Fair Trade and Climate Change

Most Fair Trade producers live close to the land. They are either directly involved in farming fairtrade tea, coffee, bananas etc. or are subsistence farmers supplementing the family income with craft production. As such they are concerned about their environment and the land. Fair Trade actively encourages better environmental practices and the application of responsible methods of production. Revenue from Fair Trade cooperatives is used on a variety of community projects, including training of producers in organic and sustainable farming techniques (i.e. composting). Where possible fair trade premiums are invested in diversification. Cafe Direct and their project, Adaptation for Smallholders to Climate Change" (AdapCC), supports coffee and tea farmers in developing strategies to cope with the risks and impacts of climate change.

All Fairtrade certified producers are required to comply with the international Fairtrade environmental standard as part of the requirements of certification.8 The standard requires producers to ensure that they protect the natural environment and make environmental protection a part of farm management. Producers are also encouraged to minimize waste and the use of energy, especially energy from non-renewable sources.

There is the issue of transporting goods great distances so that well meaning consumers can make fair trade choices. Saving the planet is not solely about reducing carbon emissions. There are over one million people in Africa whose livelihoods depend on supplying fruit and vegetables into Ireland and the UK. Carbon Emissions from the Africa/British Isles trade route are a tiny portion of our worldwide total. Cutting off the income of this many people would cause devastation on a much greater scale than that caused by the emissions. Most Fair Trade goods are actually shipped and that would be the case with the majority of items we offer for sale at Arusha Fair Trade.

We must focus on the basic facts; the poorest people in the world will be affected most by climate change and the poorest people in the world have done the least to cause climate change. They need a sustainable income if they are to make the investments necessary to help them overcome climate change.

Fair Trade creates a way to secure this income for the farmers. Unfortunately, the benefits of Fair Trade are not reaching all Fair Trade farmers because of insufficient demand for their crops. Producers sell an average of 20% of their crop at Fair Trade terms; the rest goes through the world market at much lower prices. The same story goes for artisans. Lower prices mean that farmers and their families, in poor countries, live in poverty with no prospect of investing for climate change.
The prospect is appalling. If you haven’t done so already you need to watch this video: http://faceit.oxfamireland.org/video.php

This blog has been posted as our contribution to Blog Action Day, an annual event held every October 15, that unites the world’s bloggers in posting about the same issue on the same day with the aim of sparking discussion around an issue of global importance. The topic for 2009 is Climate Change

Top 10 Reasons to Support Fair Trade

1. Fair Trade means fair pay and working conditions for farmers and producers. Fair Trade products are made in safe and healthy working conditions, where farmers and producers receive a fair price and have a voice in how their workplace is run.


2. Fair Trade is better for the environment. Fair Trade supports sustainable practices that minimize our environmental footprint.


3. Fair Trade means high quality goods. Artisans take pride in their work. Crafts are often handmade, which translates into closer attention to detail and in the end higher-quality products.


4. Fair Trade means better tasting food. Farmers are involved and invested in the entire production process, and crops are grown and harvested in smaller quantities. As a result, Fair Trade food is fresher and tastier.


5. Fair Trade is safe. Fair Trade actively promotes integrated farm management systems that improve soil fertility and preserve valuable ecosystems, and limit the use of harmful agrochemicals that present dangers to farmers’ health. That means food that’s safer for you and for the people who grow it.


6. Fair Trade supports communities. By working through cooperative structures, Fair Trade artisans and small farmers are able to invest Fair Trade earnings in their communities, improving housing, healthcare, and schools.


7. Fair Trade is trade farmers can count on. Fair Trade is committed to strengthening direct partnerships between buyers and producers. These partnerships provide an avenue for buyers to purchase quality products from people they trust, and offer a sustainable and reliable way for farmers, artisans and their families to improve their livelihood.


8. Fair Trade connects you with other cultures. Fair Trade products are unique to the places they come from and the people who make them. Farmers and artisans are involved in the entire process, and Fair Trade products reflect the people and cultures they come from.


9. Fair Trade means sustainable local economies. Fair Trade gives farmers and artisans control of their own future. They can build their own businesses, rather than working for a middle man, and the profits stay in their communities and go back into their businesses.


10. Fair Trade means what you buy matters. By choosing Fair Trade products, you are not only accessing high quality products, you are making a difference in the lives of the people who grow the food you eat and the goods you use.

(Fair Trade Resource Network 2008)

August 19th is World Humanitarian Day.

Established by the General Assembly (GA) of the United Nations in December 2008, 19 August 2009 is the first World Humanitarian Day. The designation of the Day is a way to increase public understanding of humanitarian assistance activities worldwide. The Day also aims to honour humanitarian workers who have lost their lives or been injured in the course of their work.

Why 19 August? - Six years ago, on 19 August 2003, the United Nations office in Iraq was bombed and 22 people lost their lives. Among them was Sergio Vieira de Mello, at that time the UN’s High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Special Representative of the Secretary-General to Iraq. While there have been many other fatal incidents involving humanitarian personnel the General Assembly decided to use the anniversary of this incident as World Humanitarian Day.

