World Vocal Ensemble Helps Peacecraft Celebrate Global Fair Trade Day in Albuquerque

What is fair trade?  The World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO) has a complete and complex answer.  Read about it here. All you need to know is that this is an economic system that gives farmers, artisans, and cooperatives a fair price for their products, which includes coffee, chocolate, flowers, arts and crafts, clothing and footwear, and many other products.

This movement has been growing steadily over the past two decades (and there is still a long way to go).

But the progress has been steady enough over the years to give the global community a  strong reason to celebrate. And that is why the Fair Trade Resource Network commemorates World Fair Trade Day on May 11 every year, although celebrations have been scheduled around the country on May 4-19, 2013,

In Albuquerque, the celebration took place on Saturday, May 11, at Peacecraft, our local fair trade store.  There was huge banner over a collection of colorful baskets from Africa, and a display urging people who entered the store to discover fair trade.

The highlight of the afternoon was the performance of the local a capella group World Vocal Ensemble,which offered songs from Georgia, Bosnia, Bulgaria, and the Appalachian region of the United States.

The group--which in other setting has also performed songs from Colombia, Hawaii, India, Ireland and Iran--invites you to hear them in concert Saturday, June 15, at St. Timothy Lutheran Church, 211 Jefferson Ave. NE at 7:00 p.m.  $10 Admission  Donations Accepted  

Here is a video of the World Vocal Ensemble perfoming the song Nardanina  at Peacecraft.  This is a traditonal piece from the Achara region of the Republic of Georgia.