October is Fair Trade Month

Fair trade is a system of trade that promotes social justice. Its basic principles include fair wages, safe working conditions, community development, direct market access, democratic decision-making, environmental protection and sustainable farming. Farmers and artisans join together to form cooperatives in which decisions are made democratically to establish supportive community systems such as schools, child care centers and health care centers and to ensure safe working conditions. Because growers and artisans have direct access to markets, the items farmed or produced by these cooperatives are available to the markets of the global north at competitive prices. At the same time, however, the profit goes to the grower or artisan, not to middlemen who might exploit workers for their own gain Moreover, the items produced are artisan-made, so a consumer of these products is able to enjoy a unique and unusual item that is not mass-produced or mass-marketed.

October is Fair Trade Month. It is a month set aside to recognize and support this important movement. Here are some of the things you can do to celebrate:

Educate Yourself.

Information about fair trade is easily available on the internet. Spending a little bit of time surfing the web will give you a lot of information concerning the issue.

Talk It Up.

Once you have learned a little about fair trade, talk about it to your family and friends. Tell your kids about it at dinner. Ask your co-workers if they know about it while you are waiting for the elevator. Bring it up at your book club.

Drink Fair Trade Beverages.

Coffee, tea and cocoa are among the first products that were fairly traded in the United States and now they are among the easiest products to find, both in retail stores and on the internet. You can also buy sugar to sweeten them with. Recently, delicious, fragrant, well-made wines have come onto the market, too.

Eat Fair Trade Food.

Make a rice pudding with rice, sugar and vanilla and garnish it with sliced bananas or pineapple. Or make a pilaf by warming rice in olive oil before seasoning and boiling it. Or forget about cooking altogether and just have chocolate for dinner. But make sure the rice, sugar, vanilla, bananas, pineapple, olive oil and chocolate are all fair trade.

Wear Fair Trade Clothing and Accessories.

Fair trade clothing, scarves, shawls, jewelry and handbags are all available. And since they are all handmade and often exhibit the traditional crafts or styles of their place of origin, you won't merely be demonstrating a high level of social consciousness; you'll be unusually stylish as well.

Decorate Your Home with Fair Trade Furnishings.

Arts and crafts, home furnishings, bath products, stationery and musical instruments are all available as fair trade products. Different products can originate in several countries in Asia, Africa and South and Central America. So the next time you need a journal, want to change your bed comforter, or would like to add something eyecatching to decorate a wall, go for something out of the ordinary. Think fair trade.

It isn't necessary to do a lot in order to make a difference. Just to be aware of the source of the things you buy, and to know that there might be an alternative, is a good beginning. Then to take action, even if it's only by buying one package of coffee instead of another, is a big step forward. There is no time like the present to take that step. After all, this is Fair Trade Month. But don't stop when October is over. Fair trade is an idea whose time has come.