Summary

This book unfolds rather like a good novel; it is compelling and convincing. The authors approach their topic with a great deal of background and superb organizational abilities. As the premise unwinds, readers are provided with excellent explanation and justification, as well as real-life accounts of people and their experiences. As a side benefit, the book also yields an admirable example of well-done qualitative case studies that are triangulated effectively with survey methods. --Sara U. Douglas, University of Illinois Social Responsibility in the Global Market illuminates an alternative way of conducting business that bridges the consumer′s social concerns and the producer′s financial concern through a compatible, nonexploitive, and humanizing system of fair trade. In-depth case studies introduce past successes and failures for seven Alternative Trading Organizations (ATOs) as they foster artisan empowerment, cultural integrity, and business sustainability. An integrative model synthesizes business conditions, tasks, and skills imperative for effective functioning of a fair trade system in an increasingly competitive global market. Mary Ann Littrell and Marsha Ann Dickson′s treatment of ATOs provides useful insights for academics in marketing, international development, entrepreneurship, and anthropology. In addition, this book offers practical finance for practitioners in international development, socially responsible businesses, and consumers concerned about impacts of their marketplace decisions.