Back in the Fair Trade Blogosphere

It has been almost a month since my last posting, and I am itching to get back to a Fair Trade focus. Not that I haven’t been trying to live a Fair Trade life, you understand, but I took a bit of leave to help an elderly relative. That’s meant, actually, a lot of shopping (check out the photo of me and cousin Dollie in front of a flat-screened t.v. no less) but not a lot of time to report out.

I’ve also been trying to work a little behind the scenes and at my day job on a couple of efforts to build consumer commitment to Fair Trade. I am very excited by the success of World Fair Trade Day—we beat those nice Finnish people to regain the record for largest Fair Trade break in the world—and by activity afoot to convene another Fair Trade Futures conference in 2010. But I’ve also been, to be honest, distracted by inter-movement tensions that seem to crop up a lot among Fair Traders.

I’ve written on this blog and in my book about the distinctions between fully committed companies and those with specific product lines. With new certifications and product claims coming on the scene, there are more and more debates about which principles put farmers and artisans first, which standards are the most rigorous, and which associations and certifications can best ensure integrity in the value chain. I was hoping that the May World Fair Trade Organization meetings in Nepal would help set some strong, producer-led directions, but apparently there is disagreement within that group of the best way forward regarding product and company labeling. Looking to my own back yard, there have been two sets of "movement" collaboration conversations trying to set objectives, strategies and “authority” for new consumer campaigns. There has been a lot of rehashing of old issues, going in circles about new ones, and sapping of energy of talented, committed people. Oh, and have I mentioned recent mixed media coverage of whether or not Fair Trade is really fair?

Still, I’m not discouraged because, in addition to it being a beautiful day here in Washington, D.C., I believe in the core values that Fair Trade espouses. Recently I was reading a Harvard Business Review posting about the lost of trust in the business world that said that “trust, reliability and relationships” are the new competitive advantages. Hah! Those values are the ones that have driven Fair Trade for 60 years!

Despite all our difficulties, our politics, our opportunism, the movement has, across the decades, uplifted core values which rally the best motivations of people, which result in successful business practices from “crop to cup” as they say, and which create sustainable economic systems that serve as model for how households and multinationals can run their finances.

I’m back in the blogosphere to say Fair Trade and its leaders ain’t perfect. It won’t fix every problem of poverty and shouldn't pretend to. But if in these days of economic meltdowns and increasing inequality, of climate calamities and changing power structures, you want a framework built on “dialogue, transparency and respect” Fair Trade has something for you. We need your help to stay on course and chart new directions. I hope this blog can help.

Happy summer!

Fair Trade Bug Repellent? Says Who?

I did some shopping this weekend, and I got a surprise at Whole Foods. My local store finally got Fair Trade certified bananas! While they weren't from my preferred brand, Oke, I decided to buy a bunch. This was my effort to register with the store manager that I am glad she or he paid attention to those comment cards I placed in the suggestion box. The voice inside my head, though, started to chide, “Are those bananas from plantations, or small family farmers?”

Ignoring that din because, hey, it was a three-day weekend, I headed to a local nursery in search of my favorite tomato plant. At the counter, a display proclaiming Fair Trade citronella caught my eye. A company was trying to get me to buy a "Brazilian twist" on inspect repellent. Apparently the company is a big supporter of "community trade." (Again the voices in my head: "oh, lord, not another type of trade!") Apparently I could avoid bugs AND do right by the indigenous people of the Amazonian rain forest. I picked up a brochure but not any products.

Now that I am settled back at home, I see from the company materials that they do seem to push all the right buttons around supporting the "tribes of the Amazon Co-op." Because the company buys the natural oils and medicinal plants that end up in its incense and candles, the community has an establish trading partner. The company is concerned with community needs like dental clinics and schools. Because all the harvesting is sustainable, the company is also very green and doing its part to help the planet and its people.

Or so the marketing materials want me to believe. Now, let me be clear, I know nothing about this company besides what its promotional materials tell me. But my critical eye is noticing a couple of nuances. First off, like most of us, I am interested in quality. But on closer inspection the product I was interested in is not really being sold. The “point of purchase” materials tout citronella, which I think most of us agree suggests, “bug repellent.” Yet the product descriptions say nothing about keeping bugs away, only about achieving “peaceful patio environments.”

