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World Fair Trade Day and Month

World Fair Trade Day 2009 - Everything's Better When It's Fair and The Big Bang!

On May 9, 2009, communities in 80+ countries will mark Fair Trade Day and work to beat poverty, beat climate change, and beat the financial crisis!

On this special day, shops, networks, communities, and individuals hosted events, including Fair Trade parties, festivals, food tastings, talks, concerts, sporting events, fashion shows, and other activities to promote Fair Trade and campaign for trade justice together with farmers and artisans around the world.

To learn about events in your area, please visit the WFTD event calendar.

Visit the Fair Trade Resource Network (FTRN) website to download the World Fair Trade Day 2009 Action Guide for tips, ideas, and resources!  You can also order WFTD09 posters and postcards – free of charge.

In the US, FTRN is working to break last year’s world’s largest Fair Trade coffee break record on or around May 9. Fair Trade supporters around the country will take a break and enjoy a cup of Fair Trade coffee, a bar of Fair Trade chocolate, bake a cake using Fair Trade sugar, join in a drum circle with Fair Trade musical instruments or participate in a game of soccer using Fair Trade soccer balls. Learn how your event can be counted on the FTRN website. 

In Canada, events are being planned across the county during National Fair Trade Weeks. From Nova Scotia to the Yukon, communities can see the faces of Fair Trade, enjoy Fair Trade events and activities, or also take a break to support the movement. Contact the FTF office or visit the Canadian Coalition for Fair Trade website for details. For details on Quinzaine in Quebec, please contact Equiterre.

Since 2002, people in more than 70 countries have set aside the second Saturday in May as World Fair Trade Day, the first global campaign for the Fair Trade movement connecting producers, businesses, and customers around the world.  World Fair Trade Day has grown into a global celebration of Fair Trade with events organized worldwide, on and around the second Saturday of May. Events have included Fair Trade breakfasts, talks, markets, live performances, fashion shows, carnivals, processions and protests, to drive Fair Trade and campaign for justice in trade and promote sustainable environmental policy. Fair Trade products and produce from marginalized communities are showcased on the day.

Efforts in North America are part of the larger international campaign for fair trade as coordinated by the World Fair Trade Organization (formerly IFAT).


Fair Trade Month 

Since 2004, fair traders in the United States have celebrated every October as Fair Trade Month, a complement to World Fair Trade Day in May. Throughout the month, organizations seek to promote fair trade in the United States through contests, producer visits, movie screenings, and other efforts. These initiatives offer interested individuals across the country the opportunity to learn more about and expand fair trade.

This year, join the celebration of both World Fair Trade Day and Fair Trade Month by holding your own event, joining others in your area, sending messages of support, patronizing local fair trade businesses, and creating your own activities!