Trade As One

Trade as One has been blessed with so many people who have given so much of their time and talent to support what we do. They’ve worked tirelessly to help us accomplish our goals, and we can honestly say that our success has hinged on their efforts. We call these people our stalwarts, and we’re going to profile them here on our blog so that you can see what they’ve done and why they do it. Next on the list: Jimmy Chu. Jimmy has flown himself out to the Chicagoland area twice now to work with us, spent time at a few local events lending his talent, and taken numerous photos that we’ve used as well. He’s been blessed with seemingly endless amounts of optimism and energy. We love him.

What sparked your interest in fair trade?

I think it started with hearing about the unfair practices in the chocolate and coffee industries.  From that, the curiosity grew and opened up my eyes to the very large and very real issues that we face today with exploiting human capital in the name of expanding the bottom line. 

How did you connect with Trade as One?

Believe it or not - it was plugged during a sermon.  Dean Smith, Senior Pastor at the Highway Community in Palo Alto was concluding a sermon around Christmas time and mentioned that that year (2007) he purchased gifts for everyone on staff from the Trade as One website.  Intrigued, I gave the website a look and read more about it and loved its vision and mission statement.  I wanted to get more involved, so I decided to lob an email over to whom it may concern at Trade as One and within minutes Nathan replied and we had a lunch scheduled.  This was around January of 2008 - and it’s been a joy to see Trade as One grow ever since!

Why do you give your time to fair trade/Trade as One?

I think Trade as One is the perfect intersection of where my professional skills connect with personal passion/conviction.  I love the transformative ability that business and industry can have on a community, but it also has a darker side of needing to deliver profit to stick around.  So there’s a tension between doing the right thing and doing the profitable thing.  In that paradigm - often the profitable thing wins because it’s perceived as the right thing.  I love that Trade as One and other fair trade organizations are starting from the viewpoint of doing what is right should be a businesses primary objective and profits are still a need, but not at the expense of doing what is right.  That’s something I’m willing to throw my hat in the ring for any day of the week.

How have you incorporated fair trade into your life? How is your life different?

It’s really just made me a more informed consumer.  I think before I learned about fair trade, my consumer decisions were purely based on cost (whatever was the cheapest/best deal - that’s what I would buy).  Being more exposed to the issues surrounding fair trade has made me think more about how things get to the store and how the cheapest doesn’t always mean the best. I began to see how the way I was spending money centered around a bit of greed on my part - wanting to keep the largest portion for myself to benefit just me.  Being exposed to fair trade issues has made me think long and hard about how I spend - and realizing that there’s a lot of power in the disposable dollars.  It’s a blessing to be in a position where I have disposable income and I need to be a good steward of that.  It’s not like there’s a huge guilt trip each time I think about making every retail decision - it’s just a matter of recognizing that change needs to start somewhere and I only have full control over me - so that’s where I start.

What else are you passionate about?

I love design and the creative process that surrounds it.  Fashion design, architecture, photography, dance - all of those creative processes that result in something visual I find utterly fascinating.  I also really like to cook, eat, and travel any chance I get.

Where do you want fair trade to go in the future?

I wish that there was no need for a fair trade category.  I think in the future, if fair trade is the norm instead of being this special case - that would be a dream come true.

Which product is your favorite?

Hands down - the telephone wire bowls are my favorite.  The fact that you can pick any one of those up and give them a whiff and smell the smoky aroma of the African hut of the woman who weaved the item is utterly amazing.

Have you had any experiences sharing Trade as One with friends/family?

Yup.  I love telling people about Trade as One! The most recent was over a meal with my friend Connie.  She’s very in to all things green/sustainable and she’s been working at a solar company for a while and I mentioned how I was connected with trade as one.  We started talking and out of that conversation she let me know that she had some reusable packaging ideas - so I was able to connect her with Nathan/Stu and now they’re off to the races to bat around those ideas.  And whenever a conversation veers towards shopping line - I give Trade as One a plug.

Trade as One has been blessed with so many people who have given so much of their time and talent to support what we do. They’ve worked tirelessly to help us accomplish our goals, and we can honestly say that our success has hinged on their efforts. We call these people our stalwarts, and we’re going to profile them here on our blog so that you can see what they’ve done and why they do it. Next on the list: Steve Conrad. He posted on our blog a while back, but he’s given much more of his time and energy to create our Trade as One curriculum, which will be available this fall. He and his wife Emily live in Minnesota. If you’d like to volunteer with us, please send us an email at (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

What sparked your interest in fair trade?

