As followers of Christ, we embrace the challenge to have our faith shape every single part of our lives. This happens in overt ways—like going to church or treating others with kindness—but it also means our faith should influence what we value, how we spend our free time and even what we buy.
We live in an interconnected world, and everything we buy affects someone else’s livelihood, for better or for worse. As Catholic educators, we can influence how our school communities think about their purchases and consumption. The steps below are designed to help Catholic schools practice fair and ethical trade as a reflection of our faith. These simple steps include prayer, formation and action. This kit will help your school community bring to life the Catholic social teaching principle on work and the dignity of workers.
Step 1: Pray for those around the world who labor, especially those who work to produce the products we buy.
Step 2: Learn about how our Catholic faith invites us to be ethical consumers.
Step 3: Act by hosting a CRS Fair Trade sale to support artisans and farmers around the world.
In addition, please find supplemental resources and materials regarding fair trade below:
Looking for ministry tools for prayer, formation and action with a global perspective? Visit the CRS Resource Center to learn more!
Catholic Relief Services eases suffering and provides assistance to people in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality.
We are the official overseas relief and development agency of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and a member of Caritas Internationalis and the National Catholic Development Conference.