We would like to mark World Humanitarian Day by mentioning a couple of our producers engaged in humanitarian service:

St. Mary’s, Ahmadabad, India
St. Mary’s Mahila Shikshan Kendra, is a non profit Women’s Handicraft Organization run by the Dominican Sisters of the Rosary in Gomtipur, Ahmadabad since 1970. They are committed to the development of economically and socially marginalized women in Gomtipur, a slum pocket of Ahmadabad. St. Mary’s aims to give employment with fair wages to women of Gomtipur from minority social, cultural and religious groups. Working together as a group in the Centre the women develop a sense of community.

St. Mary’s concentrates mainly on hand embroidery in cotton; using their indigenous craftsmanship, these women immigrants produce high quality mirror work and embroidery in traditional designs. Their products include cushion covers, letter boxes, bags, purses, bed spreads, table cloths and Christmas presents.By adhering to very high standards of quality control, they try their best to inspire in them a deep sense of self-respect and integrity of character, earning their own hard earned wages without any trace of pity or condescension, thus bringing them in touch with their own basic human dignity. Besides their rightful wages, all surplus profits or producer dividends are shared with the women.

The Sisters also have a dispensary, a maternity clinic and Medical centre called ‘St. Mary’s Nursing Home’, they run health programmes, saving schemes, loans especially for educational and health purposes, a government recognised course for women in sewing, embroidery and design and also educational scholarships for their children. They ensure that the women send their children to school and educate them and avoid child labour. In many cases when the women are incapable of paying the fees, and educating their children especially the girls they help them by paying their fees etc.

The Esther Benjamin’s Trust, India and Nepal

In 2002 the EBT sent research teams to the 30 major Indian circuses. At great personal danger, teams identified 232 children under the age of 14, 82% of them girls and nearly all Nepalese. Most of the children had been trafficked at the age of 8 or 9 (although some had been as young as 5). They told how their village communities had been preyed upon by professional agents who had tricked their impoverished and illiterate parents into handing them over to the circus for just a few dollars.

Thumbprints on documents that the naïve parents could not read condemned their children to an 18-hour per day, seven days per week routine for the next 10 to 15 years. Inadvertently they were also handing over their children to a life of malnourishment, harsh training schedules and vicious beatings by the circus staff. Frequently the girls would also be sexually assaulted.

Bold rescue teams were sent to confront the circus owners and use all legal means on the ground to secure freedom. This high-risk process led to the release of over 200 trafficking victims during the period 2003 - 2006. The youngest children who return from the circuses can mostly - and safely - be reunited with their parents and join school at an appropriate age.

For the older girls who might lack the academic ability or interest in joining formal education there is a skills training project to help them get back on their feet and gain an independent life, however, it has became evident that securing jobs for the returnees is virtually impossible due to the social stigma associated with being trafficked. So in 2005, instead of trying to secure outside employment for the girls the EBT, in conjunction with Hatti Trading (UK) set up a handbag production centre under Fair Trade conditions to provide a realistic economic alternative to being re-trafficked.

The Esther Benjamin’s Trust and the charity is on hand to look out for the girls’ welfare, but the production centre is now an independent entity.

What wasn't anticipated at the time was the impact it would have on the girls who worked there; suddenly, they transitioned from being ‘charity cases’ to independent professional young women working for a foreign organisation. Their self esteem went through the roof; finally they could hold their head up high when asked what they do. At the same time there was a move to a new premises so the locals had no knowledge of what they had come from, and the girls could at last truly move on from their past. A selection of these beautifully made bags are sold by Arusha Fair Trade.

You might be interested in reading more about the Esther Benjamin’s Trust and their work with children and young girls rescued from Indian circus: http://www.ebtrust.org.uk/.

Fair Trade v Free Trade

Source: Artisans World Marketplace

Child Slave Labour and Jewellery Manufacture

Did you know that child slave labour is common in jewellery manufacture? Trafficked children, or others who work to support their families, are often used because their little hands are good with beads. Children are also sent into underground mines to salvage precious stones or put to work polishing and cutting diamonds. When Dan McDougall of the Observer visited Delhi he found children as young as eight sewing crystals into clothing, holding their needles with blistered fingertips. According to UNICEF, (as of 2006,) an estimated 158 million children aged 5-14 years are engaged in child labour in developing countries. In India in particular the extensive reality of child labour is well recognized and contributes considerable value each year to the diamond industry.

We have a unique collection of jewellery at Arusha Fair Trade which you can buy with the comfort of knowing that it was produced by adults who were paid a fair wage for their work. All of the jewellery is stylish, handmade and of excellent quality. We feature pieces from India, Peru, Kenya, Thailand and the Philippines which are ideal for day wear or to match up with your special occasion dress.

Arusha is Ireland’s leading online fair trade gift store.

Arusha Fair Trade was set up to provide a place where you can find lovely gifts for you and your family, at reasonable prices, and also make a difference to the lives of the people who produce the products. Our aim is to have a gift for every occasion.

Each beautiful item is fairly traded and traceable back to the original producer and their community, making an outstanding present. Each product is deliveredwith an information sheet on the organisation and people who produced the products. These are wonderful stories of people improving their lives through trade instead of aid.

Most of our products are handmade from natural materials by skilled artisans. For this reason there may be minor variations in colour, finish and dimensions and the item you purchase will be unique.