Trade
Since the earliest times we have traded with other people to get things we want. We started by selling and exchanging things we had grown and made, for things we wanted but could not grow or make ourselves. We began to travel further afield to other countries, and found new items to buy and exchange. This led to the development of a vast worldwide network of trading routes.
Today trade connects people across the world. Many of the items of clothing we are wearing or foods we eat probably come from other countries. Trade also generates huge wealth - trillions of dollars are made every year. However not everyone benefits equally from the profits of trade. The international rules which govern trade are unfairly balanced in favour of richer countries. Trade could be a powerful force for poverty reduction, giving poor countries a chance to work themselves out of poverty. But at the moment trade is actually making poor people poorer.