Recently, quite by accident, I came upon a definition of the term bottom line that surprised me. Up until now, I’d only heard it as referring to money - the bottom line is profit. Who will make the most money out of this venture? How will it affect the economy? The GNP is the deciding factor because, after all, the bottom line is money. Its meaning and importance are pretty much taken for granted and often stops conversations or inhibits questions about the validity of that meaning. 

But here’s a new outlook. I discovered that the term Bottom Line also refers to Essence or Meaning. In other words - that which makes a thing what it is. If you’ve ever asked questions such as - Why am I here? What’s this life all about? Is this all there is? - it would probably seem ludicrous that money would be the answer to any or all of them. 

If we were to actually contemplate this definition for bottom line,  how would our priorities change? Would our decisions be based on how relationships would be affected? If we make choices based on what is best for ourselves and our families, would we tolerate a job that demands an inordinate amount of overtime, depriving us of precious time with our loved ones? Would we sit quietly by while greed becomes the norm for political decision making rather than the anomaly? How would schools make their decisions about the education of children? Would the paradigm of dominance and exploitation continue to govern the way we live? What do we hold sacred? Again, I wonder, if we become conscious about the way we live, how many of us would actually say that money is the most important thing in our lives?  

Having been a peace educator for most of my adult years, I have found that the questions alone bring about a change in the way we view the world and how we interact with others in our daily lives. Twenty years ago these questions led me to the fair trade movement, which was little known at that time. I was part of a small group that started the Plowshare Peace Center in Waukesha in 1989, which then began the first Fair Trade Store in southeastern Wisconsin. This was a life changing experience. The more we learned, the more we began to see that fair trade practices can bring about a transformation, not only for the (mostly) women who make the products but for the world as well.

More than retail, and more than an awareness of just wages and humane working conditions, the fair trade movement is a heart centered movement that has the potential to change the paradigm which permeates our world.  As human beings, we could say that the bottom line is community - we are meant to connect with one another. We’re not here just to make a profit at the expense of other people. As we interface with the marketplace with community in mind, we begin to see and respect others and we then start thinking in terms of we rather than I.  This is living from the heart.  

The problem is that most us have had little experience living from the heart, especially with people we do not know or with whom we have little connection. The Heart Center is the place of giving and receiving – it takes in and gives out. Combined with strong intentions, coming from the heart gives us great personal power.

Most of us have been taught that giving is more virtuous than receiving, but giving and receiving actually work together. Think of the experience of shopping  - at the mall, mega-mart or large grocery store. The experience is actually that of buying products from institutions, rather than people. Sellers don’t know who we are and we do not know the sellers. Nor do we know who made the products or under what conditions they were made. The transaction is simply an exchange of goods, with no exchange of life energy.  

If we compare that interaction to open markets, art fairs, or small independently owned stores, we feel the difference. In these interactions the small business owner usually is interested in us and they come to know us. In some cases we know who made the products, or, as in fair trade stores you know something about the artisan and how the product is made.  In this way, life energy is exchanged and we have the opportunity to form meaningful relationships with others.  

There is a great distinction between profit and prosperity. When your prime motivation is profit, it’s often at the expense of others. For example, “free trade agreements”, like NAFTA and CAFTA have virtually eliminated the cost of labor by exploiting workers in developing countries. A toxic economy is created when buying and selling are competitive, adversarial, exploitative and impersonal. A toxic economy allows no space for the interconnectedness that creates community. In fact, in such an economy, workers, as well as the buyers feel exploited, abused and used. 

On the other hand, when you prosper rather than simply profit, everyone wins. The Chinese Philosopher, Confucius taught that your work is your art and if done with intention and love, it can transform you and the world. Your product or your service becomes imbued with power as a result of your mindful attention and discipline, and it is that energy that is transferred to everyone who comes in contact with it. If I am selling something I believe in, and I truly believe it has value, when others receive it they want to give something in return. 

This fundamental principal of the universe – when you give you must receive, when you receive you must give - is the foundation of community building. With such a foundation, we thrive, individually and collectively. Without a supportive community, individuals falter, neighborhoods become unsafe, cities struggle with crime and unemployment issues, and eventually civilizations fail. 

Small businesses make differences in the lives of people. They are creating places and spaces where we can build and rebuild lives together as they create opportunities for buying and selling more consciously. By supporting local businesses and markets, buying organic, and insisting on purchasing Fair trade, whenever possible, we are changing the world one interaction at a time.

 I’d like you to join me in exploring these thoughts further. It will not be a debate, nor a time to blame and complain, but a true dialogue, really exploring deeply into these thoughts – what do I hold sacred? What is my bottom line? How do I think about my own contribution to the world?  
Please indicate your intention to join me at , or call Fair Trade for All at 5201 W North Avenue, 414-873-3832. 

Alice Foley has been involved in the startup of three fair trade stores in southeast Wisconsin. She has been an adjunct instructor in the peace studies department of UWM for 15 years. Her consulting practice focuses on self -empowerment and creating learning communities.