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Lesson 6 - Fair Trade Works!
Fair Trade Organizations in North America and Europe and their missions (Grades 3-5)

Appropriate for older students (Grades 6-8) without the coloring book.

Background

In the 70s, this cooperative store and warehouse was established. Many of the items they sold were traditional and not designed in a special way for export sale.

In the 70's and 80's, Fair Traders started national organizations in Europe, Canada, Japan and the USA, at the same time that they established stores in their home countries. They established policies to pay the arts and crafts producers — generally from Africa, Asia and Latin America — fairly. In England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland and other European counties, the organization Oxfam became a very important force in supporting and promoting the Fair Trade movement through its many stores. With the profits from retail sales and other donations, Oxfam became capable of responding to people suffering from disasters and war and for many years has sponsored aid and development projects throughout the world. It also has many educational initiatives and resources. Still other large Fair Trade organizations exist in most of the countries of Western Europe (see Organizations section on the Links  page).

This cooperative sells both retail and wholesale. Although the colors and designs are based on traditional models, they produce items such as handbags and table cloths made especially for sale to tourists and for export.

With members in the USA and Canada, the Fair Trade Federation (FTF) has taken on a role pertaining to issues of economic justice rather than humanitarian aid or development projects. This means its mission comprises promoting and screening of wholesalers, retailers and a number of producers as complying with Fair Trade principles as well as networking and educational initiatives.

As an association of wholesalers, retailers, and producers FTF members are committed to:

• providing fair wages and good employment opportunities to economically disadvantaged artisans and farmers worldwide
• promoting long term relationships between producers and retailers so as to make their relationships ongoing and sustainable
• directly linking low-income producers with consumer markets and educating consumers about the importance of purchasing fairly traded products, which supports living wages and safe and healthy conditions for workers in the Third World

Other efforts of FTF include:

• organizing events for like minded people to meet and share their ideas
• preparing guides on how to do fair trade, such as how to set up a fair trade shop if there is not one in your town

The producers, wholesalers and retailers who are members of the FTF all share a common goal: to create a just and sustainable economic system through fair trade. Although it is true that Fair Trade sales are still a small part of total world commerce, they grow continuously and give hope to countless people who benefit for being paid justly for their products.

An allied organization, the Fair Trade Resource Network, has assumed an important role in the USA to develop and disseminate information and educational materials about the Fair Trade Movement.

In todays world great inequalities exist in living standards, education, health care and wages between poorer nations and richer ones. Inequalities, of course, even exist within societies in countries such as the USA and Canada. Free trade agreements, such as NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement), a treaty signed by Canada, Mexico and the USA, promotes Globalization of industries and trade but has not improved the lives of many workers in either the less wealthy nations or in the richer ones. Throughout the world, organizations of cooperatives, labor unions and Fair Trade and Non-Governmental Organizations ( NGO's) work different ways but all have the goal to achieve justice and equality for disadvantaged citizens in many places.

In different ways all the above help make the world a better place by:

• supporting worker rights and by providing opportunities to those who are economically disadvantage or oppressed
• promoting just wages to artisans, farmers and other workers
• efforts to educate the public about the importance to support buying in FTF and cooperative stores and from coop members
• campaigns to encourage patronizing Fair Trade and unionized stores and buying Fair Trade and union made products

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