 |
| Our fantastic new range of Dalit candles and soaps |
The Goldilocks Factor
When customers ask me what Fairtrade is all about, my go-to answer is that "Fairtrade benefits farmers, producers and artisans in marginalised communities throughout the world." This isn't much different from the message found on the Fairtrade Foundation's "Impact of our work" page, which reads, "[we] support small scale farmers and workers who are marginalised from trade in a variety of ways and carefully monitor the impact of Fairtrade on these communities." These statements cover quite a lot of ground in a small number of words, but I'd like to focus on just one aspect today, namely community. Fairtrade definitely improves the lives of individuals, but it's about more than individuals. Fairtrade definitely makes a difference on a global level, but its significance is more personal. To get a proper understanding of Fairtrade we need understand its relation to community, for it is at the level of community that Fairtrade's impact is most thoroughly and significantly felt.
What's the difference between Fairtrade and Thomas Hardy?
The complaint that we are losing our sense of community is not a new one. The romantic poets and Victorian novelists found no end of material lamenting the erosion of rural communities, and today you can hardly go a week without encountering some news piece on our increasing isolation from one another and the dwindling of communities. Whether it's social media, modern lifestyles, or what have you, community is, according to these commentaries, always under attack. And there's doubtless a degree of truth in these complaints, but while lamentations help bring problems to attention, they don't do much to solve them. And this is where Fairtrade has one up on John Clare or Thomas Hardy or the latest Huffington Post blog, for rather than bemoaning our loss of community, Fairtrade takes active steps to reinvigorate community. Fairtrade helps marginalised communities throughout the world compete economically and hereby helps those communities stay together and, in best case scenarios, to grow and thrive.
 |
| The Basor ("basket weaver") Dalit caste, 1916. By R. V. Russell [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons |
Reclaiming clay
Here at Carlisle World Shop we recently received in a beautiful range of Dalit products, from candles to spice-sets to soaps, all produced by Dalit communities in India. The Dalits, also known as the untouchables, throughout history have been forced to drink out of clay cups as a symbol of their untouchability. The Dalit Goods Company took this symbol and turned it on its head: now Dalit potter communities craft unique clay candle pots, the sale of which provides valuable work and improved quality of life for artisans in the Dhavari slums of Dubai. The Dalit soaps are made by an all woman enterprise in Kerela with a commitment to employing disadvantaged women. And all profits that the Dalit Goods Company makes go to providing loving homes and education for orphans and other vulnerable children in India. The Dalit Goods Company's story is a moving example of how, with the help of Fairtrade, a marginalised group of people can take charge of its identity and become a self-defined community.
 |
| Dalit candles all the way down |
It's communities all the way down
Fairtrade's commitment to community doesn't stop at the level of the producer, however. On the contrary, that commitment works its way all the way along the trade line and can be found in the schools, businesses, faith organisations, and, of course, shops that use or sell Fairtrade products and support the principles of Fairtrade. When you buy Fairtrade, or otherwise support Fairtrade, you become part of the Fairtrade community, and that's a fantastic community to belong to.
Carlisle World Shop Community
I'd like to end this post with a personal story that brought home the message of community to me. At the end of 2016 I became very ill and had to take four months off work. I'd never experienced anything like this before and, because of the nature of the illness (which related to mental health), I was embarrassed and lost a lot of confidence about my ability to do my job. It has been a year now since I phased back into work, and I've learned more about community during this period of recovery than I think I ever knew before. The amount of support and love I have received (and do receive) from my volunteers, the board who employs me (also volunteers), and our faithful customers has been beyond heart-warming. Nor does the supportive environment found at Carlisle World Shop apply to me alone, but rather extends to all who work and shop here. Not infrequently my volunteers provide agony aunt services to each other and our customers, and the environment at the shop is one of continual warmth and welcome (and good fun!)
Which brings me to my final point: Carlisle World Shop isn't only a shop; it's a community. There is perhaps no better way to understand the importance of helping marginalised communities around the world than participating in and coming to know the importance of community right here at home. So I urge you, visit your local Fairtrade shop, get involved in Fairtrade events, attend a Fairtrade talk, join a Fairtrade campaign, become part of the Fairtrade community, because Fairtrade knows the value of community and always has a welcome arm extended to anybody who wants to be part of it.
