When I was asked to write a book about fair trade, the first thing I thought was that I would ask Stacey Toews and Hugo Ciro from Level Ground Trading here in Victoria for help. Not only did they offer me a lot of time, but they patiently explained complex ideas so that I could understand them. Many of the beautiful photos in the book come from them, and without them this book would not have been written. Mary Weston from VIDEA sent messages all the way to Zambia on my behalf so that I could hear the voices of people who are directly affected by fair trade. Jacqueline McAdam of Resilient Solutions explained different forms of fair trade to me, from small to very large. Susan Albion of the Global Village Store shared many names with me. James Milligan of Social Conscience Company, Mariana Lamaison Sears from Media, Pennsylvania, and Scott Runkel and Katie Feldman of Cutthroats for Fair Trade, all gave me their time, though they didn’t even know me. Thank you all, your generosity was so inspiring.
I’d also like to thank Michelle Mulder, who shared her wisdom about writing informational books, and Sarah Harvey, who guided me with her usual clarity. Julie and Avery Paul, thank you for sharing your story. Alexis Martfeld and Caleb Schulz, thanks to both of you for reading portions of the manuscript.
My writing friends, Laurie Elmquist, Julie Paul, Alisa Gordaneer, Robin Stevenson and Alex Van Tol, all listened with patience. Thanks to Michael Pardy for going over the manuscript with me, and to Dawn Jones for your eagle eye.