The thinking behind fair trade goes beyond fair trade coffee, and beyond helping small farmers and craftspeople in developing countries.
On Saturday (after drinking my fair trade coffee), I took three pairs of shoes to a small, local shoe store where they have an old guy who does shoe repairs. I told him what I needed done and he quoted me a price and told me when they would be ready.
It occurred to me as I left that I could have probably come close to buying some new shoes at Wal-Mart for the same price.
But I didn’t do that. Instead, I used my power and freedom to choose as a consumer. And I chose to trade fairly.
Isn’t that what I did? I think it is.
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