Women & children at a refugee camp.

June 20th was World Refugee Day.  I apologize for posting this after the day but I still wanted to be sure to share some thoughts about World Refugee Day.

For the past several years I have had the opportunity and pleasure to work with refugees and asylum seekers from around the globe.  However, the vast majority came from the Middle East and East Africa.  As a mental health clinician, I have been invited into their journey and have heard their extraordinary stories.  My clients have faced tremendous trauma and unbelievable heartache and loss. And even through such adversity so many of them have been able to survive and thrive and start a new life here; finding joy and happiness in their new community and new friends.  It is not an easy journey, from being forced to flee their homeland to starting over in the United States.  Still countless people face such a journey each year and are able to start new and fulfilling lives in their new home country.

Newly arriving in the United States, refugees excitedly anticipate a new life.

What does all of this have to do with fair trade? Perhaps you are asking yourself this question.  I will not pretend to assume that fair trade will or can solve all the problems facing the world.  But fair trade does create a more stable environment for those participating in its system; fair trade provides jobs and health care and stable societies, which tend to have lower rates of conflict as well.

Wouldn’t it be an amazing turn of events if no one was forced to flee their home due to starvation, lack of work, persecution, war and beyond?  It wouldn’t it be great if families could stay together unless they decided to part from one another? Wouldn’t it be amazing if we all could stand up for what we believe in without the threat of persecution?  Perhaps someday this will be reality? And perhaps we could make it so through the purchases we choose to make!

Have a wonderful day – Dawn