And, what about the "community trade" and this Amazon co-op? If the products are “fair” that implies a fair price was paid to the farmers and gatherers of the rain forest plants. In the Fair Trade system, these wages and premiums would be distributed through a democratic association structure. Fair Trade co-ops are usually affiliated with an umbrella group such as the World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO) or the Fairtrade Labelling Organizations. Yet no such affiliations were made on the materials. How do I know that the Amazon co-op isn’t just a creation of the company, kind of life an off shore bank, that allows it to make claims about its social responsibility values?

When I was at Whole Foods, the bananas had a label from TransFair USA indicating that the value chain that brought that piece of fruit from a Colombian farm had been independently certified to meet internationally agreed upon standards. A few aisles away there was a kiosk for Fair Trade crafts and the company, World of Good, noted on its sign that it was a member of the WFTO. Those signifiers—while not guaranteeing perfection in a value chain—allowed me to have some confidence about the companies I was doing business with.

One of the bright sides of our economic crisis has been a marked appreciation for the role of regulation in our financial institutions. We have seen—tragically in some cases—what happens when the logic of the market and the imperatives of profit making are allowed to reign free of limits and scrutiny. In economic justice movements, too, we need mechanisms for setting standards and verifying claims. A label or a seal won’t tell you everything—like who owns the bananas I bought this weekend—but these markers do give you some guidance in deciphering promotional claims. Our Fair Trade institutions exist to keep the movement honest and strong. Pretty promotional materials and carefully chosen buzz words don’t get us closer to fair and sustainable trade, rules and regulations do.

Fair Trade Trips, Finns, and Futures

One of my first official Fair Trade gatherings was the 2002 convening of the NEWS! (Network of European World Shops) conference in Belgium. It was there that I met a delegation from Finland, who shared with modest pride the story of a cargo ship—dubbed Estelle—destined with humanitarian supplies for Angola. Although I don’t recall the names of any of the Finns I spoke to, I remember clearly how friendly they were to me (the only American at the conference in post-9/11 days) and how earnest they were about the symbolism and the impact of a Fair Trade journey from their country's shores to Africa.

Those good people of Finland have been on my mind this month as the United States has endeavored to win back from Finland the record for World’s Largest Fair Trade Break. I did my part at an event in Hyattsville, Maryland, hosted by the Book Nook and featuring Ten Thousand Villages from Alexandria, Virginia. Although the results won’t be out for another week or so, there is a small part of my American heart rooting for the Finns to retain the record.


But beyond friendly competition, the occasion of World Fair Trade Day got me reflecting on the Fair Trade movement. I was bemused, flipping through the NEWS! conference agenda dated by seven years, to see topics that are still relevant today:

• The Definition of Fair Trade (I recently posted about "who owns the Fair Trade movement" and "ownership" connotes controlling definitions)
• The Impact of Fair Trade (The topic of a chapter in my 2007 book was "Yes, But Does It Work?" )
• Fair Trade in Supermarkets: Threat or Opportunity (we could just replace the word “supermarket" with "big box stores”)
• Fair Trade: A Model or Symbol (the familiar debate of are we reforming the market system or replacing it with an alternative)

In fact, some of these topics were conspired at the Fair Trade Futures conference I helped convene in 2005 in Chicago.

Does this mean that the Fair Trade movement is stuck, asking the same questions over and over but not getting anywhere? Or is this a reflection of how young the movement is—asking itself essential questions of identity and power? For me, I think it is a little bit of both. But more that that, it is a sign that the movement is small and still shaped by a relative handful of organizations and individuals, here and around the world. We keep having conferences—and I am working to make another event happen here in the States in 2010—for a couple of reasons: some questions are perennial and unanswerable, for one thing. Also, the movement is young and attracting fresh interest in different communities throughout the world. And, to expand and diversify, the movement needs events and meeting places to attract new voices and views.

At the 2002 conference in Belgium, someone at a plenary challenged, “We say we are a movement, let’s move!” With another successful World Fair Trade Day celebrated in 80 countries, I think we can take satisfaction that we are moving forward. Maybe we are slow, like a cargo ship, but we have creativity, commitment. Millions of struggling artisans and farmers are willing to join us on the journey.