I lived in Eastern Congo for 3 months in 2006, working with a Congolese-run development organization.  One of the programs that they ran was for women who had been victims of sexual violence.  They taught these women how to sew and make dresses and purses that they could sell.  I saw how these opportunities transformed their lives.  Most of these women were afraid to return to their home villages, but as they began to understand that they could support themselves, their self-esteem increased and I saw smiles return to their faces.  I realized that the best thing that I could do to help these women was to tell their stories and find ways to get their products in front of people.
The more time I spend in developing countries, the more I became convinced that economic development and providing opportunities for people is at least as important as giving aid money.  The poorest people in the world want nothing more than to be able to work so that they can support themselves and their communities.

Being back home now, I see the other side of it as well. I love that Fair Trade addresses both issues of poverty on the other side of the world as well as issues of consumerism and materialism in my own world.  Through Fair Trade, I have the opportunity to make small sacrifices in order to help other people create a better life. It’s a practical and beautiful way of thinking about money and consuming.

How did you get hooked up with Trade as One?

I had some friends who had seen Trade as One at the Willow Creek Arts conference.  My friends knew my interest in Fair Trade and economic development and told me that I should check out this organization.  I looked at the website and I loved what I saw.  I sent an email to Nathan, asking how I could help and we ended up chatting on the phone.  I loved his perspectives and thoughts about Fair Trade, consumerism, and economic justice.  I volunteered to help write a curriculum that Trade as One could use to help educate people about issues of poverty and consumerism and how these issues connect to followers of Christ, like myself, and the call to love and serve others.

How have you incorporated fair trade into your life? how is your life different?

We do basic things like purchasing fair trade coffee and chocolate.  But my wife and I continually talk about how we can live this out in more significant ways.  We want to find more opportunities to invest in things that we use every day – clothing, food products, etc.
We are also trying to be more disciplined and think about what we buy and why we buy.  We try to think about how our purchases either hurt people or help people.  We try to think about those people that we will never meet that make what we consume.

What else are you equally passionate about?

I love the Minnesota Vikings.  Have since I was 2 years old. 

Where do you want Trade as One/fair trade to go in the future?

I hope that we see a broader range of products made available in more places.  I want to see Fair Trade options for everyday items - how about Fair Trade socks? I’d love to see a fair trade line of clothing at major retailers like Target.
I also hope that the church leads the way with Fair Trade.  As a Christian, I want to experience what it means to more simply and generously.  In a culture that is obsessed with getting things at the lowest possible price, I think it would be incredible if the church was characterized by people who think about ways that we can invest a little bit more so that others can live with dignity. 

Which product is your favorite?

I love the Fair Trade football. (see previous answer about the Minnesota Vikings)

Have you had any experiences sharing fair trade with friends and family?

We give a lot of Fair Trade gifts to people – Christmas, birthdays, etc.  People love to hear the stories of these products – and it’s a great feeling to know that a simple gift has helped a person on the other side of the world.

Trade as One has been blessed with so many people who have given so much of their time and talent to support what we do. They’ve worked tirelessly to help us accomplish our goals, and we can honestly say that our success has hinged on their efforts. We call these people our stalwarts, and we’re going to profile them here on our blog so that you can see what they’ve done and why they do it. Next on the list: Sherri Meyer. She’s been a steady ally of ours in Chicago, and helped us immensely in pulling off huge and complicated events with Willow Creek Community Church. We’ve posted excerpts from an interview we did with her below. If you’d like to volunteer with us, please send us an email at (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

What motivates you to give your time to fair trade/trade as one?

I live in Chicago, and almost every time I’m on the exit ramp near my home, there is a homeless person asking for money.  And from time to time, I’ll place money in the person’s cup and hope that he/she will use it to buy food or to provide for some other need.  But I have almost no hope that the little cash I give will really turn the person’s life around. To some extent, I think we all have a heart to help and serve the poor.  And so we give to various charities or to individuals and hope that the money we give will make a difference. Sometimes we can see the direct results of our giving.  But I often wonder if my giving is helping someone in the moment alone (which is still a really great thing), or if it is helping change someone’s circumstances. Fair trade is a tangible way that I can help change someone’s circumstances. And knowing that some of the people who are creating these items are escaping from human trafficking or have HIV/AIDS makes it mean even more.

