Seattle Fair Trade Festival

Cara and I finally found the Seattle Fair Trade festival after ten minutes of driving up and down Greenwood Ave. I expected balloons, posters, and other markers of a community festival, but the Seattle Fair Trade festival consisted of about ten booths, handmade signs blowing away in the wind, and an assortment of handicrafts laid on sheets in the parking lot.

Instead of being discouraged by the smallness of the festival, I was thankful for its existence. Hopefully, as people become more and more interested in ethical consumerism, the festival will grow in size and effectiveness. More people will become aware. More fairly-traded products will be purchased. More people will receive a living wage and a higher quality of life.

A highlight of the festival was a conversation with a staff member from Equal Exchange, a group that works with primarily coffee and cacao (chocolate beans) farmers. After learning more about how EE partners with communities to ensure fair prices and quality products, he gave Cara and I a generous sample of fairly-traded coffee.

With a deep inhale of my fairly-traded coffee beans, I thought, what a great way to start the weekend!