What is Fair Trade?

By Ronda Bernstein on 12/08/2009 @ 02:01 AM

When you are at a festival, market, museum store or boutique admiring handmade crafts from exotic, faraway lands, have you ever stopped to think about the items labeled “Fair Trade”? What is fair trade? Why should you buy these over the non-fair trade items on the next shelf? Who are the people that made them? What is involved to get the fair trade goods to that location?

To begin, according to the Fair Trade Federation, "fair trade is a system of exchange that seeks to create equity and partnership in the international trading system. Through fair trade, people producing a product are treated fairly, paid fairly and are being fair to the environment. In other words, they are paid fairly by the people buying their products instead of just being labor and someone else getting the money or someone buying the items for well less than they are worth.

The process of getting these fair trade products from the point of origin to you, the buyer, is not as simple as it is for items that are mass produced. The craft items are made and marketed by the local crafters. Crafters that up until recently never even considered selling their handicrafts globally, at least not themselves. Remember, these are artisans, not graduates of the Wharton School. In order to do well, they need guidance from someone that won’t take advantage of them, someone that is looking out for their best interest.

There are many organizations that offer this support. These organizations cultivate partnerships with the workers and contribute to the development of their communities. This is a large part of what fair trade is all about. By providing fair wages and helping small producers of goods become part of the profit cycle, the workers can achieve a better quality of life and receive more profits that can then be reinvested into their communities for various things such as healthcare services and educational opportunities.

Vital Voices is one such organization, but specific to women. They provide women with the management, business development, marketing, and communications skills needed to enter the global marketplace. Organizations like Vital Voices help the artisans understand the ins and outs of selling their wares broadly as well as teaching them how to use resources wisely. For example, if the community understands that the leaves of the palm frond can be used to make baskets and other sellable items, they are not likely to cut down the palm tree. The organizations also teach how to reinvest the money into their communities. The women that are helped by Vital Voices gain self-confidence and independence by making and selling their products.

This just touches on the surface of fair trade. Fair trade helps people all over the world to use their talent, skills, and trades to provide for their families, create jobs in their communities, and protect the environment. It also gives them a way to maintain their traditional lifestyles. By buying fair trade, even in these tough economic times, we are supporting the workers, their community, and the environment and guaranteeing its continuation into the future.

For more information, please visit DCMakeTradeFair and the Fair Trade Federation.

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