This project offers a link between UU congregations and the people with whom the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee (UUSC) works. We can work for social justice and human rights, at home or in our congregations, through our economic choices. Listen to the difference fair trade makes:

In Chiapas, Mexico, indigenous cooperatives help farmers hold on to traditional lands and strengthen their communities in the face of economic globalization. With the support of fair trade, they are improving incomes, providing affordable credit, and training members in organic agriculture.

In Nicaragua, Equal Exchange helped small farmers to organize their own co-op, called PRODECOOP. By participating in the Coffee Project, your congregation can help these communities invest in farm improvements, reduce debt, improve nutrition, and provide leadership training for women. “It is very important for you to know that fair trade leads to better roads, better health and better lives for farmers not just in Nicaragua, but around the world,” says Rosario Castellón, former director of PRODECOOP.

In the Dominican Republic, one of the most economically depressed countries in the Caribbean, Equal Exchange works with the small cocoa farmers of CONACADO. Founded in 1988, this coop helps members increase their standard of living while providing support for quality development and organic production. Farmers grow their cocoa under the canopy of the forest, preserving habitat for wildlife and migratory birds.