subject: Fair Trade Products - How to make a change! [print this page] Do your part to change the world -
BE A CONSCIOUS CONSUMER!
The advantages of fair trade and the benefits of fair trade are becoming hard to deny.
"Before you finish eating breakfast this morning, you've depended on more than half the world. This is the way our universe is structured. We aren't going to have peace on earth until we recognize this fact."
Martin Luther King, Jr.
We are all consumers, that is an inevitable truth, but we do not have to be blind consumers. We are all bombarded on a daily basis with media and advertisements convincing us to spend our hard-earned dollars on things we don't need without so much as a thought as to where these things come from and what sacrifices were made along the way to bring them to us.
If we were all made aware of the human indignities and environmental consequences involved in most of our purchases, perhaps most of us would think twice before we forked over our hard-earned cash.
We, as consumers, have the power to change things. The almighty dollar speaks volumes, and where you spend yours is a great way to let your voice be heard. Buy local products when possible, organic foods when possible, and when buying from the global market, make sure the goods are Fair Trade.
Incorporating Fair Trade and ethical products into your daily life can be simple. Here a few helpful tips:
Start your day with a cup of Fair Trade coffee or tea. Add someFair Trade Sugarand a splash of organic cream or soy milk. Yum!
If your local grocery store doesn't already carry the goods you are looking for, request that they do! Most stores are more than happy to accomodate by adding Fair Trade foods such as coffee, tea, sugar, chocolate, bananas, rice, vanilla, and more. The list of Fair Trade Certified products is always growing - you can find the latest and greatest at www.transfairusa.org
Change your clothes! Shop the local thrift shop and create your own ethical, funky, recycled style. Or if you must buy new, make sure it was Made in the USA or ethically produced elsewhere. Fashionable and affordable Fair Trade clothing is widely available today, so no excuses!
Share your Fair Trade values by making your next special event Fair Trade! Whether it's a Fair Trade birthday party, a housewarming party or wedding shower, or a Fair Trade wedding, the possibilities are endless!
Buy Fair Tradekids toysfor the children in your life. Use these toys as a tool to teach about other cultures, the principles of Fair Trade and why they are important. Show them why handmade gifts can be so much more special than factory gifts. Let's raise a generation of campassionate world citizens!
Fair Trade goods and other ethical products can and should be an integral part of your daily life. The point being that we need to put thought into every purchase we make and be conscious of the effects of that purchase.
If you can live this way, and share these principles with everyone you know, you will be taking the first giant leaps toward making our world a better place to live for many generations to come.
"With compassion in our heart, every thought, word and deed can bring about a miracle."
