Home
/
RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE
/
Can Fair Trade End Poverty?
Can Fair Trade End Poverty?
Mar 19, 2026 1:15 PM

Which does a better job helping the impoverished peoplearound the globe—free trade or fair trade? The American Enterprise Institute recently held a debate on that topic at John Brown Universityentitled “Free Trade vs. Fair Trade: What Helps the Poor?” Click here to watch the debate between scholars Claude Barfield, Paul Myers, and Victor Claar.

In the debate Dr. Claar raises concerns about both the logic and economic reasoning underlying the fair trade movement. He also expands on that theme in his recent monograph, “Fair Trade? Its Prospects as a Poverty Solution”, the latest volume in the Acton Institute’s Christian Social Thought Series.

Related: On April 11, Dr. Claar will be visitingActon on Tap to deliver a talk on “Envy: Socialism’s Deadly Sin.”To learn more about Acton on Tap and other Acton sponsored lectures, visit our events page.

Previous Article：Does the Vatican think water should be ‘free’? Next Article：HHS Mandate Fits Bigger Pattern
Comments
Welcome to mreligion comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE
Earth Day and Asceticism
It is ing mon for theologians to mend asceticism as a more eco-friendly lifestyle, as Fr. Michael Butler and Andrew Morriss note in their recent monograph, Creation and the Heart of Man. And that, no doubt, it can be. However, as Butler and Morriss point out, it is very important, from an Orthodox perspective at least, to understand precisely what asceticism is. Rightly understood, they note, “to be ascetic is to learn to live rightly on the earth with God,...
‘Sex Workers’ As Social Workers: A Hash Of Hollywood Idiocy
“Fading Gigolo,” a movie starring and directed by John Turturro, is apparently a sentimental look at the world of prostitution. NPR says the film keeps ” the mood light even as the filmmaker is gently tugging the plot in other directions, to look at loneliness and longing and heartbreak.” Turturro himself says that sex workers are rather like social workers (which should thrill social workers): I think there are positive things about what sex workers do. I know and consulted...
Pope Benedict XVI And A Human Ecology
Most people don’t put “Catholic philosophy” and “ecology” in the same thought, but Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s writing prove that the Church has much to say about ecology. In the newly published The Garden of God: Toward a Human Ecology, the former pope’s teachings about human life, the environment and physical and social sciences are engagingly presented. According to William L. Patenaude atThe Catholic World Report: The timing of this book is particularly good. Of late, environmental scientists are escalating...
Capital Then and Now
Speaking of Thomas Piketty, here’s a very helpful and revealing interview with Matthew Yglesias, “Thomas Piketty doesn’t hate capitalism: He just wants to fix it.” (HT: PEG) A few highlights with ment: On the need for a historical perspective in economics: Thomas Piketty: … It’s not only economists’ fault. Historians and sociologists are too often are leaving the study of economic issues to economists. Sometimes nobody does it. This is a really important point. We need not only economic analysis...
Letters to the Exiles: A New Approach to Christian Cultural Engagement
“What is our salvation actually for?” It’s a question that many Christians neglect to ask or seriously consider, and even for those of us who do, we tend toward answers far too focused on ourselves — our personal well-being, piety, or pathway to heaven. But what if salvation isn’t just about us? What if it’s about something deeper, wider, and richer? This is the question at the center of For the Life of the World: Letters to the Exiles, a...
Small Business Owners Can Be Cronies Too
Politicians e cheap. To buy one’s influence you generally need deep pockets, which is why crony capitalism tends to be the domain of “big business.” But a recent article in Slate by California restaurateur Jay Porter shows that some small business owners dream of being cronies too. Cronyism occurs when an individual or organization colludes with government officials to create legislation or regulations that give them forced benefits they could not have otherwise obtained voluntarily. Those e at the expense...
Samuel Gregg on Religious and Economic Liberty
As we approach our ing April 29th Conference in Rome “Faith, State, and the Economy: Perspectives from East and West“, Acton’s Research Director, Samuel Gregg shares his insights on the relationship between religious and economic liberty and the threats society now faces. Gregg also discusses where he thinks places like Europe and America are heading, as well as what some of the guest speakers will talk about during the conference. PowerBlog: Why is the Acton Institute’s ingApril 29thConference in Rome...
Environmental Consciousness and Authentic Spiritual Practice
Beware of “environmental consciousness” masquerading as authentic spiritual practice, says Fr. Michael Butler and Prof. Andrew Morriss in this week’s Acton Commentary: It is important to clarify the Church’s teaching on asceticism because many voices in the environmental movement encourage a kind of ascetical lifestyle in the name of “ethical consumption.” Orthodox writers on the environment are not immune to the temptation of putting the ascetical tradition of the Church in the service of another agenda. For example, the conclusion...
Educational Research Just Might Be Killing Education
Perhaps you’ve seen this: the 8th grade test from Bullitt County Schools in Kentucky, circa 1912. Here are a few questions the 8th graders were expected to be able to answer: Define latitude and longitudeLocate the Erie Canal. What waters does it connect, and why is this important?How does the pare in size with other glands in the human body? Where is it located? What does it secrete?Define the following types of government: democracy, limited monarchy, absolute monarchy, republic. Give...
How the Profit Motive Helps the Environment
On this Earth Day, says Pierre Desrochers, we should spare a thought for the profit motive, an unheralded but long-standing champion of the environment. “The search for increased profitability,” ntoes Desrochers, “has long delivered both economic and environmental improvements by promoting the evermore efficient use of material resources.” With Earth Day near (this Monday), we hear the usual annual litany of laments from environmentalists, urging us to mend the errors of our industrial ways. Greed and profits, we are told...
Related Classification
RELIGION & LIBERTY
RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE
About
Terms and Conditions Privacy policy Cookie Settings Contact Us
Services
Login register
mreligion RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE RELIGION & LIBERTY
Links
zpostcode Recruit weather mreligion Yellowpages sport constellation shopping name game directory literature Word tour furnish Lottery tftnews lyrics News digital car dir Edu Finance
Copyright 2023-2026 - www.mreligion.com All Rights Reserved