Evaluating trade policies: the political engagement of religious actors in Costa Rica, Canada, and the United States

Trade policies have been a contested aspect of economic globalization. Concerns arise over economic outcomes, political processes, and the balance of power between states and corporations. Religious actors are rarely studied in spite of their political discourse and engagement in trade policy debates. In this paper, I examine three faith communities in the Americas that have been engaged in debates over trade policies, specifically NAFTA, CAFTA and CA4FTA. I find that the Catholic Church in Costa Rica, the Presbyterian Church in the USA, and Kairos, an ecumenical justice coalition in Canada, have all been engaged in discussion and public action surrounding trade policies. Religious values of solidarity and community have been part of the discourse of these groups as they critique market foundations. However, the groups vary in the ways they understand their role in engaging the political economy. Options vary from 1) framing policy debates within key values, 2) providing a lens with which to evaluate policy decisions and 3) taking action on behalf of an alternative economic order.