Fair trade is environmentally responsible. It helps small farmers cultivate their lands in a sustainable manner. When farmers are paid fairly, they don’t need to cut down forests to plant more coffee crops. Fair trade changes farmers’ lives and improves their communities. It helps them achieve financial stability and economic independence. It breaks the cycle of dependence on middlemen who did not necessarily act in the best interest of the producers and empowers small farmers through the formation of cooperatives. These cooperatives mean they now have access to credit, opportunities to learn better and more sustainable farming techniques, and access to marketing and technical assistance. Most importantly, being part of a cooperative means small farmers no longer constantly worry about meeting basic needs food, housing, health care, and education. The cooperatives help provide those needs by building schools, providing access to health care, and improving infrastructure, all of which improve the standard of living for the farmers, their families, and their communities.