Books, balls, and making a bang for World Fair Trade Day

World Fair Trade Day events on or around Saturday, May 9th are quickly approaching! Here in the Washington, DC-Maryland-Virginia area, we have a couple of opportunities to make a big bang for Fair Trade!

I will be returning to my old neighborhood of Hyattsville, Maryland to participate in an event at the independent bookstore, Book Nook. I'll be discussing responsible consumerism with folks who drop by from 1:00 to 3:00. Also, Ten Thousand Villages of Alexandria will be selling crafts, coffee, and chocolate from 1:00-4:00 p.m.
Free coffee and chocolate samples will be available!


View Larger Map

From that event, I may head over to the Fair Trade Soccer/Basketball Game & Takoma Fair Trade Tour, from 2:00pm to 4:00pm starting at the Takoma Recreation Center, 300 Van Buren St. (at 3rd St.) NW Washington, DC 20011. Here's the announcement for that event:

Play fair! Join Fair Trade Sports representative April Thompson and FTRN Executive Director Jeff Goldman in a fun game (basketball or soccer, depending on court/field availability and interest of participants) using fair trade balls. No experience necessary! Afterwards, we will have an informal presentation about Fair Trade Sports and FTRN, and follow these Takoma residents on a walking tour of the many great fair trade businesses in the area. Note that we will start at the Takoma Recreation Center (meet at the basketball courts at the corner of Van Buren and 3rd) and move on from there. Please contact April at 202-321-3245/prillytee "at" gmail.com for more info or if you want to join us mid-stream and want to find out where we are in our neighborhood tour.

If you aren't in this area, please check with the Fair Trade Resource Network for events in your area. Even if you can't attend a public event, you can take a pledge to take a break for Fair Trade in your own home. Hopefully together we can set a new World's record for Fair Trade!

Flying Business Class: My New Travel Habit?

By virtue of my role as a consumer educator, I travel a lot. These days, with some additional family responsibilities in New Jersey, I am on a train or turnpike even more than usual. So perhaps I can be forgiven for splurge on a recent Airtran flight from Atlanta to Washington, when I purchased an upgrade to business class…except that I can’t seem to shake the shame of it. Well, “shame” is a strong word, but what I can’t seem to get out of the back of my head is how easily I settled into my new role as “business class passenger.” I am privileged to even have access to air flight when so many travelers in the majority world are confined to bicycles or rickshaws or stuck in cramped converted school buses. Yet after one flight, I start having a “I could get used to this” response.

Of course, everybody deserves a little indulgence, and I don’t want to make too big a deal over a $49 splurge. For the record, the upgrade wiped out my baggage fee and entitled me to a free cocktail and extra-special snacks that replaced my buying lunch. But the word that trips me up is “entitled.” Because I had the money for an impulse purchase (“Sure Mr. Ticket Taker, swipe my Visa for an upgrade!) I got to leap-frog the hundred or so other people I am usually hanging out with back in coach class. While they were shoving over-stuffed bags into the over-head bin, a flight attendant was calling me by name to interest me in a free pre-flight beverage (in my favorite flavor of mango), all because I could afford 50 extra bucks.

To make matters worse, in the course of a one hour and 10 minute flight, I got used to the conditions, eagerly anticipating my speedy exit from row 3, instead of hunkering down for the long, slow slog from the back of the jet. When I was in the air terminal, I took new notice of the “Fly Clear” security system, where you can pay an annual fee to breeze through security. Having that momentary daydream is when I knew something was going wrong. I have been opposed to the idea that the wealthy can avoid the inconveniences of national security by paying for special screening. What was going on with me? After one single swanky flight, I am thinking about purchasing a security clearance? What kind of “conscious consumer” am I? Talk about a slippery slope.

I was given a little relief from this guilt trip by an article in yesterday’s New York Times by David Segal, “No, You Can’t Get an Upgrade.” As a former student of sociology, I was reminded of the force of culture in a person’s behavior. Segal describes Americans as “epic consumers” and notes that our desire for “bigger and better’ is “…so neatly woven into the double helix of our DNA that we hardly notice it. When we buy a television, it’s rarely because we lack a TV. We want a thinner TV, or a bigger TV, or a TV with features that sound beguiling even if we have no idea what they do.” Well, that explains it! My desire to have more for the sake of a few creature comforts was part of my cultural training. Certainly it makes sense that some of my greedier instincts and not so admirable impulses started kicking in once I indulged.