How have you incorporated fair trade into your life? How is your life different?

Sometimes it’s difficult to think about buying more “stuff” when the goal is to try to help people who have very little.  So instead of buying stuff that I don’t need, I try to go the fair trade route for items that I already intend to buy – like gifts, tea, journals, cards, etc. The items are high quality, so I never feel like I’m purchasing something that will get thrown into a drawer never to be seen again. However, I need to be honest, I have a long way to go because the convenient option to purchase from the store down the street is, well, convenient. Purchasing fair trade is worth the extra effort, though, and I’m making progress.  But beyond the purchases, the fair trade items that are in my home are like a ministry for me.  One of the things I love about Trade as One is that you get to know the story behind the person/people who made the item you are purchasing.  So every time I look at or use one of my fair trade items, I can think about the person who made it and can pray for him/her.

Which product(s) is/are your fave?

I love the journals, greeting cards, tea; and everyone loves the chocolate.

Where do you want Trade as One/fair trade to go in the future?

In the near future, I hope for more awareness for Trade as One and fair trade issues in general.  Particularly in the Midwest, it seems that many are not familiar with fair trade, what it means, and why it’s important.  I hope awareness will change people’s purchasing habits in the long-run.

Trade as One has been blessed with so many people who have given so much of their time and talent to support what we do. They’ve worked tirelessly to help us accomplish our goals, and we can honestly say that our success has hinged on their efforts. We call these people our stalwarts, and we’re going to profile them here on our blog so that you can see what they’ve done and why they do it. First on the list: Shelton Green. We’ve posted excerpts from an interview we did with him below. Make sure to read through to the bottom to see the radical decisions he’s made regarding his own consumer behavior. If you’d like to volunteer with us, please send us an email at (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

What sparked your interest in fair trade?

I first became seriously interested in fair trade when my faith community, Journey, hosted a Trade as One market in 2007. I had heard of fair trade before that and knew it was a good thing, but really only associated it with coffee and little knick-knacks and trinkets.

How did you get connected with Trade as One?

After the market at Journey I emailed ‘info@tradeasone.com’ saying that I wanted to help in any way that I could, and specifically to connect Trade as One with more churches in Texas.  I fully expected to get a very polite email back in a week saying ‘thank you, we will be in touch’ and for that to be the end of it.  However, I got a personal email back a couple hours later from Nathan George saying “Yes, would love to discuss how you can help Trade as One in Texas.”  From there we planned a speaking tour of Austin churches in spring of ‘07 and connected Trade as One with churches to host fair trade markets. 

Which product is your favorite?

The Hagar Laptop case.

What motivates you to give your time and talent to fair trade/Trade as One?

I am committed to fair trade for a simple reason…it is just.  I am committed to specifically helping Trade as One because they have a unique vision for the modern church and I want to be a part of that.  The people in churches across America want to do good and they want to help those less fortunate, however it is hard to find concrete ways for an entire church to do maximum good.  Trade as One has created a sustainable and replicable model to A) assist the church in redeeming the way we spend money and B) giving hope, justice and dignity to many across the world who produce fair trade products. 

How have you incorporated fair trade into your life? how is your life different?

After working with Trade in 2007 to set up the events in Austin I took a very critical look at how I spend money, shop and consume in general.  I decided to not buy any clothes in 2008.  It was an incredible experience.  Very hard for the first few months.  After a while the “habit of buying” started to break.  After the year of no clothes it was very clear to me that I didn’t need any clothes.  The only exception was that I did need some socks, underwear and undershirts.  Something unexpected happened, I got really comfortable with the clothes I already own.  I began to like them and feel like they were “good enough.”  That may seem weird.  Even now in 2009 I don’t find myself buying clothes for the sake of buying them or just on a whim.  I buy things when I need them.  Also, I learned to mend clothes.  I mended several items instead of throwing them out and buying something new.

What else are you passionate about?

Part of the reason I became so passionate about fair trade is it’s close link to work being done with victims of human trafficking. A group of us in Austin helped promote the film “Call + Response” and from that we launched our own organization to help folks in Texas end human trafficking.  “What’s Your Response?” is the name of our local organization (you can find the website here).  The major activity of what’s your response will be a coaster campaign that will tell the story of different trafficking victims from Austin, confronting them with the facts and asking “What’s Your Response?”