Rainbows are symbols of hope and promise, and also of inclusion and diversity. When turtles are ‘bellyup’ they are at their most vulnerable to attack and it seems that the poorest people in the world will be forever vulnerable unless we turn trade values the right way up!

How Rainbow Turtle started:

Rainbow Turtle was set up in Paisley in 2002 by a group concerned with the promotion and development of Fair Trade. The objective was to raise public awareness of Fair Trade and encourage more people to buy fairly traded products. Since then Rainbow Turtle has been the ‘face of Fair Trade’ in Renfrewshire and have worked with the local community towards the successful bid to gain:

Fairtrade status for Paisley in 2003
Fairtrade Zone status for Renfrewshire in 2009
Following the success of Bishopton in 2007, Lochwinnoch in 2008, Renfrew in 2012 and Kilbarchan in 2013 all achieving Fairtrade status, we are currently supporting other towns and villages along the way.

For many years now we have worked with schools, faith groups and other organisations providing talks and workshops to help educate the local community. We are committed to using education as a means of raising awareness of fair trade and the issues surrounding it. Knowledge is power as they say and we believe the more informed we are about the world around us, the more positive an impact we can have.

What we do:

Rainbow Turtle comprises two distinct but related areas of activity: a Trading Company and a Charity. The trading company, Rainbow Turtle Just Trading, is a registered social enterprise that supports Fair Trade sales through its delightful shop in Paisley and offers stalls to schools, businesses and faith groups. To find out more visit our Just Trading page.

Rainbow Turtle is also a recognised Scottish Charity (Scottish Charity number SC034097) committed to working in partnership with producers in the developing world. The charity works in several ways to enhance the profile of Fair Trade, including offering support and advice about fair trade to schools, organising producer visits and giving talks to schools, faith groups and other organisations. To learn more about what we do visit our Charity page.

Get involved:

We have many people supporting the work that we do – some are Friends of Rainbow Turtle and some are volunteers. If you would like to help in some way we would be delighted to hear from you.

Useful links:

Scottish Fair Trade
Fairtrade Foundation
British Association for Fair Trade Shops (BAFTS)
True Origin