The article served as a good reminder to me. As I try to take this economic crisis as a time of encouraging fellow traders to reassess and recalibrate consumption, I don’t want to disregard the very real pulls we feel toward a certain way of life or standard of living. I don’t want to suggest that sacrifice or down-sizing is easy, even in the name of simplicity. I certainly don’t want to suggest I have it all figured out or that my way is some holier-than-thou approach. I want to reclaim the American dream, not trash it.

Last week I acted like so many good Americans—maybe I even helped stimulate the economy—by consuming more than I needed. And I re-learned a lesson about what I really value and why. Perhaps it was worth the $49 after all.

The Meaning of Economy Recovery: Taking a Few Initial Steps

I originally wrote this posting yesterday, but slept on it a bit and offer this revision:

From pundits to real estate agents, I have heard many people speculate about how long the economic crisis will last. While I certainly don't wish long-term suffering for anyone in the States (I have a family member of my own recently laid-off) or overseas (where the poor suffer the most from broken economic systems), I do hope recovery is not quick. Unless we have sufficient time to identify what went wrong, why and how, I don't think consumers or institutions will change their ways.

The word "recovery" has a special meaning to me as a member of a 12-step program where we seek to recover from unhealthy, destructive behaviors and mindsets. I think of how so many households over-indulged in spending, or too many of us didn't recognize the impact of our consumption on others. We were addicted, in a sense, to the pursuit of more things no matter what the cost of acquiring them. In order to recover from an addiction, a person has to go through a series of steps that involve recognition of the issue and a commitment to changing one's ways. True recovery is never quick or easy.

I offer up the 12 step philosophy to help us recover a sensible, sustainable, serene approach to meeting our wants and needs as individuals. Some of the steps refer to a Higher Power, which may be off putting to readers who aren't people of faith. But the point is not to promote religion so much as to help us recognize our ultimate lack of control. A paradox of "recovery" is that in admitting your lack of power you actually gain an ability to get your affairs in order.

Although there are twelve steps, they don't always come in order. I offer up a few that I think ring true for those of us who have over-indulged or failed to plan well. I hope I don't sound harsh or moralistic. Instead, just as I promote budgeting in my book, I want to share an approach to financial matters that has helped me. By looking at our consumption with humility, not despair, we can "recover" from our past habits to stabilize and thrive: something I wish for our economies and our families.

Step 1- We admitted we were powerless over irresponsible consumption - that our lives had become unmanageable

Step 2 - Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sane consumption

Step 4 - Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves

Step 5 - Admitted to God, to ourselves and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs

Step 10 - Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it

Step 11 - Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood God, praying only for knowledge of God's will for us and the power to carry that out

Step 12 - Having had a awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to others, and to practice these principles in all our affairs

55,000 Strong for Fair Trade on May 9th

I'm celebrating World Fair Trade Day this year with a Fair Trade discussion and chocolate tasting at independent bookstore Book Nook in Hyattsville, Maryland. I hope our group will be joining 55,000 others in the United States who want to reclaim the record for World Largest Fair Trade Break. Last year more than 12,000 of us took some time out around and set the first world's record for a Fair Trade break. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, Finland stepped up and got more than 50,000 Fair Traders together in Helsinki.

This year, though, with the help of the Fair Trade Resource Network, we are going to reclaim the title in a variety of fun, informative and creative ways! I want to share a couple ideas I have heard of that seem simple but effective but first, check out this video for encouragement:


To join in the fun AND promote economic justice consider these ideas:

* Invite a couple friends to a local coffee shop and have them brew up some Fair Trade coffee or tea.
* Serve up Fair Trade hot chocolate for a girl/boy scout troop or sports event that your kid attends.
* Grab your drum and head to a local park for a circle that celebrates Fair Trade with a bang.
* Invite your book group to learn about Fair Trade and discuss its pros and cons.
* Host a craft sale after your congregation's weekly service.

If you need sources for these products, visit the Fair Trade Federation or TransFair USA for a list of retailers. If you need free promotional materials or education materials, ask for FTRN! They'll also explain how to record your break's participation to help us meet our goal.

And if you are not in the United States, fear not! The World Fair Trade Organization has resources for celebrations around the globe.