This holiday season the Shepherd Express has put together gift ideas that are bothinexpensive and made in accordance with fair trade standards. While opinionsdiffer on the definition, fair trade labeling organizations usually refer tothe concept as a trading partnership using dialogue, transparency and respectto ensure greater integrity and fairness in international trade, whichalleviates poverty and fosters sustainable growth. In order to be certified asfair trade, members of these organizations must comply with a set of standards.
Some of the main principles include:
- Producers work in a safe and healthy environmentwithout exploitation or forced child labor
- Producers are paid a fair, agreed-upon price fortheir goods, incorporating the principle of equal pay for equal work by womenand men
- Producers maintain sustainable environmentalpractices
- Transparency and accountability among tradingpartners
But being fair costs more, right? Not necessarily.Take a pair of brand-name basketball shoes. Even though they’re made for $7using cheap overseas labor, they still cost the consumer $145. That’s a markupof nearly 2,000%. The average markup price for a fair trade product is only100% because it passes through fewer hands.
In 2007, Mayor Tom Barrett proclaimed Milwaukee a “Fair Trade City,”one of only four in the nation. Being the conscientious and progressivecommunity that we are, there are several locally owned retail stores in Milwaukee offering a widevariety of fairly traded, inexpensive goods.
AlterraCoffee
www.alterracoffee.com
Multiplelocations
414-292-3320
Hours: Mon. –Fri. 6:30 a.m. - 10 p.m., Sat. – Sun. 7 a.m. - 10 p.m. (Hours may vary bylocation.)
Alterra sells a fair trade sampler that includesfour half-pound resealable bags of coffee (holiday blend, Mexico Kulaktik,Nicaragua Don Zeledon and dark Sumatra), all of which are organic/fair trade,for $22.95. If that’s too spendy, you can pick up a 1-pound bag of fair tradeFrench roast or breakfast blend, or a canister of organic/fair trade tea, forless than $10. Still too much? You can buy teeny-weeny Omanhene chocolate barsat the register for less than $1. Heed theJapanese: It doesn’t matter how small or inexpensive the gift is as long as youwrap it really well.
Fair Tradefor All
www.fairtradeforall.net
5201 W. North Ave.
414-873-3832
Hours: Tue. –Sat. 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.
8730 W. North Ave.
414-257-1077
Hours: Mon. –Sat. 10 a.m. - 7 p.m., Sun. 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Owned and operated by husband-and-wife team AllenChristian and Gail Bennett, Fair Trade for All sells an astounding variety ofgoods, displayed in a well-spaced, organized arrangement. They offer a niceselection of children’s gifts (stuffed animals, puppets, clothing, books, woodtoys) that are safe, because when producers receive a fair price for theirproduct, they don’t resort to cost-cutting practices that sacrifice quality andconsumer safety. For the grown-ups, opt for tea tree soap or natural shower andbath oils. If paper is all you can afford, Fair Trade for All has notebooks,journals and cards.
Four Corners ofthe World
www.fairtrademilwaukee.org
5401 W. Vliet St.
414-443-9606
Hours: Mon. –Fri. noon - 7 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., Sun. 1 - 5 p.m.
Tucked in a quaint neighborhood just south of Washington Park,Four Corners of the World is a small shopfilled with unique, handmade holiday decorations and seasonal merchandise byartisans from all over the world. A newly arrived selection of wool and alpacagloves, hats and scarves from Ecuadorand Boliviamake for useful yet inexpensive gifts. You can also pick up Putumayo CDs ofworld music or small metal containers from Nepal that can hold some of yourloved ones’ favorite things.
Future Green
www.futuregreen.net
2352 S. Kinnickinnic Ave.
414-294-4300
Hours: Opendaily 11 a.m. - 8 p.m., Christmas Eve 11 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Holiday OpenHouse: Dec. 12 noon - 8 p.m.
The gift of food is usually a good one, and ittypically fits within a tight budget. Buy a handmade basket and fill it with anassortment of treats, such as a bag of bean soup by Women's Bean Project($6.95) or a jug of hand-harvested maple syrup ($6.95) and wild rice pancakemix ($8.50) from the White Earth Ojibwe reservation in Minnesota. For youreco-minded friends, 20% of the proceeds from the sale of cute handcraftedturtles ($6.95) go to the Sea Turtle Preservation Society.
PlowshareGift Shop
www.plowsharecenter.org
219 W. Main St., Waukesha
262-547-5188
Hours: Mon.noon - 6 p.m., Tue. – Fri. 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Every item in this nonprofit international fairtrade store in Waukesha’s historic district ishandcrafted by artisans in more than 30 developing nations of Asia, Africa andthe Americas.Whether it’s a colorful mobile made of wooden birds or furniture for the home,each piece is made from natural materials, reflecting the country in which itwas made.
Sweeney ToddFair Trade World Bazaar
www.sweeneytoddworldbazaar.com
2999 S. Delaware Ave.
414-744-8871
Hours: Tue. –Fri. 11 a.m. - 8 p.m., Sat. 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.
The Sweeney Todd Salon in Bay View has taken up thefair trade banner by expanding its inventory to include a host of reasonablypriced jewelry, such as stylish bracelets for less than $15 made from materialslike recycled glass, brass beads andexpertly carved bone and wood. Or go for a colorful hand-embroidered and-beaded coin purse or a belt pouch made from recycled rice bags, both for lessthan $20.
Third WorldHandcrafts Shoppe
www.capitoldrivelutheran.org
5229 W. Capitol Drive
414-445-1656
Hours: Tue. –Wed., Fri. – Sat. 9:30 a.m. - 3 p.m.
As a mission project of Capitol Drive LutheranChurch to support Christian workers in other countries, Third World HandcraftsShoppe has a small but stocked room of fairly traded merchandise that variesfrom the religious (wooden Nativity sets and baptismal napkins hand-embroideredin India) to the secular (hand-carved walking sticks and musical instruments).
Trails toBridges
www.trailstobridges.com
139 E. Capitol Drive, Hartland
262-369-1570
Hours: Mon. –Wed. 10 a.m. - 7 p.m., Thu. – Fri. 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.,Sun. noon - 4 p.m.
Trails to Bridges not only operates its own galleryin downtown Hartland, but also collaborates with area businesses, includingSweeney Todd Fair Trade World Bazaar in Milwaukee,as a wholesaler of fair trade items. It has an enormous selection of handmadegoods that traverse the globe, from 100% natural cotton baby clothes to candleshandmade from the pods of Brazil nut trees in Peru's Amazon rainforest.
