different YouTube accounts and then forget the log in info or where you uploaded it  ) 

https://youtu.be/0GwvhauWHkU (Cortney Baca)

https://vimeo.com/153618336 (Debora Rodrigues)

https://youtu.be/emZ5j8wZER4 (Jolyn Swain)

Which training did you take?
Foundations

My top three goals when starting this training were ...
Confidence in teaching, learning about comfort/adaptations, learning how to grow business

 Joanna was able to help me work towards this goal by ...
Providing great work through at home coursework, leaving class time for practice and questions

 The biggest tangible change I noticed since attending the training has been ...
My comfort teaching others

 I would describe Joanna as ...
Warm, helpful, dynamic, intelligent

I would recommend Joanna to ...
Anyone!

Connect with Cristina 

It's that time of year again... 

The leaves are beginning to change colors, the chill is in the air, and Pumpkin Spice Lattes have returned to coffee shops everywhere. Fall has been officially ushered in!

What else does fall bring with it? Sweater weather, or more specifically, babywearing outerwear weather! That's right - we are about to dive headfirst into babywearing jackets, coats, and covers.

photo credit: CarryLittleHearts

Subscribe to our newsletter  so that you get alerted to catch all of the latest interviews with coat designers and manufacturers, where you can find the latest outwear gear in stores and online, and so you'll never miss what's cooking up over here at CBWS, including Joanna's upcoming Outerwear Workshop! (Stay tuned for dates)  We look forward to seeing you there!

 Post by Jessica  Follow her on instagram @carrylittlehearts if yo.u want to chat babywearing outerwear

What is your name?
Abigail Guerrero

Which training did you take?
Foundations

My top three goals when starting this training were ...
To learn new carrying techniques, to learn how to become a certified educator, and to benefit my business.

Joanna was able to help me work towards this goal by ...
She provided quality education and training, as well as an amazing one to one session where we were able to address my goals personally.

The biggest tangible change I noticed since attending the training has been ...
How I relate to clients, and friends when helping them.

I would describe Joanna as ...
Empathetic and a good listener.

I would recommend Joanna to ...
Any birth professional.

We are excited to move this training finally online, and we have a special price for this week only (until August 7th) 

Working with new parents, parents-to-be, and caregivers is rewarding. It also continuously evolves and you have to keep up with all the latest aspects of your job!

Many professionals struggle to master the baby carrier 'trend' and in doing so have missed a key way to assist their clients in a smooth transition to parenthood.

We don't believe babywearing is a 'trend.'

Babywearing is an essential tool in assisting the caregiver and the baby adjust to the new reality of life outside of the womb. Use babywearing to make your work more impactful for those you work with, and use it yourself when you are caring for an infant!

• More parents are buying carriers.
• More parents plan to use their carrier in the early weeks.
• Parents expect babywearing to be easy.
• Parents expect you to know how to use carriers.

The sheer number of options available can be overwhelming to...