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Ten Thousand Villages is a program of the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) started in 1946 that pioneered the concept of Fair Trade by buying crafts directly from artisans in the developing world and paying a Living Wage . HISTORY In 1946 Edna Ruth Byler, from Akron, Pennsylvania , visited MCC volunteers teaching sewing in Puerto Rico to those living in poverty. The volunteers were searching for ways to better their program and improve the lives of the students. Byler brought some of the classes pieces back to the United States to sell to friends and family. The demand surprised even her and she soon found herself selling cross-stich needlework form Palestinian refugees and Haitian woodenware. In the 1970's the small project moved out of Byler's basement and became an official program of the MCC . The program became to be known as SELFHELP Crafts of the World, and kept this name for 50 years. In 1996 the name was changed to Ten Thousand Villages. TODAY Today Ten Thousand Villages has over 180 stores across North America and is a member of the Fair Trade Federation and the International Fair Trade Association . Ten Thousand Villages sold $15 million worth of fair trade goods in the United States and another $3 million in Canada between March 2003 and April 2004 (Garriga, 2004). The stores run as non-profits. This allows more money to be sent to the devoloping nations. SOURCES Garriga, Maria. New Haven, Conn., fair trade shop owners pay Third World artisans fairly Knight Ridder Tribune Business News. Washington: Dec 26, 2004 1 EXTERNAL LINKS
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